Let’s Start Fresh, Shall We?

The other day my friend got on to me because I had not been updating my blog and she was right. Although this started off as a class project, I have started taking it personally. A few weeks ago, in typical jump the gun fashion, I made a big announcement about the structure of my blog. Well, immediately after that I got in a funk (also very typical). I was only doing that because I felt like I had to reach certain benchmarks of what makes a good blog according to some articles and guidelines that were given to me. Although I know these guidelines were meant to help me find a cohesive string throughout my blog, they only served to make me feel like I was stuck inside a very small tight box. The more I thought about it over the last week and a half, the more I realized that the cohesive string in my blog was Me. That even though my blog wasn't mainly about one subject or another, the glue that was holding all of the pieces together was none other than yours truly. I thought really hard about the blogs that I loved to read and they were so vastly different. Some are very structured while others are loosey goosey; some were family friendly while others were a little more ridiculous but all of them so beautifully resonated with the authors' unique voice. All of this to say, I've decided to scrap my rigid schedule (I've never really like schedules anyway) and go on about writing my blog in the way I originally intended it to be: 100% Me and 100% inspiration. Some days I may rant on and on about the dishes my husband refuses to clean out of the sink (it's like he's allergic to the dishwasher) or I may share with you about the heinous Puggle that lives in the apartment above me that may or may not be possessed by a demon or I might even share with you some wonderful little find that I came across in my countless hours of shopping (I have a problem…), but I can assure you that every time I post it will be from My heart and from My head. I would never want you to come on here and read something that seemed flat and lifeless just because it fit into the pre-determined schedule. We have enough of that in our lives as it is (can we all say Monday Morning Staff Meetings??). Of course, this blog is an experiment and I hope that as I learn more and more about what it is I want to write about, this will change and grow in ways that I can't foresee just at this moment.

In celebration of a new fresh start, I thought I'd do something kind of fun. I started doing this a few years ago and I love looking back over it every now and then to see how I've changed. I think we spend a lot of time thinking about the things in life that we wish we could alter or the things that we don't like and we neglect to focus on the stuff that we really love about life. Today I'm going to share with you a few things that I love. Some are profound, others are silly, and some are just plain bizarre but either way, they are the things that make me happy and give me a fresh start when I'm feeling boxed in.

1. Jesus
   
2. My Husband
   
3. My Parents and Sister (even if she is my toughest critic ;-) )
   
4. Basset Hounds
   
5. Strawberry Ice Cream with real Strawberries
   
6. Cowboy boots
   
7. Alvin and The Chipmunks Great Adventure
   
8. Miller Lite on the Beach
   
9. Death at a Funeral (the original, British version…the other is just garbage…sorry Danny Glover)
   
10. Pickled Okra
    
11. Louis Armstrong
    
12. Clean Sheets
    
13. My wedding pictures
    
14. A good solid cry
    
15. Cheeseburger with Mustard, Ketchup, Pickles Only
    
16. A short, cotton robe
    
17. Korean Tacos
    
18. A grande non-fat latte
    
19. A book so good that you wish you could read it again for the first time because reading it for the second time will just never be as good
    
20. A cool fall day
    
21. Listening to my husband laugh
    
22. Talking on the phone with my best friend about nothing and everything
    
23. Chicago
    
24. Charleston
    
25. My garlic peeler ( I told you some things were weird)
    
26. New calendars
    
27. Rainy afternoons
    
28. New haircuts
    
29. Zedonks
    
30. Sunday Night Dinners
    

    
     

    I'll keep adding to this list as I make a mental note of all of the things that I love in life and that make me, me. Hope you're as excited as I am about this new revelation!