Thursday, September 26, 2013

Balance...

This blogging thing can be difficult sometimes.  One of the hardest parts about opening up your life for people to see is finding a happy balance between sharing enough and sharing too much.

Because we all know the look at me girls.  You know the ones.  They live in immaculate houses with shiny floors so clean they could eat off of them.  But they'd never, of course.  Their parties and outfits put Pinterest to shame.  Their kids were reading Jane Eyre at two-and-a-half.  Weren't yours?  

You see whatever shiny parts of their lives they want to show you and assume that's really what life looks like for them.

On the flip side, there are the poor me girls.  They're always battling some injustice.  Or drama.  Life is unfair and miserable, and don't they just deserve a break?

It's a tough thing, trying to avoid both extremes.  Because no one likes a bragger, but the martyrs and the complainers and the airers of every speck of their dirty laundry aren't very much fun either.  

So I am aiming just to end up somewhere in the middle.

 photo 3B7E020C-6631-4659-969B-32420E507934-151-00000007C8036331_zpsa4c92e07.jpg

Know that my hair is almost always dirty.
I gave birth over five months ago but still live in maternity yoga pants.
My car smells like a giant fart.
I have laundry piled so high in my closet that I could cry.
I haven't cooked an actual meal in months.
I'm not above eating food that falls on my dirty hardwoods.
I drop the f-bomb at least once a day.
I pick my nose.
I lose my patience.
I'm ridiculously awkward.

And so on and so forth.

But I'm also incandescently happy.
And content.
And blessed beyond measure.
And covered in so much grace you wouldn't believe it.

Or maybe you would.

But, bottom line, I think we could all be a little better about letting each other off the hook.  None of us are perfect, and we're all fighting our own battles.  And while putting our prettiest faces forward makes some of us happy, some of us feel better when we can vent to others and put it all out there.  

So to the extent you ever wonder if I've got it all together, I can assure you I don't.  And if you ever feel like I must be the most miserable person on the planet, I promise I'm not.  It's just that some days are easier than others.  While I can sometimes manage to look up and see Him, the everyday life stuff often clouds my vision.

I am undeniably flawed.  But confident in His ability to make me more like Him.  Hopefully you can see both of those things in me and love me anyway.  Or at least tolerate me enough to keep reading... ;)

13 comments:

Brooke said...

I love this post because it shows that you are real... you are right, so many bloggers don't have a balance, too perfect, or too flat out whiney.... balance is good!!

Laurie @ Stylin Savanna said...

I 100% agree with you! Do you ever feel like you aren't good enough when it comes to this whole blogging thing?! I think you have quite the balance going on which is why I enjoy reading your posts so much. Can totally relate. Not to mention that we both have babies less then 2 months apart;)

Established: 2008 said...

What a wonderful post and a great goal for your blog.

Jessie said...

I love everything about this post, especially the last two paragraphs, and the lines about your car smelling like a fart and being covered in grace. :) This is the goal for my blog too, and I hope it reflects that. You're doing a great job.

Joy said...

I love the fact that you openly admitted that you pick your nose! Seriously, WHO DOESN'T. Ha! Sorry, but everyone does whether in public or private.

You are always you on your blog, and that's all that matters. That's also what keeps your readers coming back. That's what I strive for everyday with my blog. I want it to seem like you are sitting there having a conversation one on one with me.

Faith said...

You crack me up! And you are as real as they come! I love it!

Jessica Manning-Garner said...

Great post! Being an imperfect is way more fun!

Courtney B said...

Oh how I love this! Mia's nursery isn't decorated, my house is always cluttered, I won't be throwing a pinterest inspired party for Mia's birthday, I don't know how to dress up all cute, I don't spend money on purses, and I could go on and on! The only reason why I feel guilty is because I see "everyone" else doing it on blog. But that's not true! We all have different talents and gifts and I have mine!
I feel like you have the balance thing down so well (it's funny what we assume when we can't see what goes on behind the blog! I never would have known you struggled)and I always love reading your posts!!

Kristin said...

I love this. I always, always have dishes piled around my sink. Sometimes clean, sometimes dirty, but ALWAYS. I just ate chips and salsa for dinner for 3rd night this week. My closets are a mess and so is the basement. Whew. That felt good :)

I'm still reading all your posts because I love your blog....I just never comment of much of anything these days. I'd rather binge-read blogs than stop to type on them :/ #anotherflaw

Unknown said...

I LOVE this. SO glad we're not all in this alone--we're in it together! Sinners, saved by grace, imperfect but loved by a perfect God.

You are awesome.

Erica @ Team Roberts said...

Love this! One of the reasons I love reading your blog so much is because you are so real!!

Anonymous said...

I can't tell you how badly I needed to read this today. I've been in a funk lately, disgusted with people, mostly family, and just can't seem to find the inspiration to be my usual happy with rainbows and unicorns on my blog. I irritated and I have zero poker face. I wear my heart on my sleeve. So instead of saying what I want and revealing the cracks, I slap a smile on my face and log out of Blogger.

I don't feel like I write enough, then when I do feel like writing, I feel like nobody really cares about what I'm yammering on about, and I feel like one of those "Hey, look at me" girls that I loathe so much.

Colleen said...

Oh I loved this. So true isn't it? I'd settle for just balance any day. Life is too short to be worrying about how we look whether the floors are clean or we are keeping it together.

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