CFHGCleburne’s Fashion and High-class garments shopping!

Congrats on being MOTW.

I ran into a bit of a snag however…I’m hoping the e-mail I dug to find works!

So go tell her congrats!

I’m happy to report that I did get a hold of her and WA-LA! The answers you all are waiting for!

1. How long have you been blogging?

For just a little over a year.

2. What made you start a blog?

Rejection. I felt rejected by mommy group’s because I wasn’t swooning over my new baby and, instead, wanted to rant about my difficulty transitioning into motherhood. A good friend of mine suggested I start a blog to vent my frustrations. When I got emails from other women who had similar feelings as me, I felt inspired to keep writing.

3. What is your greatest challenge as a mom?

Patience. I’m a bit of an A-type personality, which means I like to get things done as effectively and efficiently as possible. With children, this isn’t always possible. In fact, it’s rarely possible. Even something as simple as getting ready to take the kids to the park can be a huge endeavor. As soon as you get one kid to clean up his toys before leaving, the other kid is taking them all off the shelves the moment you turn to get your shoes. That’s when you realize one of them has just taken a dump, which means you won’t be leaving the house for yet another twenty minutes. Then once you do get all the toys put away and the diaper changed, you herd the kids out the door and they instantly become distracted by every little ant, leaf, flower, neighborhood kitty you wish would stop pooping in your yard – whatever – which means walking to the car is never a linear operation. It’s as if their being so close to the ground has actually put them in their own time zone.

The good news is that I’ve always wanted to have more patience and having children has forced to me consciously work at it. Every single day. So, while it’s my greatest challenge, it’s also just one of the many ways that my children are helping me to become a better person.

4. How do you keep your identity as a PERSON, outside of being a mom?

Attending grad school full-time helps. When I’m in classes or studying, it’s a time for me to see myself outside of the motherhood role. It’s a time for me to think about things that truly interest me. Not that my children don’t interest me, because they do. Reading “Goodnight Moon” 450 million times in a row, however, does not. For me – and I do just mean me – having that time away allows me to appreciate my mamahood that much more. When I am with the kids, I find it much easier to focus on them without feeling as if I’m somehow losing myself.

Go check her out and leave her a message of congratulations! We will have lots more information up about her soon! Please leave any question you’d like her to answer in the comments. OR, post your favorite quote from her blog!

Here are the first few questions (which we are awaiting answers for!):

1. How long have you been blogging?

Just over a year. I was going through a tough time with raising Thomas and I really needed to find the humour in my daily life. It was a sad and scary time. They say a mother and baby should bond right away, but I was depressed and it didn’t happen right away for me. I nursed him, but that didn’t seem to help. I don’t know how else to explain how I was so disconnected then. My attempts at blogging were sparse then, but the writing came when I had the time. Now I blog daily, sometimes more than once.

2. What made you start a blog?

Trying to cope, as I said. I come from a long line of family who laugh off pain. Some of them drink off the pain, but I’m not a fan of the daily self-medication. I’m Irish – I laugh and drink….but drink in moderation.

3. What is your greatest challenge as a mom?

I have got to stop second-guessing myself and trying to prove I’m NOT my mother. For a little background, my mother is a mentally-ill drunk. That really is the long and short of it. When I was pregnant with Thomas, she bragged to me about abusing her boyfriend’s 8 year old daughter. I turned her in. I don’t regret it for one second. I couldn’t let what happened to me, happen to any other child.

4. How do you keep your identity as a PERSON, outside of being a mom?

I have a life outside my kids. Besides my business, and my blog, my girlfriends and I have girl’s night (full blown sleepovers complete with drinks, loud music and the pure joy of adult conversation without any kids around) once every 6 months of more; Daren and I call our sitter and zip out to run errands without the kids, and occassionally we date! At first I felt guilty about leaving the kids with a sitter, but they love it and I love being away for short periods of time.

5. What one piece of advice would you like to pass on to moms everywhere?

Well I need to take my own advice: lose the guilt and take time for yourself. Regularly. Oh and laugh alot! When I was going through the PPD, I woke up angry, every day. Depression and sleep deprivation will do that to a person. Now, the small trials of the day are laughed at, and the whole family is happier for it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not some crazy laughing hyena all day, but finding the balance, the humour and yourself are what’s important. I try to look at each day as a blessing. Our family’s life is really amazing and there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t appreciate them and the life we lead.

Leave YOUR questions or comments below!

I just received a great suggestion for the webring from Carrcakes!

On the first and third Monday of each month, I will post a writing prompt for all blogging members to write about.

Once a topic is posted, members may add their contribution to their own blog and then sign the comments saying they have participated. Each bi-monthly topic will be kept in the archives as well as a link to all the participating member’s posts.

Please email me with any suggested prompt to be considered. Remember to use the subject line “Blogging Prompt”.

The first prompt will be posted on the third Monday of February! Each prompt will have it’s OWN page with the prompt and a link to each participant’s post. A prompt may be a question, the beginning of a sentence, a few lone words, or anything else!

Feel free to email me with any questions, or leave them in the comments!

With the site overhaul, we’re anticipating some new ideas for this webring.

As I stated before, participation in the “extras” are not a membership requirement. In order to be a member of the ring, all you need to do is have the code up on your page and follow the rules set forth above. That’s it. That’s all.

For the rest of you who ARE interested in something more, we need your ideas! Please feel free to leave a comment with YOUR suggestions!

As of now, we’re looking at the following possibilities. These are NOT written in stone!

1.Member of the Week: One mom’s blog will be prominently linked. All members are encouraged to visit this mom’s site, check out her blog and leave her a comment. There will also be a very brief interview from the Member of the Week on the main site.

2. Quotes: We’d like to incorporate various quotes (with links) straight off Member Sites. This is another great way to make your blog stick out and get a little more traffic from ring members.

3. ALL members will be linked on the blog roll on this page as long as their site and code is kept current.

4. Possible Yahoo chats for members to talk in “real time”.

Please feel free to leave more suggestions in the comments section!

Thank you!