Probably Opening A Can Of Worms Here....

However in the past I have many conversations with fellow bloggers who have often wondered why some of the big name bloggers get so much attention when they're stories are just a few of many out there who have gone through the same thing.

In fact many have gone through much worse.

I can think of 10 people off the top of my head who deserve so much recognition for the trials that they or their families have gone through. Yet they are out there not to exploit their children or make money off of them, but to raise awareness.

These people don't have ads all over their sites. It's all just a part of a united front of moms who have children with either special needs or whom have medical challenges.

While reading through the bloggy world today, I came across this paragraph written by a fellow blogger, and thought that I would share it here, as I completely agree with what she has said.

I just want to say that there is an element of fame that comes in when someone has a blog with a huge readership. I'm sure it is very hard to stay down-to-earth when you have people literally worshipping the ground you walk on. It's always seemed off to me. I think these are real women who get get sucked in to what everyone is saying about them. Their egos are affected, just like a movie star who is suddenly thrust into the limelight.

I would ask everyone to step back and take it all with a grain of salt. These are REAL women. They have their faults and shortcomings like the rest of us. No amount of great writing (accompanied by beautiful photographs) is going to change that. They do not necessarily know more than you do, about life and raising children. They are not better wives and mothers than you are. There is no reason for you to look UP to them. I think it is dangerous when they are placed on a pedestal and constantly told, "You're so funny, you're so smart, you're so great!" They put their nursing bras on one strap at a time, like the rest of us.

The internet creates an environment that is very, very unique. You can pick and choose what you want to show people. You pick the pictures going out there. You edit them, you make everything look the best it possibly can. It's NOT totally genuine. I do the same thing. If I have a pile of laundry on my sofa and my kids' dirty socks and shoes on the floor, do I include all that in a picture of my new coffee table? No! It gets cropped.

Please take into consideration that most bloggers are "cropping" their lives for you. They're taking out some of the bad, and then adjusting the lighting and color and putting a nice rosy glow on everything. I know so many women who feel inferior and feel that they just aren't good enough, because they compare themselves to bloggers.

Please, please, please stop looking at the big bloggers as if they are leaders. They're not! They're just regular old people like you and I. They yell at their kids sometimes. They skip showers. They argue with their husbands. They forget homework assignments and bills and playdates. They're HUMAN like we are! Their creative talent is what sets them apart. That is only one aspect of a full life.

I thought this was so true, and I know so many other mom's out there who have amazing creative talent, even more so than these big name bloggers.

But what sets us little folks apart is that we are out there to raise awareness. It's not about how many hits we have or how many followers. It's not a show about who has the most perfect life.

It's about life in itself.

My life is not perfect, and I hope I have never portrayed that, as sometimes I myself have sat there and thought, should I sugar coat this so that I don't sound like a desperate fool?

But in all reality this blog is for us. It's so that we can look back at our past and see how far we have come. If we make a few friends along the way, all the better.

I know for me, my life has seemed to me to be in shambles the last few months. I feel like my relationship with Andy has gone to the pits becuase he is never home. My heart hurts because I am begining to resent the fact that he can come and go as he pleases, and just the fact that he knows where nothing in our house is makes me feel like I am failing as a wife.

I have gone to some of the big blog sites and read about how perfect their lives are with their husbands, and how they fix organic meals for their kids every night, and I look at my kids eating Ramen Noodles for the 4th night in a row because it's all we can afford. It makes me wonder what I have done wrong.

After reading the above paragraph though it made me feel so much better.

I am normal. I am human. I blog because I love to, and it helps me sort things out.
It's not about attention, money, or portraying an "I am better than you" type of lifestyle.

It's a history, and it sure saves me from getting some serious cramps in my hand from writing in a journal.

Granted I am sure that I will eventually end up with carpral tunnel.

Murphy's law ya know.

Am I guilty of cropping out a messy living room or bedroom?

Oh yeah.

Am I guilty of photoshoping myself so that I look presentable to my online friends?

Of course! That big pimple on my nose....buh bye!!

But when it comes down to it, my writing is honest. I don't care who thinks what of me.

I sincerley hope that I didn't offend anyone. It's not about trashing people. Far from that. It's just that that paragraph touched me, and I felt like I needed to share it.