Kristin Albright's Blog

Succulents replanted into teak bowls

Sometime around mid-winter I'd mentioned to my husband that I wanted to get a few succulents. Their geometric patterns and promised low maintenance lured me in. He legitimately surprised me when he came home on Valentines Day carrying a paper bag from a local(ish) nursery. 

I looked up different pots and planters and fell in love with the idea of a wooden window planter. While reading through a tutorial I realized that I had a set of old teak bowls sitting in a box. The more I thought about it, the more perfect I thought it would be. Not only was it something we already had, but it would fit perfectly with the mid-century elements we were slowly adding to our flat.

I transplanted the succulents yesterday and love the look even more than I thought I would. Aren't they pretty?

Windowsill succulents

My son fell in love with at mushrooms while we were hiking in the Smokey Mountains this summer. Not eating them - just looking at them. "Mama come take a picture of this one! Look at that one!" We could hardly make it a minute without a new mushroom being spotted.  Everyone seemed to agree - it was a phenomenal year for mushrooms. Before we left the mountains we ended up buying a laminated mushroom guide at the Sugarland Visitor Center for our four year old.

Throughout the rest of the summer and the fall we heard many more requests to look up different mushrooms. We added a more in-depth resource to our backpacks - the National Audubon Society Field Guide to Mushrooms. The pre-occupation with mushrooms seemed to be here to stay.

When it was time to plan his birthday party I decided to plan for a forest theme and began looking for mushroom cakes on Pinterest. I thought I found the one when I saw cupcakes with red frosting and large white chocolate chips pressed into them for spots. They were simple and cute. When I showed my son my Pinterest find he spotted something far superior.  

He wanted "That one!" "That one" was a realistic log cake with meringue mushrooms on it. I couldn't blame him - it was an amazing cake. It looked so real! I wondered, could I really replicate that? Everything I read promised I could.

I ordered a 1A Wilton's frosting tip, waited for Amazon to deliver it, and then (the day before his party) I set out to make my little guy his dream mushroom cake. The mushrooms were a little time consuming but overall not difficult. I have to say the final product was SO cute. The dusting of cocoa powder really made them look real. I kept them in the freezer until right before the party which allowed them to stay crisp. All in all it was a fun project and I finally found a type of mushroom I like to eat. But I've learned my lesson, I'm not showing my kids anything on Pinterest ;)

Meringue Mushroom birthday cake with coconut flake grass

Our party theme ended up incorporating: Mushroom Origami Decorations, Mushroom Farm Centerpiece,  mushroom bead craft and of course Meringue Mushroom Birthday Cake!

You've probably started making your summer reading list by now. If not, you still have plenty of time. If a paperback copy of More than a Moment would look at home on your bookshelf, simply click on the Goodreads giveaway link below to learn how to enter to win a paperback copy. These beauties are lined up on my shelf - ready to land on your summer reading pile. I'll be sending out three copies. One to each winner that Goodreads selects for me. The giveaway is open to readers in the US only.

Good luck!!

***Giveaway runs from 5/12/16 to 6/12/16***

Giveaway ends June 12, 2016.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

This past fall I went back to teaching after being out of the field for eight years. It was a jolt to my daily routine, but I am enjoying it so much. If you don't like reading about people who love their job just close this now. There is something magical about teaching music to high school students. On a daily basis I get to work with students who...

1) Want to be in my class. (I love that no one "has" to take my class. They are all there by their own choice and that is a wonderful thing).

2) Are bright, motivated, unique and creative. (I seriously get to work with some of the nicest kids in the school!)

3) Work as part of a team. Every day we work together to shape and refine and create music. Every now and then it works so well that I get goosebumps.

4) Grow. Their musicianship and their personhood is so dynamic at this age.

5) Read. 

Yes, they read. I LOVE that they read. I have students who can hardly put down their books (yes paper books!) Being an avid YA reader as allowed me to have all kinds of great conversations with the kids. This semester alone I saw one student with Jennifer Brown's Hate List (one of my all time favorites), and another student with My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick (another book I read and enjoyed). I am constantly asking them about what they are reading but have yet to hand them one of my books. Who knows, maybe I'll get brave soon.

I guess today's post is just about happiness. In celebration of finding a job that I love. About working with students who are not only interesting and musical but readers as well. 

The photo in this post is from homecoming week back in October. The theme was "Guess who?" This was the day I became famous ;)

 

After months of editing, revisions, and formatting, release day is finally here! More than a Moment is a sweet YA love story set in rural Wisconsin. I have been assured by my advance review copy readers that it is a perfect beach read. 

At least for now, More than a Moment will be available exclusively on Amazon. Paperbacks will be coming, but aren't ready quite yet. 

If you read and enjoy More than a Moment, please consider leaving a review on Goodreads or Amazon to help others find the book. As always, feel free to say hi through email or facebook. I love hearing from you!
 

When I get toward the end of a writing project, I have a certain amount of nervous energy that bubbles around inside of me. I don't know if it's because I'm anxious to see what people will think of my new book, or if it's because my "to do" list grows much longer than I'm comfortable with. Finishing up a book is a tremendous amount of work. After I finish my draft and read it several times, my process is this: Beta readers, more personal revisions, professional developmental editing and proof-reading, further revisions, further edits (on the revisions), professional formatting, cover design, teaser/marketing material development, ARC distribution, copyright application, and eventually publication.

Over the last couple of weeks, my (nearly complete) YA novel More than a Moment, has been bouncing back and forth between me and my editor.  In an effort to re-direct some of my excess energy, I started refinishing an old buffet cabinet that I picked up. I enjoyed a quiet day with my mom sanding and priming the old cabinet while my mother-in-law watched the kids for me.

Over the next couple of days I painted it by myself. It wasn't quite the color I imagined (I wanted that mason-jar-blue color), but it's close enough. My mom suggested spray painting the hardware that came on the buffet rather than replace it. I tried it and I love how it turned out. Up close it looks like it's enameled! 

After waiting impatiently for it to dry, I gathered up all the hardware this morning. And wouldn't you know. I'm missing one screw. There's one knob that I can't yet attach. I guess I'll have to add "going to the hardware store" to my "to do" list.  

The almost done entertainment cabinet.

Every year since I became a mom, I can't help but reflect on April 20th. Like this year, the 21st fell on a Tuesday. My earliest contractions came on Saturday evening and being 40 weeks pregnant - I welcomed them. Sunday, I was even more excited - unlike the Braxton Hicks contractions (which always faded away) my contractions were still coming. They weren't particularly steady or close together, but they were still happening. 

Then, Sunday became Monday. In the early morning hours I requested my husband pack the car and drive me to the birth center. He called our midwife, and in the dark, we drove for an hour. The contractions were strong and I was unprepared for the news I was about to get.

When I had my exam, the midwife told me that I was experiencing a very slow early labor. She told me what to watch for and sent me home. It was such a disappointing (and painful) drive home. I labored around the house that day -- mostly kneeling on the floor with my head rested in the seat of the glider in the nursery. We didn't go back to the birth center until seven that evening when I was in so much discomfort that I couldn't stay home any longer.

Our midwife confirmed that I had progressed enough to "check in," but that I was nowhere near delivering. As I settled into my room, I had no idea what the following hours would bring. 
What I learned on the longest night of my life was profound, and it will stick with me forever.

*** I learned that even though I was a "big picture" person, that I needed to take things second by second. I had to focus on the "right now." I had to focus on the very breath I was taking, rather than thinking about the ones to come.

*** I learned that my body was stronger than I ever gave it credit for. By the time I birthed my daughter, I had only slept for three or four hours out of the prior 48.  

*** I learned just how supportive my husband was. He was on his knees next to me as much as possible. When he had to step away for a moment, my birth assistant was there. I was never alone. They later told me that he was "husband of the year."

***I learned just how much love and support a simple touch or word of reassurance could convey.

*** I also learned how important silence was. I felt so many things that night that words will never be able to describe. I'm thankful I was able to internalized them in the quiet, dimly-lit room.

I remember walking up and down the hall, staring at old black and white photographs of women helping women. Women becoming moms. I thought a lot about the women in my life that had come before me. Finally gaining a clearer understanding of what they'd gone through to become moms.

I remember being relieved when I saw that the sun had come up. The longest night of my life had finally come to a close. Instinctively, I knew my daughter would be born that day. It was a day well worth welcoming.

The 21st was beautiful and miraculous and one of the best days of my life. But the long dark night before it was such an important part of the journey - the uncelebrated part. There is no cake to celebrate the day before a birthday, but maybe, there should be.

I was born in the early 80's. I was lucky enough to have 3 sisters and a stay at home mom. The five us created a lot of memories during our days together. My dad worked full-time, but devoted his nights and weekends to the family. Growing up it was rare to get one-on-one time with either parent, but my dad came up with a tradition that ensured at least one awesome bonding day each year.

Every summer my dad would plan what he called "Special Day." I'm not sure if they were on Saturdays, or if he took a day off of work, but what I do know is that we looked forward to these days with great anticipation. It wasn't often that we found ourselves sitting in the front seat in Dad's car with no one else clamoring for his attention. 

Over the years traditions developed. I usually opted for a trip to the Milwaukee Public Museum and lunch at Chi Chi's (The only Mexican restaurant I was familiar with). My sisters often chose mini golf and ice cream. What we all remember is a day with Dad where we were the center of his attention.

Yesterday morning I was teaching a ukulele lesson and the phone rang. My Dad invited me out for an outing. It wasn't a planned "special day" and perhaps that made it all the more perfect. I buckled the kids into their car seats and picked up my dad. Just like old times we went and had lunch. It was a perfect afternoon - a special day with a new generation. After lunch we walked along the Little Wolf river. The trails were muddy, the trees were bare, and little voices rang out everywhere.

A new generation goes out for a "Special Day." 

I really need to get better at juggling my workflow. Somehow I ended up with all three of my completed manuscripts out to beta readers and my editor all at the same time.  This would be perfect if I hadn't run out of Parenthood episodes to watch on Amazon prime, BUT somehow the two coincided. While I wait for  my name to creep up the hold list at the local library, I'm taking some time to update a few things on my website and start on marketing materials for the new releases. I have preliminary designs for all the book covers and am working on the back cover blurbs.

I started off 2015 with too many completed (but not edited) projects on my computer and several new stories bouncing around in my head. I promised my husband that I'd get my finished books out before starting any others.  My plan is to release my (**still nameless) YA romance novel this summer followed by Totem and Summit in the Fall. If things go according to plan, by the end of the year I'll have four novels out in the world and hopefully at least one new project in the works. Hopefully my turn will come up and I can finish watching Parenthood too ;)

**I'll write another post about the nameless book soon. Maybe you guys will have some ideas!

 

I've found that one of the benefits of being self-published is the flexibility to change up my marketing strategies. While I don't regret enrolling in KDP Select (amazon exclusivity), I was never comfortable having all my "eggs in one basket."  I do think that the promotions available to me as a new indie author were worth the initial exclusivity. During my time in KDP Select I gave away over 1000 copies of OC Me through the free days promotions and made strong connections to readers and book bloggers.

Now that my 90 days has expired, I have once again put my YA fiction novel up for greater distribution. It is currently available through Nook, iBooks, Kobo, Tolino, and Kindle. I'm hoping that more readers will find my book through these other platforms. To celebrate the broader distribution and perhaps gain some new readers, I put OC Me up for a 99 cent pricing special. How long will it last? We'll see. I promise to leave it alone for at least a couple of weeks, but no promises beyond that. I hope you are all well and staying warm. I have been reading some new YA voices and as always, I'm working hard on editing. I still hope to get a new novel out to you soon.  Thanks for reading!