Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Inside my brain and Blogging 2012

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{Family photos, Dec. 2011, 10 minutes on a FREEZING, foggy day! My boys are good to me.}

Happy New Year!

Can you tell that I did most of my blogging last month from my phone? It's just so easy to throw a pic or two on a post while I'm nursing the babe. But I haven't been saying much. And, as it turns out, I have a lot to say.

We had a great December. No matter how much shopping I get done in October, how much planning ahead I do, December always feels like a whirlwind and I'm sad when it's all over. If I can motivate myself this week I'll post some pictures of all the events.

As sad as I get on the 26th of December though, it feels so good by January 1st to take it all down. The house looks so simple and fresh without the decor. I am in the mood to go through every closet and de-clutter. Usually I find January depressing, but I am really excited this year to get more organized and do a bunch of projects.

I've been thinking a lot about blogging. About why we do it, who it's for, if it's real, etc. I used to get sad that Bloom didn't grow more, faster. I thought, "we have so much great content on here, but people care more about 'eye candy' blogs." Not that I cared so much about ad revenue or anything, but I just wanted people to care about the things we were talking about. {This says a lot about my arrogance and pride. Apparently I just think I'm really cool and everyone should hang on my every idea!} I've finally come to a place where I know I want to keep blogging, but I'm happy to just be me, and it's OK if only a few people read it, and I don't need a zillion readers and/or comments to validate me or propel me on. If I feel like posting, I'll post. {I am an overly-analytical person. Can you tell?}

Another aspect of blogging/social networking that I have a hard time with is that we all talk so much about stuff. Heaven's sakes, sometimes Pinterest makes me physically ill because it makes me think so much about things. Don't get me wrong, I love stuff. I love beautiful things that make my home feel cozy and I love doing clever crafts with my children and heaven knows I love pretty cupcakes and clothes and jewelry. But sometimes I feel like there's such a heavy focus of this on blogs, etc. and I feel worried that all of these bright, educated, powerful women are spending way too much time on it all. At least I know I spend too much time thinking about stuff in my own life. And then I think: 'if my house burned down tomorrow none of this crap would matter.' And I think about the darlings recovering from the typhoon in the Philippines and just can't stand all my worldliness. Anyway, like I said, I'm not condemning pretty things. I think a lot of these things we blog about--cute parties, craft projects, etc. can really add to the quality of life and make things feel magical for our children. BUT, when we let ourselves feel dissatisfied by the things we don't have, it really takes away from our happiness.

Which leads me to talk about this:
Lots of us tend to post the good and beautiful in our lives. And I don't have too much a problem with that. I tend not to photograph my life on the days I'm sick on the couch with a pounding headache, watching TV, letting my kids eat candy for breakfast and play on the computer all day (we had a lot of those types of days last week; can't tell if I had a virus or am going through one of my typical, hormonally charged headache months). Nor do I love dwelling on those times. BUT. When we all read blogs/facebook/pinterest and compare our lives to the collective whole of all the bajillion cute women out there who are seemingly perfect, it begins to feel pretty deflating. And it's such a false sense of reality. This is one of the reasons I actually haven't read many blogs lately. I could feel myself feeling dissatisfied with my life. Which is so ridiculous and unhealthy.

So here's the deal. I'm going to try to post a lot in 2012. It makes me happy when I take a minute to share something or reflect on my life. And sometimes it will look really pretty. Like the Valentine's Day party I'm already drumming up. And sometimes I might be really vain and post a picture of my outfit just because I think it's really fun. But I'm also hoping to continue to write true and real reflections of motherhood--something I used to do a lot on Bloom and have gotten out of the habit of. AND. My big, fun blogging plan for 2012 is to do a Blue House Tour. Which will include both shots of my favorite little vignettes that I've worked on and shots of things like my disgusting side yard that looks trashier than you can imagine. I think we'll call it: "The Blue House Tour: Someone Real Lives Here." And. AND. If I can muster up the time, Taylor and I hope to post some on Feed Your Family this year. Because you wouldn't believe how many requests Taylor gets for his recipes. So keep pressuring us and we'll get on it.

So those are my crazy, overly analytical thoughts on blogging and some goals for 2012. I think it will be a good time. :)

Thanks for being my friend,
anne

10 comments:

Melissa said...

Hi Anne. We don't know each other, but I hope you don't mind if I comment on your post? I didn't comment a lot on Bloom because I feel strange commenting when I'm sort of a stranger, if that makes sense. I really liked Bloom and your direction with it. I like practical blogs and pretty blogs, but you've discovered something important which I've heard a lot of bloggers talk about recently and that is that we have to be careful not to compare and really know what our goal is with blogging. My personal goal with blogging was to journal my family activities as well as the light bulb moments and lessons I've learned that I want to share with my kids. In the spring of each year, I take advantage of Blog-to-Print's coupons and publish the previous year's blog (times 2 so both my girls will have it). Even though I have this clear goal, I still get discouraged now and then when I see only one comment on my blog, or I think I need to share pearls of wisdom and talent with the masses. I wish my family would comment more, but when it comes down to it, my blog isn't anything more than a family journal. The comments won't be published, and my pearls of wisdom are really ones I want my girls to remember years after I'm gone. It is a tug-of-war in my brain sometimes, but I guess my point is that when we decide to blog, we have to know the purpose for ourselves and keep coming back to that. Because you are right, there are way to many pretty, shiny things out there that will make us feel "less than" if we are not anchored in our purpose. Thanks for letting me share. It's been good to think about this because the tenant of wisdom learned can really be applied to all the pretty, shiny things the world would use to pull our focus away from what we know to be important. You are awesome. Keep up the good work. :D

Christina said...

Love you and your blog. And I want more recipes please!

Vicky said...

I miss Feed Your Family! Please bring it back!

Also, thanks for keeping it real. Your family looks so sweet in front of the library.

Deni G said...

Keep on keeping it real. I stumbled across Bloom quite a while ago (linked to it from another blog and didn't even know it was you for a while) and read it regularly, but I'm one of 'those' people, the lurkers :) that don't comment or subscribe. I suspect that there are many of us out there, quietly reading what you write. Keep on writing.

Joan said...

Amen, dear Anne. Amen.
I adore your overly analytical mind :)
The Blue House home tour is going to be awesome...can't wait!

Emily said...

I love reading what you write. I truly look forward to it. I am excited for what 2012 will bring, excited for your cute outfits, your stories about your boys and the ups and downs of motherhood. Love you, Anne.

families are forever said...

Thanks for blogging, I always enjoy your posts, they are open and honest! Looking forward to a great year! I hope you feel better soon!

brittani c. said...

Anne, I've always enjoyed reading what's on your mind. Your honesty is engaging and it's fun for me to take a peek into your life (because I know and care about you). Happy 2012! Hope you feel better.

Kristyn said...

Hi, I'm another person who doesn't know you but linked to you from Bloom. I looooved Bloom. I can't tell you how sad I was when it stopped, and I really still hope you guys will bring it back one day in a once a week format or something. But I understand what you were saying about people liking eye candy, and I do myself, but Bloom was so much more than that. But you can't be everything to everyone. Every blog has its fortes. In a world of shallow blogs, I always took the time to read all the posts and really think about what you were both saying because I felt so much more depth reading those posts as opposed to seeing how to wrap a present. Your blog was wonnnnderful and made a total impression on me. And I can tell you I will totally read this blog now to kind of fill that void from Bloom stopping. Thanks for being deeper and more substantial than most blogs out there! love, Kristyn

Lorraine said...

Yes, I read your whole post and YES, PLEASE more recipes! Are you getting sick of me saying this yet? My foodie little sis was over, and I have your pic on my fridge, and I said, "THIS is Taylor the chef." That's right.