One year later

It has been a little over a year since my last post. I know that the time is way overdue for an update. First, I would like to explain why it is that I have failed to blog. I went shopping with a good friend of mine this past Saturday. We went to a home decor store called Graples(seriously), for their annual blow out sale. My friend was shocked that I had never been there. She would probably be more shocked to know that I have never gone because I consciously choose not to go to stores with names like Graples. But we were going out for soup, salad and breadsticks after and I really wanted the food. We entered the store and my nostrils were immediately accosted by over-active scentsy burners. The smell however was nothing compared to the clostrophobia I felt as I was squeezed through a maze of red berry wreaths, twine balls, wrought iron picture hangers, and ridiculously large wall clocks, not to mention the hoards of perfectly coiffed women in matching track suits. Graples is a warehouse of home decor. It has everything in every size and color. It even had a room completely dedicated to flocked Christmas decor. My friends were looking at things and imagining them in their homes and at one point a friend pointed out a 5 foot painted giraffe figurine and said, "now that is what I call cute" I snorted a laugh because I thought she was being funny then had to pretend to be coughing when I realized she was not. What I don't understand is how half of the population of the United Stated can claim to be "laughing, loving, and living", (we know this because they have it in black vinyl lettering across their red accent wall right below their giant clock). I know people decorate because it is an expression of themselves but then how can they put their professionally retouched photos in red wainscoting frames surrounded by the same twine balls that are found in all of their girlfriend's houses and in the twine ball room at Graples. I just don't see the charm in being like everyone else and in expressing yourself in things bought on credit at a discount home decor warehouse.
My mother recently gave me a kitchen shelf that was my great granmother's, and she told me how she used to keep all of her recipies and cookbooks in it. It is the most expensive thing in my house(it is 150+ yrs. old) and it was completely free. I doubt that it will ever go out of style considering it has been around for that long. So you may be wondering what this has to do with blogging. Sometimes I feel like blogging is like home decor from Graples. Everyone posts their highly edited photos complete with matching borders and backround music. The blog is so busy that the story is completely missed. I was reading a friend's blog the other day and she told a very heartwarming story about her children but half of the comments were about how cute her new backround was and asking where she got it. Sharing a family blog is like inviting someone into your life. I sometimes feel that our blogs are as overdecorated and "cute-ified" as our homes. I like sweet stories about kids and imperfect pictures to go along with them. I like my great-grandmother's kitchen shelf that held sweet old recipes that fed the family I love so much. I guess I am just simple. For me blogging and decorating are best achieved with minimal effort and a lot of sincerity. A quote by Leonardo DaVinci says it best:"simplicity is the ultimate sophistication"