Getting In On The Fun

Well, let's just say that my wife is definitely one who enjoys creativity and productivity. Four consecutive snow days do not slow her down and give her cabin fever, they merely give her motivation to revitalize our "cabin." I guess part of that revitalization has been taking our lives here at home into the virtual world of the internet. So here we are ... on the world wide web, blogging about our lives. I must say I am proud of her because she's a doer. No need to sit around and talk about these ideas, she'd much rather just make them happen and sure enough she has.

That said, I'm not really sure what my role is on this new blog site. She told me she wanted me to participate so I guess there is some part of her that wants me to contribute to these stories and daily updates. I would have to admit there is some hesitation about this for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, it is no secret that I am somewhat of a fan of facebook (as are another 550 billion people in the world). When she first presented this idea to me I believe I responded by saying, "shouldn't we just make a page on facebook?" Not really what she had in mind but I was simply responding out of a belief that everyone is already on facebook and I'm not sure how many will venture out to read this blog. When twitter is wildly successful because it limited people to just 140 characters, it was alarmingly clear, people like brevity. Which leads me to my second hesitation, I am not exactly known for being brief when someone asks me to write anything. My wife often mocks my email responses by saying I am way too "long-winded." A friend of mine at work frequently mocks the promotions I hand into him because they are always too long and require too much "print space." So, the open invitation to blog without limitation could be comparable to awaking a sleeping giant. I'm fearful my propensity to ramble and rant to great lengths could work against us.

All that said, it has become apparent to me that this blog is not really about getting followers or readers. It's really more of a personal exercise for our little family. The more I have thought about it the more it seems to be that this blogging thing is really about documenting our lives. It's an online journal of sorts, not to appease the masses, but for our family to look back on the many things that bring us joy, laughter, heartache and sorrow, each and every day of our lives. That to me, seems to be more than worth the effort.

So since I've come around on this whole blogging thing and am now providing my first post, I guess I will close with this ... a summation of the four consecutive snow days and what they have meant to me. It has been interesting to observe the variety of comments that litter the facebook newsfeed as people went from elated to deflated for having to stay indoors. Calendars were all of a sudden cleared. Business/Work/Appointments/Meetings all came to a screeching halt and people were forced to ... stop ... and slow down. Fascinating to see how difficult this was for some of us. In thinking about how so many people reacted I was reminded of a common truth I have often shared throughout the years ... the importance of friendship in marriage. There are many things that attract you to another person. There are many dreams you share and goals you have for your lives when you say "I do." But I stand behind the fact that the greatest thing you could ever find in marriage is a best friend. I've always said that Jennifer makes the boring things in life exciting. I love hanging out with her. She makes me laugh. I love watching her grow in her role as a mom. I love seeing her redecorate our house. I love being forced to stay inside for four days and just be ... with her ... and our son. I'm truly grateful and humbled by the fact that I married my best friend. It makes the boring things in life exciting and brings a surprising value to slowing down and embracing each moment of life. I guess in so many ways, that's what this blog is all about.