The Catalyst

Thanks for the kind responses on this post.

Everyone has different ways of bringing balance to their lives. I was choosing to make blogging (and other social media) a burden-- putting unnecessary pressure on myself and not enjoying it. Posting less or posting shorter (or wordless posts) is my attempt to bring some balance back into my life and to be more present than I have been lately in the lives of my husband, daughter, and son. It's a temporary change as far as I can tell. But we'll see.

The catalyst that got me thinking about this? Well, April and May were quite rainy and gross. I spent a lot of time online, breaking my own self-imposed rule of no more than 15 minutes on the computer while the kids are awake and in my sole care. At lunch one day, Cate remarked that when she grew up, she wanted to work on a computer like Mommy. Ouch. To be fair, I was working on a lot of Power of the Pen and school stuff at the time (despite being on maternity leave), but still, ouch.
So with that, I turn off my computer, look forward to reading your blogs and tweets (love my iPhone and the many small moments during the day I can use it to read your blogs and tweets and stuff, like when B takes forever to nurse or the water for Cate's mac and cheese just doesn't want to seem to boil), and am off to enjoy a sunny day in our little corner of our state.

~Melody :-)

To Blog or Not to Blog...

...it's not really a question. My blog isn't going anywhere. But, I've been thinking a lot lately about the role it plays in my life.

When I first started this blog, my intent was simply to keep out-of-town family and friends up to date on my pregnancy with Cate, her birth, and all things "growing up" in the Riggs household. I averaged about one post a week at first-- more once Cate was born. I didn't know much about the blogging community at that time and only knew one other person in real life who kept a blog. As I discovered more and more of this online community and as more people I actually knew started blogging, I began to get really into it. At one point I thought I could be someone who was paid to blog. After all, I do enjoy writing and I am an English teacher. But I don't always have interesting things to say. And my intent is still to just allow family and friends glimpses into what we're up to around here.

The thing is, when Cate was a baby and napped a lot and went to bed early and was content to sit on my lap while I typed and stuff, I had more time to blog. Now? She rarely naps, goes to bed a little later, and I can't see over/around her to type a blog post. The weather outside is beautiful, we just put in a gorgeous new patio (well, it needs a few finishing touches, but it's pretty much done), we had a great swingset installed, Cate enjoys playing board games and pretend, and she's actually starting to get a little more involved in things-- like swim lessons and more frequent play dates. Not to mention caring for Brennan too. I've been trying really hard to post regularly, but at the end of the day when the kids are in bed, the last thing I want to do is sit in front of a computer and try to think of something to say. I want to have a glass of wine on the patio with my husband or read a book or knit or something that nourishes me. And during the day I'm finding myself nourished by games of Don't Spill the Beans or coloring or swinging or playing peek-a-boo. Writing my blog is great nourishment for me sometimes (it was nourishment I needed and craved in the months following Cate's birth), but lately I feel like it's filling me up less and less as I'm being filled up more and more by things away from the screen.

That's not to say that I have anything against bloggers who do it for a living or people who like to blog a lot and connect with an online community. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It's just me personally and the way I've been feeling lately. I'm bad at time management and was starting to feel addicted to blogging. My blog is here to stay though as we still have several family members and friends out of town. It's a great little record of day-to-day goings-on in our family. It's fun to share. It's great to reference when I'm putting together Shutterfly scrapbooks for my kids and need to remember all we've done in the past year.

But the posts may be a little less frequent as I spend a little more time outside on the swings or on the floor playing Candyland or reading some books or drinking wine with my husband. As my life as wife to an amazing man and mother to two wonderful kids evolves and grows, so does my blog and the way I view it/use it. At this season in my life, I may have weeks where I post a lot if I feel I need it/have a lot to share, and weeks where I rarely post or just post some pictures of the Riggs' kids cuteness (for the sake of those out-of-towners who need regular doses of chubby cheeks, curly hair, gummy grins, and bright blue eyes). And who knows how long this season will last?

But for now, I hope you'll keep reading when I do post. Your patience and grace are appreciated. And just because I'm not writing as frequently, doesn't mean I'm not reading. I do so enjoy reading blogs.

I'll leave you with some of the awesome-est bubbles ever! I bought them at a toy shop when visiting my parents.
Yes, they smell like the flavors. Although sadly, we've spilled blown through the original scents and are just using generic bubble soap to refill. Because blowing out of ice cream cones is more fun.
And my little guy likes them too.
~Melody :-)

Pouring my heart out with Shell today.

They were