Truth, Beauty

I live a really beautiful life. I have a sweet husband, gorgeous, inspiring children, a wonderful home, lots of yummy food to eat, a drive to be creative, a yoga class I love, supportive family, and great friends. 

But my life is also far from perfect. My husband is gone on business a LOT. My children kind of drive me crazy some days. We have issues with our rental home all the time. Many types of food make me seriously sick. I have a lot of design (and other) work to do from home that can often be stressful. I have to miss yoga for things like illness, a busy schedule, or general exhaustedness. My family lives far, far away. And I rarely get to spend time with friends because their lives echo my own.

But I am no less grateful for the life I live. I feel like I've tried to keep it pretty real on this blog. I don't think I paint a shiny, endlessly happy existence where I am just exuding perfection and joy. I know there are blogs out there that do that. And lately it's been a topic of conversation that those blogs are making it harder for the rest of us who trudge through a difficult day here and there. I do know that when I have great days filled with beauty, I definitely want to document them. Instagram has been awesome for that. It is wonderful to scroll through those shots and see how much beauty there really is going on in my life. But check Instagram today and you'll see things are getting a little messy. And when it comes to blogging, I have no interest in painting a false picture of my life. (Note: I think for me it's more about the small miracles that happen every day, especially when things seem to be going wrong. I don't think it's really about a good day vs. a bad day. It's rarely just one or the other. And a lot of it has to do with my outlook on things. Except for when Wes has been gone for a week. Then all bets are off...)

As a response to a particularly lively chat going on in the blogosphere and on Facebook, I thought I would post about my day TODAY. Just for kicks. :)

First of all, Wes is out of town. Again. On a really great job shooting a PetSmart commercial. So that is a blessing. But I am here holding down the fort. More like the fort is holding me hostage. The kids whirl around me in a fit of fights and fancy, loving and hating each other very dramatically when Wes is away. They feel the imbalance, and take it out on each other, and on me. But sometimes that's just the way life is. Plus I've been feeling a little under the weather, which is not a surprise for me. I have small ailments everyday. I've learned to live with them. Most of the time they aren't that bad. But sometimes it makes me unmotivated to DO anything, which is the part that's problematic. The laundry piles up. The dishes don't get washed. 

We all have days like this! But when we post about them on our blogs, we tend to get sympathy comments. Sometimes I don't need sympathy, I just want to post about how my day went. Empathy is fine ("I hear ya, sister!"), but I really hate feeling like someone's feeling bad for me. Because there is just no reason for it! Remember: beautiful life, not perfect life. That's A-OK.

So in the spirit of things, I've provided a stunning photo exposé on how things are progressing at the Johnson household on day 5 of Wes being gone:

Just look at the color and texture on this dining room table. It's collage at its finest.

Master Bedroom in Low Light, by Finn and Maya

 

A true culinary masterpiece.

Maya's creative space to brainstorm and experiment. (She's been experimenting for a week...)

Fashion is at least folded!

And FINALLY one clean room in the house! The media room. It's in the basement. It's cold. No one goes down there, so it stays clean. This is where I breathe a sigh of relief at 8:30pm every night. 

How's your day shaping up? Any small successes? Big ones? Post them! Day going downhill fast? Tell us about it. But only if you have time and energy, of course. ;)