Interesting Detours: ROW 80 Check In

"Establishing goals is all right if you don't let them deprive you of interesting detours."

Doug Larson

Life is full of interesting detours, paths we choose that momentarily lead us away from our stated goals. This last week, I enjoyed those detours. I let them take my hand and lead me away from responsibilities. 

I enjoyed a lovely family-filled Thanksgiving with aunts, uncles, cousins, sisters, parents, children, brothers-in-law (a silly term, they are my brothers), and friends. After stuffing ourselves with wonderful food, we settled down with our memories. I haven't laughed that much in ages. Nothing makes me feel more connected than shared emotions.

Mom, my sister, and I tackled Black Friday shopping the next day. Although the sales were short of spectacular and the crowds a sign of a still suffering economy, we had fun finishing off lists and continuing our walk down memory lane. We remembered the time we stood out in the cold for a chance at a beanie baby. Really, a beanie baby?

I even squeezed in a fun Turkey Trot with my other sister Thursday morning. I got lost and my sister had to run around looking for me, but it'll just be another memory to laugh about in years to come. I managed to turn a 5K into a 3.4 mile run. That's okay. More turkey, oh let's just be honest, more pie for me that day!

Even more special than reliving memories is seeing our children build their own. Our family has seven granddaughters and one more on the way. They are close. With each passing year, we see them becoming friends and strengthening the ties that bind.

I am thankful for life's detours, they make me a better person. My to do list may have grown over the last few days, but so has my heart.

"In between goals is a thing called life, that has to be lived and enjoyed." Sid Caesar

My A Round of Words in 80 Days update

Writing: What's that? Seriously, I didn't write a darn thing. I did get a lot of editing done on my two car rides. Both are freelance projects that needed my attention, and they did get it. The next few days will be dedicated to catching up on my WIPs.

Blogging: I wrote ahead last week and posted every day here. Mom in Love with Fiction suffered a bit, no post since Tuesday, but it'll be full steam ahead this week.

Miscellaneous: I was hoping to read more, but I was going to bed late and waking up early. I'm hoping for some quiet evenings this week to read. Hoping, but not expecting. The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is crazy at best.

Exercise: See my note about the Turkey Trot above. I've managed pretty well, but need to get back in a regular pattern. I'm better with schedules than trying to "fit in" exercise. Except for Thanksgiving day, when all sugar rules went out the window, I've been sticking to my no sugar policy.

An extra goal this week: I'm going to get all my Christmas cards out by the first of next week. I send almost 150, so I try to tackle it in batches. Wish me luck.

A quick poll: do you prefer a card with a quick update or a full-blown Christmas letter? If it's a Christmas letter: do you prefer cute and inventive or details from the year?

Hope all my ROW80 friends enjoyed time last week with friends and family. For those doing NaNo, I'm still cheering. Three more days to go... you can do it