About Ready to "Push"

The book is almost ready. I plan to give it the green light on my birthday, December 4th. I think that will work out nicely. So there you have it. The first--and hopefully not the last--collection goes on sale this coming Sunday. I will put up a link for anyone interested on Sunday.

Of course, this has not happened without some sacrifices. I don't think I will have time to design, print out, and mail Christmas cards the way I usually do. I'm hoping to at least put together an e-card, but that won't help with friends and relatives that haven't given me an email address. I feel bad about this, but I had to let some things go in order to get this project done. Thanksgiving was also tricky since I was hosting it and at the same time trying to finish some last minute editing. Everything came together in the end. Things were just a lot more hectic than I had anticipated.

The project itself has taken me most of this year to accomplish. I'm thankful for having a supportive family through all of this. They are my editing and technical staff. Nothing you read in my book hasn't been proofread and approved by them. There was one final error on the back cover that my mom noticed this week. I should have shown her the book sooner. Everyone else missed it until it was pointed out. Then it was glaringly obvious. It was a misplaced "the." The "the" has been dealt with.

My husband and children have also been there for moral support. I have had many crying spells, fits of anxiety, and fears of inadequacy through all of this. These aren't simply comics and essays for me, they are a reflection of our early homeschooling life and my educational philosophy. Putting them all together into a book has been like going through a prolonged labor. I'm at the stage where I just want to push the baby out, but the actual birth is scaring me. I don't want anyone to tell me my "baby" is ugly, or that I should have done something different because it isn't what they expected. Fear of criticism isn't just a bump in the road for me, it's a bed of hot coals and I'm bare-footed.* That's when my family encloses me with hugs and reassurance that it will all be fine. I can do this.

And I can do this. Because I have a great family and friends who believe in me. Thank you all for that. I'm truly blessed to have you in my life.

*The analogy is for my dad, who has actually walked across hot coals. I wanted to use something that is scary, but possible. If he can do it for real, I guess I can cross my virtual hot coals!