Last weekend I returned from Farm & Grow in La Crosse, Wisconsin, run by the Modern Day Farm Chick, Annaliese Wegner. This was my second time attending this event and I have picked some doozy weather patterns to attend this conference. Last year I drove through tornadoes to the east and west of me but safely made it right through, and this year my drive was preceded by snow and ice storms. As I drove through a large chunk of Iowa, I could see the aftermath as vehicle after vehicle lined the medians and ditches, some backwards, some turned over. I even saw a school bus off the road near Iowa City. They had all been abandoned a day before, but thankfully I was driving through at an opportune time and the highways were clear. I only had my own poor driving skills to deter me. This conference occurred right on time. I was in a winter slump. I could feel the lack of sunshine, outdoor time, alone time, coming down on me like a cloud. I could feel my anxiety on high alert from overwork and over-momming. I needed this conference to recharge my battery. At Farm & Grow, I was able to socialize with other adults. I was reminded that I can be awesome (I'm tooting my own horn here, but multiple ladies told me to my face that I am awesome, so dog gone it, I must be awesome). I needed that because in January, I don't feel awesome. I feel like a lump of poo. During our session time, we were asked to focus on ourselves: our wants, our needs, our skills, and our goals. As a mom, I sometimes have to step away and ask myself those things so I remember that I can take care of myself too. I am the absolute worst at taking care of myself. I do not ask for help. I sacrifice sleep to work, to clean, or just a fret. I don't relax. Since this gave me a boost, I've decided to map out my year of conference or development time. These dates will be for me to do what I need and love to do to get my mind right for the year. So I've covered this quarter of the year, but here's the link in case you are also interested in learning about Anneliese or the Farm & Grow event: https://annaliesewegner.com/ At least check out the webpage. Her picture on the front is soooo Wisconsin and soooo boss. . April - the MASL conference - This is the Missouri Association of School Librarians conference. Technically this is a school event, yes, and there is nothing like being an educator to give you anxiety, but this is different. This conference is a double whammy. It resets me as an educator but also resets me as a writer. I come home with lesson plans, classroom strategies, program ideas, not just for myself but for all the staff in our building, all the things to excite me about my job as an educator, but I also get to meet authors with amazing stories and this motivates me as a writer. I also get a bit of free time in the mornings and evenings to write, which doesn't always happen at home. June - At the end of June I am going on a trip with my sister-in-law to New Orleans. She will be attending the VETgirl U conference while I have the day to write and pamper myself. I attended this conference with her last August and our free time was filled with conversations about what she learned during the day, spa sessions, lots of food, and some day drinking by the pool on flamingo floaties. A fruity drink in the afternoon really gets the humorous writing going. Sometimes it’s just too terrible to share, but I still get a good laugh. This is the Ernest Hemingway route to professional development. September/October - This is yet to be determined since it's so far out, but I have multiple things up my sleeve. I have another school conference I could attend, which like the MASL conference, puts me in the right mindset or, and this is my real hope, that my husband will agree to go on a trip with me as my research assistant for my third book. You see, it’s about agriculture and travel, and I can really nail the travel part, but he has to walk me through the agriculture parts like I’m a 2-year-old. He always has, and he always will. And now I'm back to next January, which hopefully will be another Farm & Grow event. Sometimes the dates change so if it's during another month, I'll still be attending, but I most certainly will not forget to plan something in January. I’m old enough and smart enough to recognize that this just is not my month so I need to plan accordingly. If that means a trip to sunshine, so be it. If that means I’ve already broken the bank on other trips, then I’ll send my kids to Grandma so I can enjoy a quiet house and venture to the salon for a cheap trip in the tanning bed for some fake sunshine to trick my mind into motivation. This is my goal to keep my head in the right place, focused on my writing, and rested enough to be the Captain Underpants version of a superhero mom. Wish me luck and if you have any other conferences you'd like to share, let me know. Leave a Reply. |
AuthorThis is my therapeutic release for all the things that annoy me about living on a farm. If I can make it humorous, I can survive it. |