1 year

this post is going to all over the place. i'm sure of it because my head is swirling with ten posts at once- none of them at all very important.

first, look at this! my sweet aunt sharon (who cared for me during my first 3 months at home, after my mom was released from the hospital) posted it on her blog. it made me laugh out loud.

second, somehow my one year of blogging anniversary passed me by. it was in the back of my head but escaped me on the actual day. anyways, i can't believe that i have stuck with it for this long, enjoyed it and how it has evolved into more than just random pics of my girls.

which brings me to the topic of transparency. as i reflect on my past year as a blogger, i think about how i began by inviting you to "...peek in my window, see into my writings and share in my life and the life of my family". at that moment, i fully anticipated that the bulk of my blogging would revolve around my girls. and for the most part, it has.

sometimes, i wonder if i am too transparent. i wonder if my sharing makes you a little bit uncomfortable and if by telling the whole story i might border on being overly dramatic. and if that is the conclusion, then i guess that i am ok with it. you see, i spent a lot of my life (high school years in particular) hiding a lot of stuff about myself. i spent years trying to be someone who i thought was a better version of myself, but pushing down the real version. and in the process, i learned that it really just isn't productive. and that in telling the truth, the unedited version (as unedited as one can be when writing about themselves) you end up in a much better place. i'm not saying i am better for being transparent, it just makes it easier for me to live in my own skin.

and a few other random thoughts-
remember those deer we saw from the forest preserve? looking back, i'm not sure if i would have drawn as much attention to them as i did back in the beginning of our life in the burbs. for the past year, on a regular basis, i have had to answer detailed questions about the deer's homes. ellie has been relentless. (i can just see into her little head. she thinks they have a cozy living room a nice little kitchen and who knows what else:) she does not give up. she asks the same thing and she refuses to accept my answer- "they live in the woods girlie. they lay down together to keep warm and they use sticks and leaves for shelter and eat grass/leaves".

remember my commitment to use cloth bags in an effort to cut down on plastics? yeah- i'm not doing so hot on that one! i have in fact stopped taking plastics, but i forget my reusable bags all the time. as a punishment to self, i started forcing myself to carry all of my items without bags. it is a sight to see! when that is just impossible, i buy more reusable bags. i know, i'm pathetic. i'm blaming it on pregnancy brain... in spite of the fact that it started happening long before i became pregnant.

also, i fully intended to write a heck of a lot more about natural parenting. while i seem to have no problem sharing my faith with ya'll, i seem to be resistant to sharing my philosophy on too much else. i'll work on that. (i promise it is actually pretty interesting!)

and that about wraps up this random burst of thoughts. thanks for following along for the past year. it's been a fun adventure!