Hi everyone!

2020 is the year when nannies go crazy! After letting go the Saturdays nanny in the spring (mostly because she wanted to be paid while not working) we're letting go the one we've had on weekdays for more than 3 years for similar reasons. Out of all the nannies and baby-sitters we had, she was the one we considered as the girls' surrogate grandmother and definitely the one contract we did not expect to go sore (especially as she one year away from retirement now). 

But sore it went, and quite badly. she kept being passive-agressive with me, then blatantly discriminating against me (not because I'm queer or biracial, she just treated me differently from her other 2 employers and even from Hubby!), meddling with my schedule and such. It turned sour and eventually, there were 2 arguments (in front of the girls because of course she brought things up infront of them, and even another kid...) and insults from her.

The thing that triggered my anger, besides her constant nagging and complaining, was that she used my daughters, trying to make me look like a crazy violent mother while my anger was only directed at her, while all along she had been centered on her own comfort instead of theirs (it all started because I decided to let them wake up naturally now that school is over... A thing we've done for years when it was possible).

The discrimintation and the harassment hit me hard though. It completely ruined my week. This was supposed to be my first real break in over 2 years (what with all the work, moving, surgery and so on, all my breaks since 2018 have been turned into non-relaxing times)

So no writing at all, very little work and a lot of crying and feeling stressed by it all. Hubby and some freinds were very supportive and I'm starting to feel better, but I guess I was on the verge of a mental breakdown on Thursday, when it all exploded. This has tainted everything and Now I'm worried about how the girls will react, because they do love her but there's no way in hell I'm leaving them with her again...

It's also a complication because I'm supposed to work with the girls at home now. Hubby is going to be here but his back is still not well, so it won't be easy on him. And if he does get better, he'll have to go back to work, making the situation even more complicated.

That's why I've decided to adapt my goals: no online course content except test until September, a new schedule for tutorials (probably starting in Spetember too) and lower writing goals because I need to isolate myself to focus.

How about you? Do you need to be alone to write or can you write when the house is buzzing? Let me know in the comments.

Color code:

0-10% in red
11-24% in pink
25-39% in orange
40-59% in yellow
60-99% in green
100% in flashy green
Normally, there's also blue for progress and pause in purple, but right now i'll focus on numbers and only goals where progress has been made.

Now for this week: 

WRITING: I'll focus on one project mainly while following completed ones.

"Hour of the Wolf": If the publisher does not decide to release it as part of the collection, I'll probably make it a freebie (ebook and Wattpad). I'm guessing they'll make a decision soon as their collection is to be released in November, so I'll adjust this goal accordingly once I hear from them. 

Sci-fi erotica series Miss Chief in Wonderland: I started writing again and would like to have a few short stories ready for publication in 2021 or 2022. I rescheduled everything I had planned doing this week.

• Plan season 1
• Draft episode 1: 39%
• Expand episode 5
• Draft episode 7
• Draft episode 8
• Draft episode 9
• Reorganize episodes

WORK: Lots to do here! I'll try and get as much done as possible, though I expect life to keep getting in the way as it has lately. 

Promotion: Over the summer, Hubby and I will build a communication strategy to get more business our way in September (since the summer is always slow). 5%

Online courses: I'll focus on making online tests as I can use it immediately with current student, then I'll go back to making the lessons. Hubby and I will also take a look at a new theme for my business website and also upgrade the webhost (which means my writer's site will be hosted there too). I did manage to make 1 test.

• Website stuff : upgrade host, new theme, LMS stuff... 
• English - Starters: make tests 18%
• English - Elementary: make tests 22%
• English - Pre-intermediate: make tests 17%
• Hanashimashou: resume making contents ASAP

Quality certification: I can take it easy now but I'll keep doing bite-size tasks weekly.

• cross-referencing document: I'll finish it during the Round.
• tutorials: I'll keep making them, aiming at 2-4 a month, depending on how much material and preparation is needed. 6%

Story Time: I'll keep making baby steps weekly, mostly preparatory work.

• Wizard & Cat: signpost at least 1 episode a week. 19%
• Timmy & the Hungry Monster: make a general plan, list the language, list the material. I'm listing the language and I'm somewhere around 35%.

PUBLISHING: I'll mostly market my books, old and new.

Curiouser & Curiouser (my debut novel, in French only for now): I'll keep track of reviews and sales, while marketing the book some more. 

Red Hot Spring (English): I'll make the final preparations to publish in August and market. 61%

We Missed Each Other (English): I'll start making preparations once Red Hot Spring is ready. 34%

PERSONAL: We'll do some damage control and try and get help while Hubby is stuck with a slipped disk. 

House renovation: that's the big question mark as most of the things that need to be done require Hubby or help. In the meantime, we'll focus on what contractors are supposed to do.

• parental suite: still aiming at finishing it this year if we can. For this Round, sealing the tiles in the bathroom would be nice. And why not buy the wooden floor for the bedroom and threshold?
• insulation: we need to get the contractor sent by the insurance company to come and the other ones to give us their estimates.

Housework: I'll mostly try and keep up what's been settled last Round. Maybe add a couple of new rooms (namely the porch entrance & workshop)  if I can get help from family and friends to get rid of the spiders in there (I'm extremely phobic when it comes to those...). I'll also try and get my office in order before September is here. Overall: 47%

• office: finish reorganizing, archiving and so on. 50%
• porch entrance: get rid of spiders and webs, spray with repulsive product, deep clean, add to cleaning routine, set coat pegs
• workshop: get rid of spiders and webs, spray with repulsive product, deep clean, reorganize

Self-improvement: I'll keep learning as a teacher, writer and parent.

• Teaching early years MOOC: I'll be an active participant through the 6 weeks and implement new ideas at home and in my classes. 51% 
• Choose next course in August: probably something about teaching again.

Physical health: I'll try and be more and more active while making sure to give myself enough time to relax too and avoid burning out as a side effect of Hubby's slipped disk.

• Housework: I'll focus my energy on this to stay active on a daily basis.
• Stretching: I'll stretch every morning to prevent hurting myself while being active (I have a tendency to sprain)
• Yoga: I'll try and have a yoga session with my girls at least once a week. For starters, I'll look for the best time slot for this. 
• Abs/Fitness: if there's time and energy (ie if Hubby gets better and life stops happening so much), I'll get down to working on fixing my diastasis recti for good, then going back to fitness.

Mental health & journalling: I've started a digital journal and will keep using it daily to keep track of my moods, ideas, learning, etc. Later, I'll schedule a lookback time to make sure this is useful. I'll also keep reading about emotional intensity but more on that below.

Reading: I'll try to read daily.

Emotional intensity: I'll try and complete this reading and discuss it with Hubby.

Beta-reading a Sci-Fi novel: I'll make notes and send feedback to the writer by mid-August. 26%

Writer's website: I'll start the new website for sure, and hopefully get my hands on the original one to export it rather than rebuild from scratch. Hubby will help since sitting in the office armchair is the one thing he manages to do without feeling too horrible. We looked at domain names.