My Dad asked me if I started this blog because we all watched “Julie & Julia” years ago. The answer’s no, but it did make me think of the movie and the goal of Julie to bring some focus into her life. I remember thinking then that that isn’t a bad idea at all.
I’ve been toying with the idea of a blog for awhile, but I was scared to actually start it. So like a few other decisions I’ve made recently, I just did it because then it’s done and I’ll live with the consequences. The thoughts that have been swirling in my head these past few months that finally channeled into creating the blog are the following:
1. My Grateful Journal: My dear friend Beth keeps a grateful journal. She told me about this journal years ago. Every night she writes down things she is grateful for. I am of course happy to have been included a time or two :-). When things had been rough in the past, she suggested that I start a grateful journal. Both Matt and I tried it. Well actually, I think his never made it to paper. But mine did. For about 3 days. Sigh. When I realized that it just wasn’t working for me to write down my list, I told Matt we’d just say our grateful list out loud before bed each night. That lasted a lot longer. Maybe three weeks. Another sigh. So when I told Matt I started this blog, he said, “Oh, this is your new grateful journal!” Huh, I had not thought of it that way. But it totally is. Not only do I want to use this blog to focus and form a more formalized practice of mindfulness, but I also want it to help me be present and at peace and for me, being at peace is often thinking of my blessings in life. So this blog will chronicle those blessings and hence, be my grateful journal. I feel no pressure to list these blessings every day, but I already know that by just pressing submit on blogspot and creating this blog, I forced myself to “just do it” and start formally thinking about all these things. And what great things they are. A grateful journal really is a wonderful idea. When things are feeling overwhelming, and for many of our friends in this economy that is the common feeling right now, it helps to remember what good things you have in your life. And I’ve found that it’s easier to remember things when they are written down. This is a gift and a practice I would like to pass along to my child(ren). Always remember your blessings! So thank you Beth for the original idea and thank you Matt for framing this blog in that way. I like this focus!
2. A Community of Ideas: I had never followed blogs until I got pregnant. But suddenly there was a lot of information I wanted to know and it wasn’t all in the books I was reading (and trust me, I read A LOT of books while I was pregnant). So I started googling. A lot. And a lot of the google responses were from blogs that other parents and parents-to-be had posted on with similar questions. Huh. Cool, I’m not alone wondering and worrying about this symptom or that decision. After I had Kalev, I have used blogs even more. I’ve looked up suggestions for sleeping, for wall heater protections, for teething. I also started actually following blogs for the first time. Ok, not that many. Just three: Grace In the Ordinary, Jazzy Mama, and the Vanilla Sugar Blog. Grace In The Ordinary is written by my already-often-mentioned friend Beth. It is amazing. Beth looks at ordinary occurrences in her life and sees the grace in them. What a beautiful practice in mindfulness! Jazzy Mama is about parenting in the “granola” sense that I’ve come to embrace but since I did not grow up in that parenting style, nor have much exposure to it, it’s a constant learning process for me and it helps to hear from other like-minded parents. And Vanilla Sugar is about food. My other passion. Yum. Anyways, my reading other people’s blogs has helped me be a better parent, given me new ideas, and has helped me to focus on the grace I can find in a baby playing with pots and pans, a flower in a garden, or a new puppy that has so much to teach. I love the feeling of exchanging ideas with a greater community and I am happy to now be part of the exchange of information.
3. Creative Outlet: I have been complaining for years about my lack of creative outlet since I started on the law path. With three years of law school and three plus years of legal practice, I feel like all I do is think and breathe about who has liability for this action and how would you fight that wrong. And often they are in big, annoying legal words. And this from the person who thought she’d never actually practice law! Bleh. I’ve been craving creativity. So perhaps now I’ve found it. A way to focus my thoughts that has absolutely nothing to do with the law. I love it!
4. Opening the Dialogue: When you’re a mindful parent, you often don’t have time to talk on the phone to your friends. My friend Sara and I used to talk about this all the time. We could talk about it because we shared an office at work. It was never on the phone. Now that she’s in Oregon, we have to make do with the occasional email or Facebook message. It’s just really hard to try to have a conversation with someone on the phone when you are watching your baby sort toys into different baskets or crawl into your lap wanting your attention. I don’t want to talk on the phone. I want to be with my baby. And there’s absolutely no way that there’s time to individually call every friend that I want to stay in touch with. That’s why I love Facebook. So easy to log on with my iphone while I’m nursing Kalev to sleep. I can quickly see what’s going on in everyone’s life and send little messages or comments so they know I’m thinking about them. And it can be any time of the day or night, not just during proper calling hours. So in addition to focusing all these thoughts running throughout my brain, this blog can help me dialogue with my friends and other parents because I’m not going to call you. Unless it’s while I am driving to or from work on my Bluetooth :-)
So Dad, there are your reasons. And the dialogue is open. I’m excited to share my thoughts regarding my practice of mindfulness and also hear from all of you about how you practice mindfulness and/or parenting. We have so much to learn from each other and it’s great to be part of the parenting club—what a great community we are!
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