Why I Blog

So…today’s post is such a huge departure from what I usually write about! But I love this little series called Why I Blog, and I was nominated by my friend and fave person Ali of Alexandra Hedin, so I’m gonna dive right in!

Why do I write?

I feel like that’s a really huge question! I write because I’ve always really loved writing, except for the 5-paragraph deductive essay stage of high school. And I love having some part of the world that’s mine, a place where I have a voice and where that voice matters. I have two daughters, and what I want more than anything is for them to know that they matter. That they are valid. That they can do and be and achieve whatever they want. And I feel like me writing this blog will somehow help them understand that.

That’s the deep answer! I also write because it’s really fun. I like cooking and making projects, and I like sharing recipes and projects and ideas with all of you. And the blogging community is wonderful. I love the friends I’ve made through it–I feel like they’re my people.

What am I working on?

I’m actually trying to say no to new things right now, as crazy as that sounds. But life is pretty darn busy at the moment. We are getting ready to move at the end of the month, and I can barely handle thinking about packing and moving, let alone actually physically doing it. I’m also 7 months pregnant with my fourth baby, and wow, yeah four kids! We certainly didn’t plan for the baby/moving things to happen at the same time, but c’est la vie. I always work hard in the work/life balance arena, and I feel like right now, the blog will be fine on a very low simmer while I take care of other things that are more important. I do actually have a huge, exciting project that I’m working on that is moderately blog-related, but that’s a story for another day!

How does my blog differ from others of its genre?

I think all of us bloggers hope that our blogs are different and unique. Nobody wants to be writing or posting stuff that literally anyone else in the world could do just as well as they. I try not to over-think what I write about too much, and I hope that helps me stay true to myself. I can tell when I’m trying too hard; whatever I write feels and sounds stilted. I think what I’m trying but failing miserably to say is that I hope my blog is an extension of myself, because if it is, then it can’t help but be unique because I’m unique.

How does my writing process work?

Usually, I just sit down and write. Sometimes it sounds really good and I’m like, “Yeah, that’s totally what I was trying to say!” Thankfully, that’s how it is most of the time; I say what I want to say the way I would say it if you and I were just sitting around having a conversation. There are occasions, however, usually when I’m distracted or watching TV or totally exhausted, when I have to think about what to write, and you can usually tell in the finished product. It’s a lot less conversational, a lot more formal and kind of, I don’t know, hoity-toity-sounding. I usually go back and change those paragraphs because I can’t stand to read them! I really admire writers who write really beautiful prose that just flows effortlessly from their fingertips, but I do not have that gift! It feels forced and sounds terrible. So I just write the way I speak, and it all seems to go OK. At least on my end!

Ok, so that’s a whole lot of sharing for one day! I’m nominating my friend PJ, who I think is so smart, talented, and humble, to tell us why she blogs, and my friend Megan, who is one of those incredibly gifted effortless prose writers I was talking about.

PS–That picture makes me slightly uncomfortable, but I also kind of love it. We were at the Outer Banks in North Carolina over the summer with my entire family, and my siblings were making me laugh really hard while we were taking family pictures at the beach. So as much as it makes me cringe, I really wanted to post it.