Ramblings...

I have been talking a little bit with another homeschooling Mom lately about blogs...what we get out of reading them, writing them, what difficulties we have run into...It has really gotten me thinking about it all. I started this blog a few months ago now mostly as a way of keeping friends and family up to date on what the boys and I have been doing, and as a way to track from day to day how we are spending (some of) our time. I like the fact that years from now, William and Charlie (and I) will be able to look back on these photos and posts and be reminded of these wonderful years. I also love reading other people's blogs. I love getting a sneak peek at how other families are spending their time. I get ideas from them, inspiration, encouragement, and a few laughs. The odd time, I feel a bit discouraged. I look at another Mom's posts and make the mistake of thinking that what I see on her blog is real life. I wonder how they have managed to make home baked bread when my kids had Kraft Dinner for lunch. I marvel at their knitting and sewing projects, and I cannot fathom how they find the time to do it all, when I cannot even keep up with the mountains of laundry. I look at their lovely artistic, organic gardens, and compare them to my own weed-strangled mess......you get the idea.

But I remember, quickly enough, that my blog is not a representation of our real life, either. The days when I post a recipe, it is most likely because I am trying to compensate with Banana Bread for the chocolate cake that we ate for breakfast. That some days I post a quote because we really didn't do all that much ourselves that day. That I take photos outside or with a tight focus because of the horrendous mess in the house..... Blog posts are a part of the whole, not the whole picture.

I hope that anyone reading this blog will be encouraged, inspired, entertained, or just plain distracted from the work that they are really supposed to be doing. Just as we are all fond of saying how different each child is, we really, as Moms, need to give ourselves the same room. Each family is also different. So is each set of circumstances. Blogging is not about a way of comparing. It is not about judging others, or about leaving myself and my family open to being judged (which is why I get to moderate the comments!!) So, as the saying goes, take what is useful to you, and leave the rest. 'Cause really, life is too short to waste time reading something that makes you miserable.