I just added my blog to the Mormon Mommy Blogs listings. I had a bit of an identity crisis trying to figure out what category I should list my blog under.
Homemaking? I do it
Thoughtful women? I am... sometimes
Spiritually speaking? My other blog is listed there
Funny ladies? I wish, but that is definitely not my defining characteristic
The Sweet Life? I have that
Saucy blogs? I can make tomato sauce, does that count?
Writers? I try to be
Thoughtful women? I am... sometimes
Spiritually speaking? My other blog is listed there
Funny ladies? I wish, but that is definitely not my defining characteristic
The Sweet Life? I have that
Saucy blogs? I can make tomato sauce, does that count?
Writers? I try to be
I did some soul searching and finally decided on listing my blog under the category entitled
Crunchy Moms
As I looked at the other blogs listed there I realized that these were the women I had the most in common with and who I would probably be friends with in real life... no offense to the saucy moms.
It kind of took me by surprise. I've never thought of myself as a crunchy, granola-ish person. But I realize that over the years my philosophies and my life style have become more and more "alternative." I home birth... I cloth diaper... I have a compost pile... I'm enchanted with my chickens... I breastfeed without shame in public... I make my own bread... I don't shave my legs or wear a bra... ha, just kidding on that one... I want to start eating more locally grown foods... I'm considering homeschooling...
How did this happen? How did I go from the girl who was sure she needed an epidural and who adamantly refused to consider cloth diapers, to the type woman I am now? It seems to have happened without me even being aware of it.
When I think back I really started down the road of "granolahood" when I chose to have a home birth with my first baby. It seems like once I made that one alternative life style choice, when I threw what popular culture had been telling me all my life right out the door and made a choice that was different, daring, and difficult... but which was the right thing for me... a world of possibilities was flung wide open. I began to see that there are so many ways to live and not one of them is the right way.
In the last several years I've met people who do things differently than me and differently than anyone I've ever met before. At first I was kind of judgmental and thought they were just a bunch of weirdos. Yet as I got to know them better my opinion totally changed. They are incredible people and they are constantly teaching me, changing my perspective on the world, and challenging me to discover what choices are right for me and my family... even if it isn't what everyone else is doing. Some of the things they've taught me have resonated with my soul and I've incorporated them into my life, while other things just haven't worked for me: co-sleeping has never worked great for us, I believe in immunizations, I didn't nurse my baby past a year, and I still don't completely buy into things labeled "organic"... but who knows, I did once swear I would never, ever use cloth diapers and well...
All in all, it has been really exciting, fulfilling, and liberating these last few years to to realize that there are so many new things to learn, so many new ways to look at the world, and so many ways to be a woman and a mother. I find myself constantly challenging ideas, discovering new ideas, returning to old ideas, and creating my own way of living and being that satisfies my soul and is making me I hope a better person. I know that not all the choices I make are right for other people, just like their choices aren't always the best for me, but as I've stepped "outside the box" on somethings it has really opened up my mind and my soul to all the possibilities for life. I realize that I can't let anyone else define what is right or wrong for me, but that I need to research it, think and pray about it, and discover for myself how I should live. It is a never ending journey... and it is a whole lot of fun.
Well, thanks for hearing me through to the end and I guess now it is official. I am a "crunchy granola" mom. I think my fifteen-year-old self would die of shame. Which is kind of funny, because even back then I had a bit of a passion for granola... hmmm... foreshadowing maybe?
How did you become "crunchy"?
5 comments:
I would definitely label you as a crunchy mom. I've got some crunch to me as well, though I don't openly admit it to people because... well... people find it revolting that I drink raw cow milk. I also don't believe in immunizations until the kid is older (seriously, my kids are not going to get an STD when they are 1 month old, and hopefully they won't ever get one), I would love to eat all organic, and I would also love to have chickens (my dog would eat them though). However an epidural is definitely for me and cloth diapers haven't really appealed to me quite yet. I wish more women had a little crunch to them and thought outside of the box.
At first I thought you meant crunchy peanut butter crunchy but then when I read on...I would totally put you as crunchy and I love it! I know we didn't work together for all that long but man, I do miss you and the times we would have had if we had worked together even longer! I love your blogs...especially the Women in the Scriptures! The things you teach me and give me to ponder...I really appreciate it. And I love your fondness for your chickens. I wish I was more original and sure of myself as you seem to be.
thanks for your comment on my blog. i got those scarfs at modbe clothing. i hear they are going out of business and everything is on sale. i think the website is modbe.com.
I kind of think that we need to suggest a new category, “crunchy chic” because you make crunchy look good! And very appealing to those of us who haven’t quite discovered our niche!
Great post! Made me think of what I would fit into out of those categories...
The part that struck me was how you said that it's really all evolutionary...I definitely wouldn't have thought of having a natural birth if I was the me of 5 years ago. It's interesting to think about how our life circumstances help us to discover things about ourselves and shape who we are and what we believe.
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