Inspired Internet (A Short & Sweet Blog List)

September 7, 2012

For years I have read blogs through Google Reader, a service that allows you to subscribe to blogs. Instead of reading blogs by bookmarking them or searching for their address, I go one place, my goggle reader, and read what's new on the blogs I follow.

If a post is really interesting I'll "link through" to leave a comment, but most of my blog reading has been done with a reader and reading blogs has became a regular feature of my day. I do a lot of connecting with people this way, especially since I live in a rural francophone area (and I'm an extroverted anglophone).

What I started to notice though was a growing dissatisfaction with my own life, my writing, my living situation, etc. while regularly reading other blogs. This is simply crazy.

I love my life. I'm so blessed with where I live, the work we do, and the family life we have. But seeds of discontent were being sown into my heart. And I needed to yank those little weeds out. I needed to step away from regular blog reading for awhile. I'm still in this place of critically evaluating the number of blogs I read and why I read them.

a gift from friends

Bloggers don't intend to sow seeds of discontent. Other people aren't responsible for how I read and interpret their writing. That's my responsibility. And I have a responsibility to myself and my family to build a joy-filled life, not to pine after so and so's life. Or for that matter, "pin" after so and so's life. (Which is why you'll notice very little on my Pinterest boards.)

But I'm an internet girl and I can't stop reading blogs all together especially since many of my online friends are bloggers! I want to read their words and find out what's going on in their lives.

I thought I'd share with you the handful blogs I regularly read these days. These are not all the blogs I read, I'm certain to be excluding a number of blogging friends in this list. I apologize for that in advance.

I've listed these blogs because they are ones I think FIMBY readers might also enjoy. Many of these women (they are all women blogs) are personal friends and others are online acquaintances of mine.

Steady Mom - I love Jamie's message for loving and living motherhood. I also appreciate that Jamie is not a do-it-all woman. No one is, but some bloggers sure come across that way. Jamie's blog is a steady dose of mothering encouragement and wisdom (of course, I love her homeschooling philosophy also).

Beauty That Moves - I don't do yoga, I read Heather's blog instead. Reading Heather's blog is like inviting snapshots of beauty and deep breathing into my life. Heather is also a great person to work with and I love contributing to her frequent nutrition and wellness courses.

Sorta Crunchy - Megan's blog has captivated me for some time, my favorite recent posts are those about expecting twins. Megan has also co-authored and published a book about parenting babies. She's one talented mama. The best part of Megan's blog is how very real she is. That, and her adorable self portraits.

Sarah Bessey - I found Sarah's blog through Megan's. Sarah writes mostly about her faith - as related to motherhood, marriage, women, and community. At least that's how it looks to me. Sarah's honesty about how she wrestles with and lives out her faith in Jesus Christ is what I love best about her blog. It's the faith blog I would write, if I was wrote a faith blog.

Catherine et les fées - I took me the longest time to figure out that this means Catherine and the Fairies, the fairies being her girls I'm guessing. Catherine's blog is about traveling as a way of life, unschooling, eating a high raw vegan diet, but most importantly, celebrating the joy of living this beautiful life together. I dig that, a lot. I also know Catherine personally and we share Quebec as our main province of residence, only she actually speaks the language, while I'm just learning.

Wonderfarm - Patricia is a writer, homeschool mom, and educator. She writes a lot about writing. I love her philosophy of education, her philosophy about writing and how she brings the two of those together. Want to know how to teach your kids to write? Read her blog.

Abide With Me - Emily is a personal friend who I met through our blogs. She read mine, I started reading hers and then I met her last summer when she hosted Damien and I on our trip to Utah. Emily is a beautiful person, a wonderful mom, and an awesome cook. Her blog is beautiful both in spirit and aesthetic.

Clean - Rachel blogs about motherhood, crafty stuff, and homemaking. Mostly though she shares her heart in a very raw and real (but not uncomfortably so) way and accompanies that with gorgeous life-at-home photography. Rachel is radical in her parenting and life philosophies. I love her "follow your dreams and guts" type living. It inspires me even if I don't walk the exact same path.

Penelope Trunk - This woman doesn't know me from Eve. I love her intelligence, her wit, her sass, her moxy. This blog is very much not the waldorfy, soft fuzzy mama stuff I tend to read. And I really appreciate that. Penelope is a savvy career woman who homeschools, a combination I find fascinating and inspiring.