I'm just back from one of the craziest months I've had since baby Jack was born. I'm now the treasurer of my local RWA chapter and we had our meeting the first Saturday of the month--an all day event which is always great fun. On Monday night, I went to Lady Jane's Salon to hear some excellent romance readings. By Wednesday evening I was on a plane to Ireland with baby and husband. We spent a week there and got Jack baptised on Easter Sunday (an interesting experience for this non-Catholic). The Friday after getting back from Ireland, Jack had his nine month well-baby appointment. And then four days after returning from Ireland, Jack and I were on a plane to Orlando, FL for the Romantic Times Booklovers Convention. We spent an entire week in Orlando, got stuck in Washington Dulles on the way home for three hours (I'm only taking direct flights from now on when I travel with baby on my own!), and then my parents arrived for a visit that night.
Pretty busy April, huh?
But to be fair, Jack was brilliant, despite cutting teeth and getting a little cold in Ireland. He even managed to sleep through two of my big events at RT--the Starships and Sorcery panel and the Intergalactic Bar & Grille. Okay, there were a few moments of less than stellar behavior, mostly in the privacy of our hotel room so that no one else saw him being fussy. He's a bit of a show-off so was on his best behavior most of the time in front of all the friendly ladies who stopped by to coo over him. But still, given what he'd been through, I think he did an excellent job.
He even did well during both the ebook signing on Wednesday and the big bookfair on Saturday. And because I feed him well, he helped flog my books by first wearing his "Romance Hero in Training" t-shirt and then his "Please buy my Mommy's Books. I eat a lot!" t-shirt. Isn't he a good boy? :) Angela James (from Samhain Publishing) twittered his two little shirts, at least I think she got both. Here's the link to Romance Hero in Training. I'll have to keep looking for the other, or take a picture myself.
Although, trying to take pictures of the little guy is a bit like herding cats--if there's no one there to help, getting a picture that's more than a blur of motion is tricky.
At any rate, the conference overall went very well. It was nice to have sunny weather and a pool to dip my toes in--even if I did forget my swimsuit. Baby got his feet wet for the first time in a swimming pool and that was great fun. Having the ducks get within grabbing distance was fun for little 9 month hands too! I got to visit with dear friends and meet a bunch of new friends and I'm so glad we got to go this year.
On the last day, as I was getting my gear into the shuttle back to the airport, I was asked by a reader which was more difficult, being at RT pregnant last year or having the baby with me this year. Good question! And surprisingly, I found being pregnant at RT more difficult. I was forced by baby's schedule to slow down and get some sleep this year. Last year, despite the fact that I should have slowed down and slept more, I pushed myself to do all the things I wanted to do. Also, I'm pretty used to sleep deprivation at this point (9 months later). When pregnant, there was no way to get around the exhaustion. And also, I could have a glass of wine (or a chocolate martini) this year. That made a huge difference :)
Given the success, and the fact that I got back with some semblence of a brain, I'm thinking Columbus, OH is a go next year. How that will work...well, I have a year to plan, don't I? Although, I think I'll take a week or two before I start in on that.
Now, the big question, do I actually join Twitter and start to tweet? Hmmm.... Tough one. Any comments, suggestions, or advice on that subject will be greatly appreciated!
