The Answer

I was surprised for a number of reasons, but when I think about it I shouldn't have been.

It is the answer that I started with.

It has been staring me in the face this whole time, and I didn't realize it.

I rediscovered why this blog matters...

I have been bombarded, both in person (by people who I know in real life), via email, facebook and other means of communication about how much people appreciated/identified with my Finding Balance post.

You see, I knew it when I named my blog.  I was honest, and it was the most honest title I could choose.  Homemaking Challenged.  I started out originally (see my very first post here) to give myself an additional motivation, to track my journey in becoming a true homemaker.  I poured over fabulous blogs, hoped onto pinterest in the early days, and always fell short.  Way short.  I was determined that if I had a blog, and tracked my journey it would force me to become a better homemaker.

I attempted to laugh over my "failures" as a homemaker on the blog.  I attempted to not be discouraged when going over to others homes and seeing their beautiful space.  Honestly, I felt alone.  I mean the "messy" shots on some of my favorite blogs, were no where near my reality.  I obviously have way to much work to do on me and my home to even compare.

After going through my 31 day series and the feedback from people with my final post, I realized what I was doing wrong.

People want real.  They don't just want to see the "pinterest worthy" project, but the hard stuff too.  They want to know that they aren't the only ones struggling, they want to know that they aren't the only ones who's bedroom is a disaster zone so that they can have company over in the living room.  I am going to strive to have more balance on my blog, and be more transparent with even the ugly stuff.  I want you to know that you aren't alone.

A quick sidebar for an example.  My son right now, is on a "lets throw EVERYTHING on the floor" phase.  We are working on the now we have to clean it up phase, but we are still working on it.  Thus, his room looks like this:

It is a work in progress.  The kids already have too much stuff.  My son's birthday is Friday, and then comes Christmas.  We are purging, I just have to do it without the kids around, because then they discover "new" toys and things they haven't touched in who knows how long becomes their most prized possession.  (Any other mom's relate?)

My point is, the answer has been staring me in the face.  I am a work in progress, I am Homemaking Challenged, but so are many others.  I am not alone in this journey and neither are you.  We are all people in progress at different places in our own unique journey.  We can not compare, we should not judge, we can encourage and inspire.

I hope that is what this blog will do.  Encourage and inspire others to join the journey and become less Homemaking Challenged.