March 28, 2007

Why do I blog?

I blog, therefore I am. No, actually it's because sometimes, you have Really Sucky Days. Then, you decide to glean what little humor you can and post about it. THEN, you savor each and every Thoughtful, Sympathetic Me!Too! Comment that comes your way. Sometimes, I pump up the volume on the I'm a Shitty Mother Stereo and this blog helps keep me sane. Thank you, from the bottomless pit of my Recently Thawed Heart. THIS is why I blog. I'm curious - why do you blog? If you don't blog, why not? What's holding you back?

Today went really, really well - like, I totally love my son again, which is pretty convenient. Last night, I managed to sleep the whole night through, Arun got up at 8:30 and even took a nap! For the most part, Arun is a good night-time sleeper, barring no teething, illness or an in-town father who picks him up at the slightest squawk. I am glad that X is such a hands-on father, but sometimes, I wish he would let Arun cry for at least a few minutes before rushing in to get him. The plus side, is that X usually takes Nighttime Duty these days. The negative side is that I suspect the kid has figured out how this all works. When X is OUT of town, Arun sleeps the night through. When X is IN town, Arun mysteriously begins waking up in the middle of the night. Suspicious, don't you think??

While Arun is a pretty good nighttime sleeper, Naptime has always been our struggle. It only started to get bearable around 11 months when the Afternoon Nap did a hostile takeover of the Morning Nap and thus, became The Nap. Then, the next few months were Blissful. However. The past month? Not so awesome - just before the time change, it all started to crumble and I am still at a loss as to why. We go to Vegas this weekend, so it's all going to be screwed with anyway - I figure I will start to deal with it next week.

So, this weekend, it appears I will get to meet the luscious Monkey in a Suit in all her pelted glory (FYI, Monkey's blog is on haitus - soon to return with a new n' improved URL). It was difficult convincing my step-grandma that Monkey is not an axe-murderer and that it is not usually life-threatening to meet a BlogFriend in Real Life. Although, I'll admit I am anxious to verify that Monkey is indeed a female lawyer in her 20s and not a 15 year old male with an impressive falsetto. However, if "she" is indeed a 15 year old male, I can only marvel at "her" incongruous expert knowledge of the real estate market and bikini waxes.

This is the last post for the week since I'll need to finish some things before heading out. Next week, I'll have two book reviews to post - The Guy Not Taken by Jennifer Weiner and Rules of the Wild: A Novel of Africa by Francesca Marciano. I mean, don't get me wrong - it's not like I'm Michiko Kakutani by any means, but it is fun to write about books.

Finally, some Linky Love. If you are interested in the stay-at-home-mom vs. working mom discussion, check this thought-provoking post out over at the Soccer Mom Vote. The post is titled SAHM vs WAHM vs WOHM vs WTF? Enjoy!

12 comments:

Monkey McWearingChaps said...

If I were a 15 year old male with that intense a knowledge of mortgage banking and bikini waxes I think it would make me that much more awesome to meet :).

Lisa said...

Hi Cagey,

I see from your previous posts, you've had a crazy week. Hope everyone is back to being healthy and hope the naptime goes better tomorrow. (That used to KILL me when Seth wouldn't sleep during the day.)

Oh and congrats on your little girl!

Celebrate Woo-Woo said...

I blog because sometimes I just need to get the crazy, over-dramatized thoughts out of my head before they take over. Putting together a post about such thoughts helps keep them in perspective.

Photobug said...

I blog infrequently, trying to keep it active in the winter, and then filling it with my photo experiments when the weather is nice. Hopefully I'll have another post next week...woohoo two weeks in a row.

So you're heading to Vegas to meet a female 20 something lawyer? Don't forget your very single 30 something male friend back here in KC is always looking for intelligent women ;)

Photobug said...

Forgot to add, I personally wouldn't fret about Arun and the nap thing. Some kids just don't nap. Apparently I was one of those children, but I made up for it in my highschool and college years.

Diana said...

I'm terribly excited for you and Monkey to get to meet!

Ah, napping. My days at home revolve around it. It is sacred and when it is no more, I'll mourn it deeply.

Why do I blog? So many reasons. It started as a way to keep in touch without sending out multiple emails to friends and family. Now it's about sanity, therapy, friendship, community, and (I'm shocked to find) sheer enjoyment of writing. I'd always detested writing.

I was talking to a patient the other day and asked her as a matter of course what her day involved. She very sanctimonously replied that she "delivered papers in the morning so I can be home with my kids." I smiled and said, "Good for you," and went on with things while gritting my teeth. I strongly believe that whatever works for you and your family is what's best, but no matter your choice, please don't judge others who choose differently.

Christy said...

Naps have always been diffiuclt for us too. I swear that Porgie didn't take a nap for the first 3 months of her life. Instead, she perferred to cry. Even now, naps are hit or miss.

Have fun in Vegas!

meno said...

I blog because it's fun. And a great way for an introvert to interact with people.

After my daughter stopped napping, we still had "quiet time" where she stayed in her room and played and i napped.

MLE said...

I love Monkey. Give her a hug for me! And I promise, she's not an axe murderer. She'd be much more likely to pour poison in your ear while you sleep.

Monkey McWearingChaps said...

That was a good post but the whole "if I don't work I'm not setting a good example for my kid" or "what's the point of SAHM moms having good degrees" attitude sort of raises my hackles and I don't even have a kid!! I have an education for myself, because I respect learning and the experiences I've had in pursuing higher education have made me a more broadminded, better human being...and I know that my career touches on important finance issues people deal with IRL.

I don't know-it bugs me. It says something about what we think of education for women as being good for-the only justification for a woman, or even a man, to be educated is if they plan to become part of an economic system and use their skills therein. That a human being benefits from education more intangibly and how having a parent that values education enough to have pursued it and its effect on the child is simply left out of the picture.

FFF said...

I started to blog because it was the one thing in my life that was all mine. Its a great free hobby. I have learned so much from reading other people's blogs, and I know I'm a better mother for it. It makes me feel good to know I'm not alone going through ear infections and tantrums.

The Soccer Mom Vote post was a good one. I plan to take a step back at some point in the future once I've had another kid and they are about 5 and 7 or 8, depending on when #2 happens. The really honest reason for waiting until the kids are bit older to work part time or stay home is probably going to rile some people up, but here it is: they don't remember much before age 4, so they won't even remember missing me, and I want to be home when they can talk, go to the bathroom and can enjoy art projects and field trips in an interactive way. It's fun to read Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? but it would be even more fun (to me) to read Charlotte's Web.

Unknown said...

I am not a blogger. Lots of reasons to become one- such as overloading my friends and family emails with stories of my own- but still cant bring myself to blog. Reading some of yours have made me laugh. My husband too- noting the part of meeting a fellow blogger, Monkey. Very funny. Cheers to becoming a mother! I gotta wonder if that 12 step workaholic plan is working for you because as a chronic overtime employee- I have still never worked harder or longer with a child (now two!).