In All My {unedited} Glory...

If you have ever paid any attention to the blogs I follow over there on the right hand side of you screen... you will notice Skinny Runner. (I obviously follow her because she is the ambitious runner I would love to be if I had no children, and lived in a more moderate climate, with several hours a day to commit to running). But the other day she posted about a devotional she was reading and quoted this:

Today it is easier than ever to create an image of yourself that seems much cooler than you really are. All you have to do is post a few good pictures, a couple choice status updates and announce a handful of key connections on your Facebook profile and you can instantly appear as your best version of yourself.

I think I am pretty good about being transparent here. I mean this blog is more for me to reflect on my life, than it is about notoriety; and there is not a person out there that can say that everything in their life is always bliss.

So, I felt challenged to go completely unedited {though my mom thought I hadn't really done anything except learn to photo shop}.

Here is before:


and after:


And because I am being completely open and unedited: my room on a daily basis does not look like either the before or the after, but somewhere closer to the later {maybe a bit more laundry to put away, and the bed's not made}.

As I tackled this project I couldn't help but wonder "How in the world did it get this way!" My explanation... the last month of my life has been crazy busy... no change that insanely busy! Soccer has consumed every weekend, the weeks have been full of practices (T-ball and soccer), and the school year didn't come to a gradual end but was full speed ahead until I officially checked out for the summer. This means that I have had no time to do laundry, or even unpack and put luggage away.

This is not an excuse but just a fact of life, a life that Brian and I have chosen for us and our family. We are parents who believe it is extremely important to provide opportunities for our children to be involved and active, and encourage them to try new things, even to the detriment of our social lives {but not to the detriment of our marriage, mind you}. In order to do this it requires sacrifices, maybe the laundry doesn't get done every Monday, maybe the floors get neglected for a week, maybe our house becomes the pit-stop between laps and my room becomes the holding tank...

... but if I had to choose between a spotless home and this life we have... well I think you know what choice I would make.