Reality Check....

If you are reading this blog entry and you're wondering what my next photography experiment will be...you'll just have to wait.  Let me start by saying if you are a mom & you feel like my life seems perfect & wow, don't I have it all together, you would be incorrect.  I am just as tired and frustrated as you are.  Although it is true that I have many blessings and I am very thankful for the life I have, it is far from perfect.  If I have made myself or my family seem different than that in this blog, don't believe it, that is just me trying to give folks something happy to look at through their day.  As I am typing this entry to you, I am dealing with a migraine, a baby that refuses to nap & is teething, a toddler that left me a "present" on the carpet & a cat that is neurotic.  My home is not as clean as I would like it to be and there are so many things on my to do list that I don't want to even look at it.  This is the truth of motherhood.  Whether you are a full-time working mom, a stay-at-home mom, or a part-time working mom (by the way I've done all 3--yes, I did work some full weeks right after Jessica came), we are all in the same boat---we all have far too much to do & not enough hours in the day.  Before I had children I knew it would be demanding and that I would have to shift my expectations of myself, but truly it changes everything.  Of course, the good times, outweigh the bad, always, but there are times where I just really need a good cry & a piece of chocolate to make it through the afternoon.  The Bible says:

Romans 14:13

 ¹³ Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.

If my blog has made you stumble I am truly sorry.  I do this for me & for my girls, so that one day they will have a good representation of what their childhood was like.  Of course, I like to paint the best picture possible because I always want my girls to know that I love being with them, but it's not always rosy around here.   If I have made you feel inadequate as a Christian, mother, wife, blogger, pretend photographer, baker, crafter (don't really know if that's a word), anything, then I am sorry.  If you are jealous of me & wish you had my life, I am sorry.  If you are envious of the marriage I have, I am sorry.  Michael and I are far from perfect, but do love one another & share our faith daily.  If you are wishing that your husband had a relationship with your daughter(s) like mine have, I am sorry.  If you desire to be home with your kids, but can't, I am very sorry!  All I can say is that everything I have comes from the Lord & am grateful daily for what I have been entrusted with.  You're all probably wondering what brought this on, well, it has recently become apparent that people are jealous of me for various reasons & truly I don't know how to deal.  I have always been the ugly girl from Alabama who didn't know about the world & had some potential, but people questioned whether I could live up to it or not---you can see why people's jealousy of me does not resonate.  I will NOT continue to apologize for my life or my family as I am very proud of the life/family that my husband and I enjoy.  If you are one of these folks that are jealous of me, either consciously or unconsciously, then please don't read my blog, problem solved.  If you believe that I don't deserve the life I have....I would agree.  I am incredibly blessed & fortunate.  The truth is that I only have 1 year left to do my blog, as I will be returning to work then, so please do me a favor & don't ruin my fun over the next year.  My sincerest apologizes to those who dislike me, my blog, the photos I post of my family, or my ability to do a blog altogether. 

P.S.  I will return with happier blog posts tomorrow.  I considered not returning to blogging at all, but this is important for my little family so I will be back with a vengeance! 

P.P.S  If you like reading my blog & looking at pics of my kids, please continue.  I hope that it brightens your day!