So Why the New Blog, Anyway?

So, why a new blog? I wish there was an easy answer for that. Instead, it’s somewhat complicated.

For awhile now I’ve been unhappy with blogging and to an extent, the blogging community. Let me be clear though, through blogging I’ve met many wonderful people, who I consider now to be good friends. But as with anything (like say, high school) there are also cliques, mean girls, and the popular crowd you never quite seem to be a part of. Maybe that’s just me. Either way it felt really disheartening. It was hard to never feel good enough. “Don’t compare yourself to others.”, friends said. Easier said than done.

When I began blogging it was a way to share my adventures in being a new housewife. It gave me an outlet as I transitioned from full time teacher to full time housewife. That was a big switch, let me tell you. A big switch that caused a deep depression and loss of identity. (It was my choice and I don’t regret that, let me be clear on that. I love being able to wear yoga pants all day and not dread Monday morning.)

Meanwhile, I was blogging it all – well, not all. I figured no one would care that I was having a hard time getting out of bed in the morning afternoon. Yes, I said afternoon. I hit critical mass in 2012 when I had a gigantic panic attack that landed me in the ER and in a therapists office not long after that. That was a blessing in disguise.

Through therapy and treatment, I’ve learned that I have a tendency to over complicate things. I want things to be perfect. I drive myself nuts if they aren’t. If I’m not the best, then I quit. If I can’t get that A+ or the gold star for a fantastic performance (or blog post) then why bother? I was tired and frustrated watching people who had blogged for less time than I had making it big while I was struggling to stay afloat. If I’m honest, I still struggle with that.

Frankly I just couldn’t keep doing that to myself.

Sometime last fall I started craving simplicity. I wanted everything to be simpler; easier; more peaceful. And that included blogging. I realized that I couldn’t continue to kill myself trying to churn out projects just for the sake of blogging. I didn’t want to be doing things in my house just so I could share it on the blog. It felt unnatural.

What I wanted was to be able to just write some days – to share what I was thinking and feeling about life, blogging, mental health, or the world at large. I wanted something broader. Heck, I just wanted a theme. 

And so, Christina, Plain and Simple was born. Rather than feeling like an accidental blog, it would have a theme and a purpose.

I’ll still be sharing all the things I did before – crafts, household tips, organizing – but with a new slant…simplified and easy. And with that slant, I can also include the things I want to write about now more than ever.

You can expect to find a whole host of new topics – all with the goal of simplifying my (and your!) life.

I can’t spend my life working toward perfection, comparing myself to what I see elsewhere. Instead, I need to work toward living my best life – and so do you! I want to help you do that! So that, my friends, is the long and short of it. I created a new blog to encompass my new view on life and living. My purpose is to make things more simple for myself and for you. I hope you’ll join me.