Today I have the gorgeous Carli on my blog! I met Carli at Power of Moms and she is just gorgeous inside and out. And for my crafty ladies, Carli is the sister of Toni of Make it Perfect! You can find Carli’s blog here, Carli’s Clan.
While Corrie is enjoying Emerson’s newness I wanted to share how blogging helps me enjoy and also relive family joys. There was a time when I was a young mum, about 21, and I brought home a little screaming baby, living in inner-city Sydney managing a backpacker’s hostel with my husband. I really felt quite isolated away from my family and very different to my uni friends. I used to go for long, long walks to calm my baby. Although I took a few photos, I have fleeting memories of that first year of motherhood. I wish had recorded how I felt, the funny things that happened, what did I think about on my long walks?
Another few years along and we bought a house in a leafy area and built another in our backyard. Three more children joined our family in succession. We ran a busy and burgeoning flower shop. Somewhere in there I discovered blogging. I’m not exaggerating here, it changed my life! Initially, I really enjoyed having a platform to share entertaining stories from the day with far-flung family. I found real joy in writing and expressing myself through the richness of language, something I hadn’t taken time to do for years. I began to take notice of the ordinary things that made up our days at home with my children and I realised that things would change, these wonderful busy and exhausting years would become a memory to me. What did I want to capture before things changed? In taking time to regularly capture and keep these special moments through words and photos, I felt a great sense of gratitude for my blessings and I’ve thought of answers to problems through reflection. I have spent hours and hours reading my archives just falling in love with my family all over again.
Any time I take to blog I want to be meaningful. I ask myself whether this is something I would like my children to read in the future, will this make them laugh, will it help them or uplift them? Will it help them to learn of Pop’s remarkable war story? Will Maya smile when she reads of the time we bathed naked in a traditional bath house in Japan and how we laughed jumping into the hot water? Sometimes, I write just for me, just because I want to post about something very pretty I know my sister will love. Or about flowers, we love all things floral here. But usually I’m careful to make this a family space everyone can share in one day that will stand the test of time. I share my beliefs openly, I write about my love for my grown up siblings, I picture the beauty of isolated beaches we happen upon on Sunday afternoons, or about children’s books I’m passionate about. It doesn’t have to be professional or perfect in layout, it just has to be a part of our story.
Keeping a blog makes me stop to look and listen, I treasure more, I create more, and through the process I’m becoming more. My life isn’t all roses, there are fights and tantrums and spills and money hassles like in most families. But, the more I focus on the beauty, the more I see it and feel it. Life is a beautiful gift, I believe families are forever, and writing our story is a joy to me.
Lovely post. That is exactly the reason I started to blog. I want to remember the little things, the funny, the struggles and many many photos. I want my 4 boys to have this as a memory they can look back on, and have a context to the thousands of photos we have taken.
Thank you for sharing her story Corrie. I’m heading over to Carli’s blog now!
Wow – that really makes sense to me. I had a journal i kept for a few years when my son was young as i knew i’d forget things – like the way he used to wear Mr Potato heads glasses whilst walking around with a dummy in his mouth – but now that there are 2 little creatures to manage it’s been neglected and i rarely put any pics in it. I have thought about a blog but thought to myself ‘who would want to read it?’ The answer is family – that’s who!! and it’s a much better than a facebook update or pic post.
Beautifully written
I’ve followed Carli’s blogs for years and this is the same reason I blog. Lately blogging has been getting a bit of back lash I feel.. so many people saying blogging is fake… but I choose to see the beauty carli is describing here!… even if I’m not blogging as often as I used to
Hello! how do I ask Carli a question? I couldnt find where to post a comment on her blog. Thank you!