Why I "Blog for bliss"

Artsy Mama is hosting party to celebrate the release of Tara Frey's new book "Blogging for Bliss." Since Tara's was the first blog I found two years ago, I felt it was only right that I join in.

This post may be wordier and a bit heavier than normal with out any smiley faces, but it's my story.

Two years ago, I was (and still am mostly) a SAHM with 3 children under the age of 5. My husband worked a lot of odd hours and I had at the time a lot of evenings free. After the kids were in bed, I found myself eating a lot of junk in front of the TV and a feeling little sad about the direction my life had taken. Before children, I was a busy firefighter/paramedic and then I worked for a medical company as a director. When I had my first baby, I left to devote my time to my new family.

I didn't realize that even though being home was rewarding and what we both wanted, I wasn't living up to everything I was as a person and felt a bit lost.

I loved my children and my home, and felt very blessed, but I was lonely.

My friend's were home in the evening with their significant others and I was by myself in a quiet house, with no direction. Just puttering around with a lot of projects that no one else really cared about.

I had been a on a site called Cafemom where I'd found a nice little community, but it didn't really fit me. Then one of the Mom's raved about a "new" blog she had read called Bella Pink. I had no clue what a blog even was, but I googled it and I was struck by how it looked like a magazine, but it was so personal and interesting.

So now I knew what a blog was; and then I found out anyone could do it.

I signed up with Blogger and posted a few projects , happy that I had something to do. I started finding more blogs and more people who became apart of my "webring".

Suddenly, people started leaving comments and linking to me and I became obsessed, but it was a good obsession for me.

I felt validated. I was human after all.

It motivated me to try new things, to start dreaming of projects, and to be inspired by others creativity and to feel potential.

I have met friends and kindred spirits I never knew I had from all over the country, I've gone on trips I ever thought I would go on and am finding I am evolving into this person I really like.

The hard time came for me last June, when our computer and my blog was hacked. Unable to find the problem, I had to delete my blog and start over. It was heart breaking. Over 300 posts lost, a years worth of work gone and who knows how many visits I would have really been up to.

For a moment I considered stopping. Then I pulled up my boot straps and kicked my self in the fanny for crying over a blog because in the grand perspective, my family was well and we had food to eat. I realized that even though I had found an identity, it wasn't who I was.

And as life moved on, I started over ( probably much to my husband's chagrin.) and am happy I continued to post my passions and my home life.

Now I won't say everything has been perfect, even though I do post a lot of exclamation marks and smiley's in my posts. I find blogging very love/hate. At times, I spend way too much time riveted at the computer, ignoring my kid's as blood gushes out of a jugular... on the other hand, I've gone through periods where I feel like I just don't want to blog and feel a bit burdened. I am happy I finally ventured into Etsy territory and with what people are accomplishing, who knows were blogging will lead me next? All I know is the place I have found myself is worth it's weight in gold.

Through it all, I'm here and it is bliss for me.

It's my chance to speak, my chance to write, and my chance for one moment to be heard and be noticed in a place where I sometimes feel very second string.

So thanks Tara, for introducing me to what Blogging for Bliss is really about. And thank you all for reading and going along for the ride. :)

Okay, just one smiley face.

Jen