Neglected

I never thought that I would have a harder time updating my blog in the summer than I did during the rest of the year! Our summers are generally much less cluttered with regularly scheduled activities, but, because we have less stuff scheduled it seems like we do all sorts of other things! The past few weeks have been unusually busy with two weddings, a garage sale (yay for getting rid of clutter!), and the birth of my first nephew! We’ve also been making an effort to do some de-cluttering and organizing in our home, as well as transforming a second living area into a playroom. Troy also turned 9 months old about a week ago (where has the time gone??).

(Ella holding her baby cousin!)

I hate neglecting my blog, but I’m also thankful for the time that I’ve had to do so many wonderful things these past weeks. I also decided it was time for a blog makeover in the middle of all of this (and I’m not even close to finishing yet!).  I cannot wait to share some of the projects we’ve been working on in our home. I also cannot wait to get back to regularly reading all my favorite blogs as well (I’ve gotten to read a few things here or there, but not like usual). I’m so thankful for the community of friends blogging has opened up to me!

I hope everyone has a great 4th of July. If you live in United States, never forget the blessing that it is to live in America!

Why I Blog: Part 1

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I’m going to start sharing the reasons behind my blogging. All in all, I doubt there will be anything earth-shattering in most of these posts, because if you read my blog, you see what I blog about, and probably have at least a decent idea about why I blog. However, I’m writing these posts not only to share with you, but also to focus myself, because I want to create a blog that is not only worth your time to read, but also worth my time to write.

I blog to create a family journal.

When I started this blog, I really had no intention of writing any posts dedicated to journaling my children’s lives. I wanted it to be more about my personal journey and experiences: bettering myself. Although I planned to discuss aspects of motherhood on the blog (after all, I’m striving to do the best I can as a mother), I didn’t set out to make the blog a place to journal things about my kids’ lives.  In fact, I started this blog when Ella was about eight months old, and I didn’t write my first monthly milestone post about her until she was 17 months old.

However, I am SO thankful that I decided to chronicle at least a few things about my kids’ lives on the blog. We live a very crazy busy life, and I’m glad that I am able to take a least a few minutes to write about my children so that I will always have these stories and posts to look back on. I really wish that I had started regularly writing about Ella when she was born rather than after she was a year old. I couldn’t imagine my blog without journaling about my children’s lives now.

I think a large part of the reason I didn’t plan to journal about my children’s lives is because I didn’t want to be just another mom blog. Don’t get me wrong, there are many mom blogs I love, but that wasn’t the goal or purpose for my blog. Sure, my blog is “just another mom blog” in many ways, but I want it to be more than that (more on that in future posts!).

A Few Small Thoughts About My Blogging (more to come . . .)

When I entered the blogging world as a real, dedicated blogger (and not simply just a reader or as a hit or miss blogger), I really wasn’t sure where I would go with blogging. I had an idea, but I’d had ideas before (in fact, I think I’d started something like four other blogs before settling with this one). I didn’t know if anyone would read my blog, but I wanted to blog anyway. (By the way, I am really thankful for my readers. I’ve made some good blogging friends, and it really amazes me everyday the wealth of information that the blogging world has brought to my fingertips.)

Over the next month, or maybe even two, I’ll be writing some posts about the reasons that I blog – some are more serious than others, but I want to share them. And, some of them have developed along the way – I didn’t start out blogging for all the reasons that I blog now. These things have been on my mind because I want to produce a blog with quality content whether that content is a beautiful or goofy photo, memories of my children, dealing with the joys and struggles of raising children and being a wife, a spiritual thought, or even something else. I think writing down the purpose to my blogging will help me to produce more quality conduct.

I could write more, but I am feeling myself fade a bit. Ella has been sick (although she is definitely on the mend), Troy is now sick, and I’m on the verge of being sick as well.  On that note, it is hard to keep up with who’s medicine is due at what time when there are three sick folks in the house. I really ought to write down the last time every one got their medicine! :)