When I started blogging, I was unsure about taking on a new project. There are so many things that I already love to do but can’t findtime for, like knitting and reading and, often, showering. However, in spite of my busy life and questionable hygiene, I went ahead with the blog anyway and soon discovered that I truly enjoy writing here.

I knew the blog could easily end up stressing me out by adding pressure to a full schedule, so I set myself some boundaries right off the bat:

• Rule #1: Only blog when the house is reasonably clean.
• Rule #2: Only blog when I’m caught up with my work for my store.

Well, I quickly learned that I’m always behind on my work for the store, so I decided to ignore rule #2. I have, however, tried to stick to rule #1. I don’ t necessarily mean that the house has to be spotless, but clean enough that, hypothetically, if the neighbour gets locked out his house and has to come in to use our phone, I won’t have to spend the next three weeks shamefully ducking out of site when he goes by. Again. And since my house has been a certifiable disaster-zone lately, I haven’t been able to update my blog.

Usually there is at least one room that I can escape to for solace, but for the past few weeks, every single room has been a mess. I haven’t been able to catch up anywhere. I’ve been overwhelmed. And sitting in a messy room totally disrupts my writing flow – I just end up staring at the mounds of stuff, wondering if I have a shot at being on Hoarders.

Argh. How did it get so bad?

Well, in all fairness, we had a couple of crazy-busy weeks. First it was my daughter’s birthday, then I hosted the soup swap, then it was my birthday. Also within that week, we emptied out the basement, primed and painted the ceiling and walls, and had a floor put in. Then I got sick, and then the next week my girls got sick too. Looking back, it’s easy to see how I fell behind.

But that’s life, right? So rather than blogging, I’ve been on a diligent quest to find my floors back. I’m happy to report that after a week of solid, focused cleaning, I can confirm that my floors do still exist: the hardwood we had installed in the living room is still lovely, the aqua blue carpets in the bedrooms are still dreadful, and the yellow vinyl in the bathroom is still questionable at best. And they are all clean. On top of that, we have the Christmas tree up AND the family room in the basement is almost finished, complete with a bright pink wall for extra family fun.

Now that I’ve regained control over my home, I’m hoping to get back to my blog again. I’ve really missed writing regularly. While I’ve been gone, Harbour has popped out four teeth (check out those bad boys in the picture above) and has officially taken her first steps (and many, many more since then).

It’s funny – my last entry here was posted almost one year exactly after my first post. How strange that I celebrated the anniversary with a three week leave of absence lol. Tonight I’ve enjoyed going through some of my old posts and reliving the ups and downs of the days I wrote about. I’m still amazed at how much I’ve enjoyed this blog, and more so, that anyone cares to read it. I’m touched that so many people have taken the time to comment, share posts with friends on Facebook, and retweet them to their followers on Twitter. Thank you for your support this past year. You’ve made a fun hobby even more enjoyable. I have no idea what the next year will hold, but I’ looking forward to sharing it here.