I think the first thing people want to know when you tell them you are starting a blog is why… Why would you want to do that? Aren’t you afraid of weird people? Won’t that take a lot of time? The list goes on. So I thought I would start out with my “why”.

Last May I gave birth to my second son and I would say any mother could tell you that it is a life changing experience… every time. While I was much more prepared and much more relaxed this time around it was still a huge transforming event. I don’t know if it is the lack of sleep, the self imposed isolation (sorry, but everyone looks like that Mucinex blob to me when I have a newborn), the totally new body, or an innumerable number of other things but I lost track of myself somewhere in the mix. It happened the first time too so it wasn’t unexpected this time but still creates a new journey. I don’t think that childbirth is the only experience that causes this, I think many other life changes from marriage or job promotion, to divorce or loss can all cause us, especially women, to feel lost.

Some people seem to look and feel amazing while pregnant…I am not one of those people. When I’m pregnant, other than wanting to not be pregnant haha I want to be comfortable (if that’s even possible ) and not spend a bunch of money on stuff I won’t wear for long. It took much longer than anticipated to get pregnant a second time, and as a result I lived in a constant state of “I could be pregnant so I don’t want to waste money on this right now”. Postpartum my closet was full of things I either didn’t love, was sick of looking at, or more likely didn’t fit at all. I also felt like it had been so long since I had actually shopped that I didn’t even know what the current trends were. This all compounded the issue of me not feeling like myself.

As I sat on the couch in my basement in an endless loop of feeding, changing, burping and Nexflix binging I, for some reason, opened the little used Instagram app on my phone. I have had Facebook forever and used it to keep up with my friends and family so I went to Instagram looking for something else, and I found it. Anyone who knows me well can tell you that I LOVE to shop, always have and I don’t see that changing anytime soon (sorry hubby), so when I found these amazing women sharing fashion, and their lives as well as easy ways to shop from home, I was hooked. Not just because I like to shop but also because it gave me a way to feel like I could reconnect with the world and myself again.

The was the beginning of me using Instagram unlike any other social media, I used it solely for my entertainment (not that my actual friends aren’t entertaining, some are very haha but hopefully you know what I mean). I started searching for and finding bloggers who’s style I loved, and that were sharing similar parts of their lives and I began to feel much less alone. I also started to feel more confident in what I liked for myself again. I personally like to wear clothing that I feel good in, put makeup on and fix my hair before I leave the house. It’s not that I’m insecure without those things, I’ve definitely left the house looking like a hot mess many times it’s just that I prefer not to. Feeling confident in the clothing and beauty choices I make is important and fun for me.

Another thing I love is when other people feel good about themselves. I don’t think I’ve ever given someone a compliment and had them look at me in disgust. I truly believe that we all need positive confirmation to build self esteem, I just finished my eleventh year as a teacher and I can tell you from experience, it’s always important. I know there are many people in the world that just can’t ever seem to be genuinely happy for others when they look, feel, receive or do something good, I am not one of those people. I’m a helper, a builder and a lover, and even when life really sucks my default is to revert back to optimism and joy.

And that brings me to my ultimate “why”. Why do I want to do this? Because I want to try to be that little something good in someone else’s life. If I can help you feel more like yourself or even help you find that perfect shirt for the neighborhood barbecue then I would love to do that. I know some will find this silly, and that’s okay, if you don’t get the “why” it’s probably not meant for you right now; but feel free to come back later because I can be totally random and you just might find something you will like. 😉