Me and my little buddy at Dash Point State Park in June.
I haven’t blogged in well more than a YEAR. A pastime that has been a huge part of my life since I started my first blog in 2007. I have struggled with adapting my online identity with my identity as a mom. Pre-babykins (now toddler-kins), I used to write about travel, adventure, hiking, cooking, crafting and my love affair with graphic design. While I still enjoy all those things, parenting a teen and a toddler, being somebody’s partner and just getting my work cranked out each week is a bit all-consuming some days.
Someone asked me what my hobbies were when my little one was 4 months old and my answer was, “UUUUUUHHHHHHHHH…..?” Insanely long pause.
“… feeding my baby?”
Not that it’s a bad thing. But it’s a lot to wrap your head around after spending your first decade as an adult chasing education, climbing a career ladder and establishing a life that revolves around those things. Then your world turns inside out.
I feel like a lot of people in my demographic identify with this kind minor identity crisis when embarking on the parenthood journey. I’ve seen new mom friends I knew from college, women with powerful careers, ask “When do I start to feel normal again?” “When do I feel like ME again?” “I feel like I’m having an identity crisis.”
I had those moments too. Having a tiny baby was a magical time for me, but it took up almost 1oo percent of my physical, emotional and mental energy. But eventually you DO start to feel normal. Your baby needs you a little less and you find room for YOU. And that time where you couldn’t see past the next nap fades into soft memories that seem to have passed in a single heartbeat.
You begin to remember your hobbies and even find time for them now and then. You craft like a mad woman during nap time. You stay up late to meet a deadline on a project you are super excited about. You grab the baby carrier or stroller, load up your munchkin and have an adventure. You plop your toddler on the kitchen island with a bowl and spoon and have him help you make cookies. And you look back, and can’t remember how you used to fill the days when life was a little less full. You actually start to enjoy your daily 6 a.m. cup of coffee while your toddler watches Daniel Tiger and eats oatmeal. (OK, maybe honestly.)
So in a way, blogging about parenting is kind of perfect. It combines two of my favorite things. This crazy journey in parenting with writing and taking photos. And I find myself doing more art and having more adventures after all these days. It just looks a little different — more Crayola, less Macbook. It just took me a little while to figure out how to embrace it. And here we are. Join me for the journey with more soon!
Mom Outside the Margins 