Can you believe
it? School starts around here in less than a month.
As an empty
nester, the approach of that annual event doesn’t affect me quite so much now.
No collections of school clothes to buy. (With four children, that was always
quite the monumental undertaking.) No before and after child care to line up. (As a working
mom, always an end of summer priority.)
Remember that
Staples commercial – maybe it will be on again – with the gleeful parent
pushing a shopping cart while clicking their heels and singing ‘It’s the most
wonderful time of the year…’ I used to love that ad. Sang that song to my own
children all the time too.
But, that’s not
what I meant to talk about.
On The Make, Book
3 in the Brothers in Blue series is my current work in progress.
She no longer believes in heroes, or happily ever after. He's determined to prove her wrong.
The book features a recently widowed, single mom
raising two adolescent boys, one who is in a particularly difficult stage of
rebellion. Having raised the aforementioned four kids, I’m calling up memories
of some of our more trying times to help get my creative juices flowing.
Not that any of my offspring were necessarily out and out rebellious, but we did have our moments. And
thank goodness I wasn’t a single mom, but had a strong, supportive partner to
navigate the sometimes choppy child raising waters with me. Such as:
1.
Those first days, weeks, months with a new
driver’s license
2.
The friends they coveted who weren’t necessarily
the best choice
3.
Those ‘everyone else gets to, why can’t I?’
discussions
4.
The ‘make your bed and clean your room’ requests
that seem to be unheard
5.
The ‘there’s nothing to eat’ wails after a mega trip to the grocery store
6.
The eye rolls. For no particular offense, except for simply being…parental
I could go on,
but you get the idea.
Again, as an empty nester, there’s a bonus in here
too. While those recollections are
helpful, I get to do some real time, here and now research as well. As I watch two of those
four I told you about before navigate the same issues with their offspring.
Plus, I have to say…paybacks really are very, very sweet.
How about you?
What’s in your research arsenal and how do you use it?
My days to blog
here are the 11th and 23rd. For more about me and the
stories I write, please visit my WEBSITE
Or find me around here:
15 comments:
Great post, Margo. My mom was a single mother, and I grew up without my father, or any man, a presence in my life. I haven't tapped that well yet (maybe too close?), but maybe some day. It was me, my mom and sister who formed our little family. For much of my growing years, the male species might has well have been an alien species to me. (Too many jokes come to mind here. I'll leave them all.) But since marrying and having my two sons, I've been in close proximity with that "species" for many, many years. (Even the cat is a male.) So I have tapped the well of the male psyche for my books. I picture them collectively, or individually, in a scene to figure out how my male character(s) might act. I store up odd/confusing (to me) reactions. It's all story fodder now...little do they know! :-)
Oh, Leah. You must have had a very, very strong mother. Lucky you. Then you lived in a totally (cat included) male household. Talk about being well rounded. ;-) And now you have the daughter in law as well. Wait for the grandkids, Leah. Quite the deal!!!
I'll admit some of the kids I've written into my books mirror certain aspects of my daughters. None in my current WIP. I did spend some time this weekend on the internet researching different types of memory loss. Fascinating. That's where I do most of my research, when I'm not bugging your husband about law enforcement related issues...
I might be anomaly but I hated the end of summer. I absolutely loved having my kids home. Except, I will admit, when they were 11 = 13. Preteens can be unbearable. :)
Like your child character Keely in Lost Innocence, Jannine. At the time, I called on experiences with my six year old granddaughter to help bring out her 'precociousness'. I do believe it worked. Hmmm. These days, I can probably help with the memory loss research too, LOL. As far as the husband, you know he's always glad to help.
My 'Most Wonderful' impression was more to tease my kids than anything else, Robin. Ah, yes, the preteen years. Memories, huh?
When my kids were babies, I wanted them to be older so we could talk (and I would know why they were crying, etc.). It seemed like I was always waiting for them to be older. Until they hit their teens. Yikes! But, now I get to enjoy those lovely times all over again with the grandkids. I'm savoring each age--the cuddling, the excitement to watch each stage of development, the talking (and understanding), etc. Because I didn't savor each stage with my own, I'm lucky to get a second chance. Using their unique expressions adds so much charm to stories. I have to be careful they don't take over the story.
Kids and animals, Diane. They upstage everything! It's true, we're so focused on raising our children, we don't often take, or have, the time to truly enjoy each distinctive stage. It's great we do get that second chance with the grandkids. Ah, yes, those unforgettable teen years. Gives me the willies just thinking about them. LOL
I modeled Grace, the five-year-old in Undercover Nanny, after my daughter. She wasn't difficult at all but was extremely bright and precocious. I'll never forget her pre-school teacher telling me, "The things she says!" I just laughed. One evening OG stopped at an Italian restaurant on his way home from work and walked in carrying a bag. Our three-year-old relieved him of it at the door, assuming of course it had to be a present for her. The look on her face when she opened it and exclaimed, "Why would ANYONE bring me lasagna?" was priceless.
From the mouths of babes, Alison. Isn't it great how those little princesses of ours can be so very charmingly indignant. Can't tell you the number of times my kids, and grandkids do or say things that stop me in my tracks. Wouldn't trade any of it.
I thoroughly enjoyed your post, Margo. It brought back so many memories. My two boys said and did some of the funniest things imaginable when they were little. I'm sure they'll find their way into a book someday. :)
Glad I could reciprocate, Jolana, since you've entertained me in the same way many, many times. I could tell you stories.... Our kids can be a hoot. Especially when they share things as adults, they NEVER would have owned up to as children.
When my boys were little, and I a single mom, living in Federal housing, we did have a television, which constantly bombarded us with toy commercials. I finally gave up and would sit with them, enjoying the advertisement, tell them how great the toy was. I don't think it helped. They knew they were poor.
I tell my husband, when he sees a dame worth his attention, "That's a 'no', dear."
I was the mother who rejoiced when my husband had dinner meetings. I always said, "We're having cereal for dinner! YAY!" My son loved it until he hit middle school, then it was, "We're DRIVING THROUGH for dinner! Yay!" LOL.
Ha, loved the post! I do remember that commercial, LOL. I also remember the back to school days for my three. At the time, it was mega stressful, now I'd like to go back, just for a few moments and let time stand still. But...I'd probably be soooo happy to snap back to reality, LOL. Can't wait to read your next in the series! For research, I'm all over the place. Right now, researching stuff from 1947, like how murder cases were worked. Not easy finding a lot of info.
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