A reality check

The truth is on most days . . .

-My kids fight with each other
-My summer ideas/plans work only for the 1st week in June
-The house is cluttered and messy
-The laundry is never caught up, and my family has a hard time finding clothes to wear
-We are on our screens too much
-Our furniture is all over 10 yrs +, with frumps, scratches, and outdated for the new modern decor feel
-The kids whine and complain, A L O T
-Someone is always in a bad mood, or doesn't want to cooperate
-Others don't want to practice the piano, or even take lessons
-Some our behind in school
-I had ideas for organizing and decorating our new home, most of those things will never happen
-Feeding the family everyday is hard work
-Chris and I diagree
-Church service is a lot of work and time, we don't have callings that people hold in high esteem
-My kids go to bed too late
-We eat candy and treats too much
-We exercise less than we should
-I bark and yell at the kids too much
-I don't have time to keep up with our family budget the way I should

This list could go on and on. If you could be a fly on the wall in my home for a week,

you would all feel much better about yourselves, your homes, and your families.

I really only get moments of happiness and joy throughout my day to day,

and throughout my life.

Those moments often catch me off guard.
I love those moments, though.

They are everything to me.

They're what keep me going

throughout all the muck and hard stuff of the day to day.

Those moments remind me to keep trying.

This blog and my instagram photos are those moments.

A moment of hope, sunshine, smiles, happy, good things,

and even a little perfection in my otherwise imperfect life around me.

When I look back through the years on this blog,
I remember the hard times,
and what I was experiencing

emotionally, mentally or spiritually - a low point -

only to find my kid's smiling faces looking back at me

through these blog photos or an instagram photo.

They were doing just fine all along, and so was I, and so is our family.

A Blogger's Threat

I return a lot of things to stores like Target, Fred Meyer, Walmart, etc. I'm good at keeping receipts and follow and know the rules for each store so returns are relatively hassle free. I'm amazed when you have a receipt how great each store and clerk is about returns. Until this week! I bought some holiday items from JoAnn's, a fabric/craft store, that I never used and kept them in the store bag. I kept the receipt, which stated clearly there is a 90 day return policy. With the economy and my recent family budget check, I decided to return the items. The clerk said no, since they were "seasonal". I said there is no sign/rule or is it stated on the receipt that you can't return seasonal items. I then asked to speak to her supervisor. Who said the same thing. I was mad and felt it was unfair that the rule is not communicated to the consumers. I let them know I would tell the better business bureau and here is the best part, I said:

"I have a blog that many women look at and will gladly tell everyone that I will not shop at JoAnn's anymore. This is unfair and bad business."

The store employees gave me a blank stare and refused to let me return the items. The end.

Lovin' The Blog Thing

Why did it take me so long to get one started?

Reason #1

I'm overrun with kiddies. We had a new baby last May.

Reason #2

Chris built a new dental office this past year and it required some work and effort to make things happen smoothly. (His office isn't that big, he's upstairs and shares his floor with 2 other businesses.)

Confession

I am loosing sleep.  I'm suffering from blogger-post mania.  All of these post ideas keep running through my head. Not sure if it is creative energy or I'm taking this blogging a bit too seriously.

Oh dear!  The only other thing that might explain my problem is: I'm suffering from a bad cold that's keeping me from sleeping. Hopefully, this blogger-post mania is good medicine for a bad cold.  Either Way, Enjoy the following posts below:  

(P.S. My sister Molly is a great blogger. Her doctor's advice: Post once a day!  She's probably right.  Hopefully, once I get most of these out of my head, my cold included, we can follow that good advice!)

Thank You Bloggers

I have enjoyed everyone's blog this past year.

They are great! I love them!

Thank you for everything you've shared. I've laughed and cried. Reading Family Blogs help me feel better about the world and all the great families out there. You are all an inspiration and give me many reasons to smile.

I'm excited to start a blog too. Silly, that I would be excited, but in my world this is exciting as it gets.

We will see how it goes. I think it will be a work in progress.

I thought I would share my favorite things with all of you.   But, I'm sure now and again my not so favorite things will be shared too.