New Year, New Start
Yes, I'll admit it. My blogging over the last couple months has been pitiful. I feel like life has picked me up like an ocean wave and has been sweeping me along with it. I'm managing to keep my head above water, but I'm not really in control.
We had a great holiday season. We enjoyed a fantastic Thanksgiving in Missouri with my sister Kristy. I even got to see my friend Tabitha and her family while we were out there.
The month of December was full of holiday concerts and parties and other activities. On Christmas Eve day we were able to help out with the Salvation Army dinner again. This year instead of handing out gifts, our family helped with the bouncy house: managing crowds, letting so many kids in at a time, and making sure everyone got about 3 minutes of fun - long enough to enjoy it, but not so long that those waiting in line got impatient and left.
Christmas Day was enjoyable. We opened gifts, ate breakfast, and opened more gifts later when Grandma Kathy could watch (from sunny California via the wonders of modern technology.) We attended church where Hannah, John and I participated in the choir and various musical numbers.
The kids have enjoyed their Christmas break. Tomorrow they return to school. This morning we had a "practice morning" where Steven woke us up for scripture reading at 6:30 before he left for work. After scripture reading, the kids all went back to bed while I exercised, read my scriptures, showered, ate breakfast, and started my day. It's 10:00 now, and they are still all sleeping. Tomorrow, scripture reading will be at 5:30am, Hannah and John will then go to seminary and on to school, while Josh and Peter will be able to sleep until 7:00 when they will need to get up to head to school. The days of sleeping in until 10 or 11 will be over.
This morning I came across an interesting blog. (You can read it here.) It described bloggers who misrepresent their lives as being better than they actually are as "lifestyle porn". As an example, he tells of a fashionable lady blogger who hired a talented woman to come make a special treat in her fancy kitchen, then had the nanny bring her child down for a photo shoot. Later, the blog presented her as having made the treat herself with her child. His point is that what we read in some blogs isn't reality. It encourages people to have higher expectations in their lives than reality usually offers, resulting in disappointment and disillusionment.
Reading his blog made me wonder, do I do this? Do I represent my life as being better than it actually is?
My answer is this: Possibly, but not intentionally. I write about the things I would like to remember down the road. I'm not a very good journal keeper, so this blog serves as a type of journal. But at the same time, it is public, so I try not to write about things that will embarrass my family members or myself. I don't want to sound like I am griping or complaining when I have a bad day. So it is very possible that the image I present here is better than reality. At the same time, I do try to be honest. I try not to misrepresent facts. I try not to take credit for other people's work.
It is hard for me to imagine people looking at my life as represented in this blog and being disillusioned because their own life isn't as great as mine, and yet, my life is pretty good. We don't live in a big, fancy house, but the condo we live in is sufficient for our needs. My family members aren't perfect by any means, but I have a happy marriage and we are all trying to be the best we can.
The purpose of this blog is just to focus my thoughts, and maybe share our family's doings along the way for friend's and family's enjoyment. It isn't to suggest to you how you should live your life, or even to show off how I live mine. Each of us has our own struggles and challenges that are unique to us, and we can't compare ourselves to anyone else. It would be like comparing tomatoes to cucumbers.
So, Happy New Year to all who may read this. Count your blessings and be grateful for the life you have. And check back here soon. I hope to be a little more regular about writing this year. ;)
We had a great holiday season. We enjoyed a fantastic Thanksgiving in Missouri with my sister Kristy. I even got to see my friend Tabitha and her family while we were out there.
The month of December was full of holiday concerts and parties and other activities. On Christmas Eve day we were able to help out with the Salvation Army dinner again. This year instead of handing out gifts, our family helped with the bouncy house: managing crowds, letting so many kids in at a time, and making sure everyone got about 3 minutes of fun - long enough to enjoy it, but not so long that those waiting in line got impatient and left.
Christmas Day was enjoyable. We opened gifts, ate breakfast, and opened more gifts later when Grandma Kathy could watch (from sunny California via the wonders of modern technology.) We attended church where Hannah, John and I participated in the choir and various musical numbers.
The kids have enjoyed their Christmas break. Tomorrow they return to school. This morning we had a "practice morning" where Steven woke us up for scripture reading at 6:30 before he left for work. After scripture reading, the kids all went back to bed while I exercised, read my scriptures, showered, ate breakfast, and started my day. It's 10:00 now, and they are still all sleeping. Tomorrow, scripture reading will be at 5:30am, Hannah and John will then go to seminary and on to school, while Josh and Peter will be able to sleep until 7:00 when they will need to get up to head to school. The days of sleeping in until 10 or 11 will be over.
This morning I came across an interesting blog. (You can read it here.) It described bloggers who misrepresent their lives as being better than they actually are as "lifestyle porn". As an example, he tells of a fashionable lady blogger who hired a talented woman to come make a special treat in her fancy kitchen, then had the nanny bring her child down for a photo shoot. Later, the blog presented her as having made the treat herself with her child. His point is that what we read in some blogs isn't reality. It encourages people to have higher expectations in their lives than reality usually offers, resulting in disappointment and disillusionment.
Reading his blog made me wonder, do I do this? Do I represent my life as being better than it actually is?
My answer is this: Possibly, but not intentionally. I write about the things I would like to remember down the road. I'm not a very good journal keeper, so this blog serves as a type of journal. But at the same time, it is public, so I try not to write about things that will embarrass my family members or myself. I don't want to sound like I am griping or complaining when I have a bad day. So it is very possible that the image I present here is better than reality. At the same time, I do try to be honest. I try not to misrepresent facts. I try not to take credit for other people's work.
It is hard for me to imagine people looking at my life as represented in this blog and being disillusioned because their own life isn't as great as mine, and yet, my life is pretty good. We don't live in a big, fancy house, but the condo we live in is sufficient for our needs. My family members aren't perfect by any means, but I have a happy marriage and we are all trying to be the best we can.
The purpose of this blog is just to focus my thoughts, and maybe share our family's doings along the way for friend's and family's enjoyment. It isn't to suggest to you how you should live your life, or even to show off how I live mine. Each of us has our own struggles and challenges that are unique to us, and we can't compare ourselves to anyone else. It would be like comparing tomatoes to cucumbers.
So, Happy New Year to all who may read this. Count your blessings and be grateful for the life you have. And check back here soon. I hope to be a little more regular about writing this year. ;)
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