Just me, no recipe in this post. Just a chat between friends....
One of the questions I get asked from people is why I started this blog. The quick and easy answer is because I love to share good food. It is my love language of sorts. I love when people take a bite of something I prepared for them or shared with them and they can feel the love in each bite.
The deeper, underlying answer to that question is a bit of a story that I thought would be a great way to start out this series of "Just Me".
I started this blog a little over a year ago after going through some of the most stressful and painful time of my life. The "cliffs-note" version of that time being the loss of my father after a very brief fight with lung cancer, the loss of my husband's job only 2 weeks after my dad's death and 1 week before we were supposed to move cross-country in a job transfer.
I have heard people express the thought that when death comes because of an illness, it is easier because there can be closure. There can be time to say goodbyes. I have to state that I do not think this is true whatsoever. It is not easy to watch someone you love get weaker and struggle for life. Even though there may be time to say goodbye, it often doesn't happen...because, let's face it, how do you say goodbye? There are still things left unsaid, there are still things you wish you had done differently.
As most of you may or may not know, I am a stay at home mom to 3 kiddos. So, when the company my husband worked for shut down, it was truly SUCH a stressful time. Out of the blue, he simply received an e-mail with 3 hours notice and poof...4000+ people were out of a job. Since we were 1 week away from moving at the time his company shut down, our entire household (with the exception of a couple suitcases of clothes and some toys for the kiddos to play with) was in a moving POD, being stored in a warehouse. Fast forward 8 weeks later with a remote position for the hubs, we decided since everything was ready to go, we would still make a cross-country move, just to a different location.
Once we got to North Carolina, the enormity of the loss of my father and the aftermath that ensued started to settle in. I was in an area where we didn't know anyone, and I was in no way, shape or form in a place where I was ready to meet people. I was living under a rock. I was a zombie. After several months of unconditional love from my husband and kiddos, I started to peek out from under my rock and started this blog as a way to connect and share something in me. The safest thing for me at the time was sharing recipes. It was incredibly therapeutic for me as well as a ton of fun! I wish I could adequately express what it has done for my soul...I have met people whom I cherish dearly as friends, I have received some of the kindest, most beautiful compliments that truly made me feel like I could fly. I have received SO much! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
I want this blog to evolve and grow just like I am...as a person, mother, wife, daughter, sister, and friend. There may be some changes that are well received, and others that aren't...and that is ok with me. I am of the philosophy "take what you want and leave the rest".
Don't worry, we will still have food and fun!
If you should have any questions for me or just want to chat, feel free to drop me a line anytime. :)
Again, thank you for making this such a beautiful journey for me! XOXO
This post has been linked up at:
Tidy Mom
Simply Sweet Home
Crazy Domestic
Mommy's Kitchen
