A Life in the Day of Heather Blanton

Sandra Ardoin @SandraArdoin

Today, author Heather Blanton shares her story about fitting life into her writing time … and she doesn’t feel one bit guilty! 🙂

Does your toilet really have to sparkle?

by Heather Blanton

Have you heard? Sitting is the new smoking.

Writers sit. A lot.

Lovely.

Well, a few years back I decided I wasn’t going to let my dream job kill me. I determined to figure what had to change in my life so I would actually exercise.

Part of the answer was to find the right gym. After going through a couple, I discovered the secret (for me) is joining one that is small, full of normal people (not 20-year-old college students), and has a highly-motivated instructor because I need accountability. Working out on my own does not work so I attend classes.

Once I found a gym where I was willing—more or less— to show up for, say, Bodysculpting, I evaluated my daily tasks and goals. I asked myself, “To make going to the gym happen, what can I cut, where am I wasting time, what can I do at a different time, what can I give up?”

The biggest thing to take a hit was domicile minutiae. You know, those pesky household chores. I quit doing laundry every day. I’m serving more frozen pizzas now. Cleaning bathrooms is about clean, not sparkle. I vacuum and mop less frequently. I delegate more to my two teenagers—admittedly with mixed results. Their weed-whacking and sock-sorting leaves a lot to be desired.

My point is I let go of some stuff and, yes, lowered my standards. What was most freeing, though, is I let go of my guilt over lowering my standards. Did I want to write or have a sparkling toilet? Did I want to impress my mother-in-law or plot a book? Does the living room still get tidied up, just not as frequently? Does my bed really need to be made every day?

Decisions. Choices. Priorities defined.

The results of these small changes? Now I work out three to five days a week with girls in their late thirties to early seventies and I enjoy their company. Thanks to a tough instructor, I can do three chin-ups (a big deal for me). My posture was beginning to resemble my ninety-year-old mother but it has improved markedly! I’ve also lost thirty pounds in the last year. I was motivated to join Weight Watchers because of the changes I was seeing in my shape just from exercise.

I still get in my prayer time and Bible study. We still eat together as a family. Some things were off-limits to changes. Like writing goals. In the last twelve months I’ve published a novel and two novellas, and contributed to numerous blogs. I’ll take that.  

My point is exercise should be a priority in your life. You don’t have to join a gym. Walk, hike, bike, do yard work in one hour increments. Exercise with a YouTube video. Discover what motivates you, examine your routine for things to cut, shift, or change, then cut, shift, or change.

I mean, come on, does your toilet really have to sparkle?

Do you have an exercise routine to keep you moving? When is your favorite time to exercise?

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

A former journalist, Heather is an avid researcher and skillfully weaves truth in among fictional story lines. She loves exploring the American West, especially ghost towns and museums. She has walked parts of the Oregon Trail, ridden horses through the Rockies, climbed to the top of Independence Rock, and even held an outlaw’s note in her hand. You can learn more about her and her work at https://ladiesindefiance.com/

 or https://www.facebook.com/heatherfreyblanton

Sign up for Heather’s email newsletter to receive the latest book release updates, as well as info about contests and giveaways http://eepurl.com/crDmv5

—A Promise in Defiance

Bestselling author Heather Blanton brings readers the third book in the highly acclaimed Christian Western Romance in the Rockies Series–a gripping tale of two men with dark pasts and the women who could make them…or break them.

Reformed Saloon-Owner and Pimp…
When Charles McIntyre founded the Wild West town of Defiance, he was more than happy to rule in hell rather than serve in heaven. But things have changed. Now, he has faith, a new wife…and a ten-year-old half-breed son. Infamous madam Delilah Goodnight wants to take it all away from him. How can he protect his kingdom and his loved ones from her schemes without falling back on his past? How does he fight evil if not with evil?

Redeemed Gunman…
Logan Tillane carries a Bible in his hand, wears a gun on his hip, and fights for lost souls any way he can. Newly arrived in Defiance, he has trouble, though, telling saints from sinners. The challenge only worsens when Delilah flings open the doors to the scandalous Crystal Chandelier Saloon and Brothel. She and the new preacher have opposite plans for the town. One wants to save it, one wants to lead it straight to hell.

Reaping…
For Tillane and McIntyre, finding redemption was a long, hard road. God’s grace has washed away their sins, but the consequences remain and God will not be mocked. For whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap…and the harvest is finally at hand.