My seasonal allergies are killing me today. I read once that trees pollenate at night and it sure does feel that way to my sinuses. I was up half the night with nasal congestion and sneezing. This morning, my face is puffy, my eyes are running and I’m constantly sneezing. Yes, I took meds but apparently they aren’t strong enough because it doesn’t feel like anything is stopping my allergies.

I’m saying all of this because I usually record a vlog after my weekly writing sessions and post it to YouTube. This week, I sat down to record my vlog and my face just looked too puffy to put that on YouTube. Rather than vlog, I’ve decided to blog.

The truth is, I’m a writer at heart. The only reason I ended up on YouTube at all is a strange convoluted story that I never really planned for or expected. Writing is my natural habitat and where I feel the most comfortable. And so this week, I’m posting my writer’s notebook as a blog instead of a video vlog.

For those of you who haven’t been following my vlog anyway, this post is a recap of my process as an aspiring author and an update on where I am with my book.

I am a working mom with two small kids. Even with the COVID-19 imposed “social distancing,” I still am working full time during the week and taking care of kids in the off hours. As a result, I take the weekends to work on my book. Before the cafe’s and restaurants shut down, I would walk to my local Starbucks, plant a tree in my Forest app, turn on some Chillhop and focus on writing for at least an hour. I know, it’s not much, so progress is slow but it’s a routine that fits my life with all the other commitments I have.

I’m writing a book about the life lessons that I learned going through the sudden loss of my bother and mother just eighteen months apart. I want the book to be more than a book about grief and really more of a book about how learning to deeply accept the reality of death in our lives can empower us to live our best lives.

The last two weeks of writing sessions have been tough. It could be all of the COVID anxiety in my life or it could be my seasonal allergies or the fact that one of my kids has been sick with tummy issues (probably all of the above) but my focus has felt fuzzy and writing has been a struggle. Even so, I feel proud of myself for sticking with it. Despite the brain fog and the struggle with focusing, I’ve managed to keep my routine and that is a win in my book. Today was my first writing session since the coffee shops closed and so I did my writing in our home office. It was a bit harder to write at home with the kids upstairs but my husband does a great job of making sure I’m not interrupted. We often take turns to allow each other to get a break from the kids.

In these days of the COVID pandemic, I never really know what each morning will bring. I’m taking things day-by-day in every aspect of my life and celebrating the small wins each day. My allergies suck but I was able to get in a good hour of writing today and I’m happy about that. That’s what I want to focus on and that’s what matters.

Until next time, I #amwriting!