The One About the Revived and Revamped Blog

    They say that whatever you post online is there for eternity.  In this case, I am very thankful for that.  I have posted on my blog one time, yes one time, in the last 3 years.   Life got in the way, or more truthfully, I got in my own way.  Lately, I have been feeling pulled back to my abandoned blog.  I am searching for some kind of creative outlet for my passions.  I want to start writing again.  The reason that I began my blog years ago was as a scrapbook for the kids.  I mainly shared pictures of them, told funny stories about them, and narrated the day-to-day life of our family.  While I still plan to do that, I want this blog to me more personal:  MY thoughts, MY reflections, MY passions, and even MY struggles.  As I write this, there are very few people who know about the existence of this blog, and if they do they probably assume it has been abandoned for good and no longer check it for new posts. I am content with that.  I am not writing for exposure, attention, or "shares" on Facebook.  This blog is just for me. 
    I have been on this self-discovery journey for the last 1 1/2 years.  I have been working on myself, my heart, and my faith.  I have been praying, reading devotionals and personal development books, focusing on gratitude, and surrounding myself with likeminded and amazing women who build me up and inspire me to keep going in my journey.  I have learned a lot about myself, yet I have also stumbled.....and I have stumbled often. I have recognized that I am my worst critic, and I need to pray every single day for God's help in quieting those negative voices in my head.  I am a daughter of God, and His love for me is unconditional.  He will offer grace to me time and time again.  I cannot out-sin His grace, no matter how badly I feel that I have failed.  I have also learned that His timing is not necessarily MY timing, and I need to trust Him, even if I don't understand it at all.  God has a plan for me, and is looking at the big picture of my life. 
    With a small group of friends, I am doing a Bible Study called Mom Set Free.  It has changed my life. 

I wish I would have had this book when I became a mom 12 1/2 years ago.  There are so many fears and pressures of parenting, and this book addresses them all and teaches us that we are not expected to carry it all on our shoulders.  God doesn't ask that of us, so why do we feel that we have to do it all...and be perfect in our parenting.  He wants us to come to him with our worries and our struggles.  He doesn't expect perfection; only God is perfect.  By relying on God, we have freedom in our parenting, and what a relief that has been to me.  I am still a work in progress, but knowing that also gives me a sense of peace.  I don't have to have it all figured out right now, and I won't.  I will keep stumbling.  I will keep getting back up again.  I will keep growing.  I will keep praying.  I will stop trying to control everything and just be still.