Blogging: Over A Year Later

I debated continuing this blog for a long time before I quit blogging over a year ago.  There were many reasons and factors considered in making my decision.  Ultimately, I decided to take a sabbatical from the blogging scene.

Blogging has always been enjoyable to me.  It's the kind of thing that I can revisit time and again and never tire of the opportunity to relive the experiences I share about in my blog.  It is also a creative and intellectual challenge for me, both I feel hard pressed to find elsewhere in my life as a stay-at-home mom.  I enjoy the fact that I can sit down and get so involved in the process of creating a blog that I lose all sense of time.  I love to take pictures of the world around me and write about them.  My favorite subjects are my children, of course.  But, I started to question the ramifications of publicly posting pictures of my children, their precious moments, their mundane and remarkable experiences, their real and raw emotion.  I wondered then, and still do, what will they think of having their childhood and my parenting shared without having a voice about it?  Doubt, self-criticism and guilt were all weighing on me.  I was also searching for ways to minimize stress in my life.  Eliminating 'Blog' from my "To Do" list seemed like a reasonable way to minimize unnecessary stress.  I've since enjoyed the freedom that is time, time without the pressure to deliver a blog post.  Consequently, the nagging question of whether or not it was fair to my children to post their photos and share their stories, without their permission, was lifted.  Still, I've missed blogging.

Besides missing my craft, I didn't anticipate another side of not blogging.  It kept me organized.  I have over a years worth of un-edited and barely organized photos, moments and milestones I haven't documented, but don't want to forget, and many, many untold tales of the past 15 months.

Strange as it may sound, I've also come to realize that blogging isn't really about my children.  Blogging is mostly about me.  Well, maybe it's a little bit about my children, too.  Someday, they can tell their own story and I'm sure through their eyes it will be a different tale.  In reflection, this blog is really my story about my experiences as a mom.  It is my way to remember my parenting journey and the childhood of my children.  It is my way to organize my photos, thoughts and memories.   Blogging has also proven to be a therapeutic experience.  It is a reflective and learning experience for me each time I post, or even re-read an entry.  It is my place to listen to and speak from the heart.  It is my way to understand my mundane and ordinary, real and raw, emotions and experiences of being a mom.  This blog is my blank canvas and these blog posts are my creative outlet.

Because I love writing and photography.  Because I love my family and my kids and I want them to know and understand the depth of my love for them.  Because I want to believe that I am actually creating and giving my family, especially my children, a special gift.  Because writing my story actually makes me feel better which translates to being a better mom.  Because.  I am going to try my hand at blogging my story once again.  It is not a unique story, but it is mine.

One Mom's Love Story:  

A uniquely ordinary story about my life and family.