What to Expect When You're Not Expecting

Do you know what today is? What? You don't know? How could you forget? I'm so insulted!

It's my blogiversary! Yes, one year ago, BlogAway went live to a crowd of thousands of people eagerly awaiting a chance to read another blog. My first post was about time management, and unfortunately, I have not learned how to manage my time any better. But you know what? Writing this blog has not been a drain on my time, as I worried it would be. I worried that it would be a chore to write, but instead, it has become something I look forward to doing every week. That was unexpected!

I did not expect that we would have such a tight-knit community here at BlogAway, but it has been amazing! I have loved finding old friends, making new ones, and learning deep-dark secrets about people I've known my entire life. I am humbled that you guys take time to read my blog and participate in the conversation; I know how precious your time is. You guys are the best blog friends a gal could have. Thank you!

There are a lot of things about this past year that have been unexpected. I did not expect that I would jump genres and write a historical romance.

I didn't expect that I would change my writing strategy either, as I normally write a book scene by scene and then piece the scenes together like a puzzle. This time, I simply opened a document, entitled it "1" and then wrote the entire thing start to finish. I did not take a bunch of notes. I did not write an outline. I did not think about a scene for several days before I actually wrote it. I just sat down and let it flow. I just finished my first edit of "The Reign of Trees," and I half-expected it to be crap, but it wasn't! I actually like it! Hallelujah!

I've always wanted to try my hand at screenwriting, but I did not expect I would do it this year. I'm currently working on this:

It's a bit of a romantic comedy, a bit of a chaotic(funny?) family drama, with a little bit of a music, and a whole lot of MONTANA, filmed mockumentary style. I know I have a better chance of winning American Idol (I would sound a lot like this singing on TV) than I have seeing my name listed under "Written By" on the small screen, but since I'm certifiably crazy, I continue to work on it nonetheless. I actually laugh out-loud as I think of some of the scenes, further proof that I am insane.

And speaking of insane, last summer, the guys bought the Insanity videos and I thought they were nuts. Why would you want to do a work-out that would give you a heart attack and make you sweat like a 500 pound man sitting in a sauna?

But guess who has stuck with it for an entire year? Moi! I love Insanity so much I ditched the gym. Yes, it still kicks my butt every single time, but no heart attacks. Also, directly related to Insanity: I've come to crave Titan protein shakes. I never expected that either.

We've also added to our zoo this year: we got ten new chickens and one new dog. I don't know that I can say that something good will come from these unexpected additions though, especially since the new dog has taste-tested a few of the birds. 

How about you? What unexpected things have come into your life in the past year or two? Have you come to love the unexpected things?