Authenticity in Instagram

It's no secret that I'm a fan of the gram. I post and like and peruse my insta feed multiple times a day. I just love it, okay!

However, there have been a few times where've found myself, with cell phone camera in hand, taking photo after photo, hoping one will be "gram worthy". 

Fail...

That's right, I'll admit it! And go ahead, admit you've done the same, or just go ahead and judge me if you haven't. That's fine too, because it's not a good habit! When I post a picture of my daughter, my daily activities or anything else, I shouldn't be thinking about how many likes it'll get, how artistic it looks or how grand it makes my life seem. Because in reality, my life is grand and a high contrast filter on Instagram won't make a difference. A beautiful life filled with joy, love and authenticity is what matters. Sometimes, that means blurry photos with shadows and a messy house in the background that no filter could ever hide. But it's those photos that are full of the real memories I hope to capture and save. 

The reason this is on my heart is, firstly, because authenticity is something I've been praying a lot about lately and, secondly, because I've seen my Instagram feed slowly become something out of a magazine...

I follow some amazing bloggers who always seem to have the best, most artistic shots. Granted, some are actual photographers, so they get a pass, but there are others who have me thinking about authenticity quite often... I know many blogs are a source of income for the author and appealing to their readers, visually, is important. But when does it cross the line into the land of obnoxiously fake? To be honest, I've recently unfollowed some of my favorite blogs because they've become so different than they started out. What used to be a real lifestyle blog is now a utopian lifestyle blog. What used to be the mom blog with funny stories about her kids is now a blog filled with photos that make you feel bad about your dirty-faced kids and non-matching furniture. 

I'm not trying to call anyone in particular out, but when will the random-flower-next-to-your-cup-of-coffee-on-a-perfectly-white-counter photos, with the caption "Such a peaceful way to start the day" end? And can we all agree to stop laying out our lunches next to an old book, unlit candle and open tube of lipstick? Like really, your organic grass-fed burger on a bed of grass is getting cold. Just eat, and share a photo of your dirty plate, or the joy on your face after devouring such a tasty treat. Better yet, let's all band together and agree to not post any food photos. I swear, I'll try my hardest! 

In all seriousness though, let's aim to change the way we use social media. Let's remember why we started using it to begin with: to share our real lives and memories with real people. Here's to being authentic, honest and bold... Without ten thousand shots and twice as many filters!

Spring Cleaning

Spring is by far my favorite time of the year. Especially in Colorado! The air feels cleaner, the weather is gorgeous, and everything seems to renew itself. 

The last few days I've been thinking a lot about the word renewal. Renewal in my spiritual life, my vocation and my daily life. Lent is often a time of renewal, but a week or so after Easter, I always find myself in a rut again, needing a restart button. So this week, I've been planning out what that restart button needs to look like in various areas of my life. 

Spiritually, my prayer has been so lax since Easter. Mid-lent actually... I've made excuses to put off daily prayer or become apathetic in the few minutes of prayer I have done. I'm definitely noticing an impact! I'm busy, stressed and am definitely lacking in compassion and patience when it comes to Cana. Not good. 

Here's my plan for my Spiritual Renewal:

-Read the Gospel daily and journal on it during Cana's morning nap.

-Continue dinner time prayer with my family, but don't just rush through it! 

-While nursing Cana, take time to pray in thanksgiving for her and the gift of motherhood! (So important!) 

-Read The Return of the Prodigal Son by the time Frankie is on summer break

Another area in disparate need of renewal is my Vocation. Don't worry, my marriage is fine. More an fine, it's wonderful! But I definitely could use a kick in the behind when it comes to being a stay at home wife and mother. So often I find myself complaining to Frankie about how hard my day was and yet I think back and realize I didn't accomplish a single task while he was at work. Most nights, Frankie comes home to a kitchen full of dishes, a messy living room, and a stressed out wife. He is a saint in the making for putting up with me, I swear! But I am tired of feeling stressed and lazy because I stay at home. It's an amazing vocation and I am so grateful for the ability to do so, but I can't keep taking advantage of it by watching a lot of tv and making excuses. 

Here's my plan for my Vocational Renewal:

-Get dressed, ready and put on mascara everyday. (I'm not a make up person and I love my sweat pants, so doing this will take me out of my laziness and help me understand I do have work to do each day.)

-I hate housework, it's my biggest struggle! So I will accomplish a daily chore or task. {Mon: clean the bathroom, Tues: sweep, mop, vacuum, Wed: declutter the house, put things away, Thurs: do laundry, Fri: wipe down the entire kitchen}

-Do the dishes before Frankie gets home from work so we can start dinner right away.

-Welcome Frankie home without complaining about my day as he walks in the door.

-Leave the house every day, even if it's just for a short walk to check the mail. 

There are plenty of other things I plan on changing as well, but these few are sure to help in big ways! I always love setting goals and making lists, following through, though, is the tough part! Say a prayer for me? Dankeschön.

Month 7

Seven months! I must say, I think this month has been my favorite so far! You've learned so much and are really developing quite a rockin personality! Granted, I'm sure next month will surpass this one as you grow even more. That's how life works!

Here's some great things from month seven:

-You learned to crawl! It's adorable because you crawl on your hands and feet (not knees) with your little bum in the air. You're getting pretty fast, especially when you spot a flip flop or phone cord!

-Sleep!!!! For once, I can finally say, you're an amazing sleeper! Woohooo! We did sleep training right after you turned six months old and after one hard night, you got the hint! You've been sleeping all night in your own crib with no crying for a month now and we are all happier because of it! You still wake up to eat once or twice (thrice on occasion...) and you've started waking up around 6am instead of your normal 7am start, but I'll deal with it for now. Now we just have to work on naps... Those still happen in the car seat.

-You can pull yourself up on to things now. Especially your crib... When you conquered that skill, your sleep suffered a bit, but you're back on track now. You love standing and can balance with one finger holding you up! 

-You can go from sitting, to crawling, to sitting and then to standing. You're officially in full motion!

-You got your second tooth! Just a week or so after your first. You've got the cutest smile!

-We started solid foods! Since you're allergic to dairy, we decided to go slow with introducing new foods and I'm glad we did! We've discovered you're allergic to ascorbic acid so store bought baby foods are a no go. But that's ok since we hope to transition you to solid solids soon (not purées). You LOVE sweet potatoes and oddly peas... Ew. But you have tried: squash, carrots, banana, apples, pears, rice and avocado. Your messy faces are absolutely adorable!

-You love blowing raspberries and spraying everything with your spit...

-You've learned to make /m/ and /d/ sounds so we like to think you're saying "mama" and "dada" all the time. :)

-You play on your own for a looooong while! It's great to know you can entertain yourself, but I kinda miss how independent you've become at the same time. Although, you still love letting us play with you so I can't complain until you're a teenager! 

-Your favorite toy is coasters... I'm glad all the other toys you have were gifts and not bought with my money!

-Your first Easter was amazing! I love watching you experience our beautiful Church! Your awe and joy is utterly inspiring! 

-Your pincer grip is coming along slowly but surely! You always seem to be able to pick up the smallest pieces of lint, yet struggle to pick up peas on your own. Of course. 

Stats:

Weight: about 21lbs

We didn't go to the doctors office once this month! Praise God for good health!

Photos:

Building a Domestic Church: one toy at a time!

Being Catholic is amazing (duh). But being a Catholic mama is a whole new level of amazing! Praying over our daughter in the womb, reading bible stories to her, praying with her before bed and taking her to Mass has all been such a blessing to our family. Watching her eyes light up when she sees the Precious Body of Christ being consecrated and the smile she gets when we pray before dinner each night is such a joy to see, and is such a great witness!

Building a Domestic Church within our family is top priority round these parts and we try to let our faith infiltrate every aspect of our home. Especially when it comes to our children! So it is no surprise that Cana has loads of books about the bible, prayers, saints and Jesus! She also has a holy family statue, a crucifix, a painting of Mary and two guardian angels in her bedroom. A girls gotta know what's important right?! 

I've been trying to accumulate some Catholic toys for Cana over the last year and so far her collection is pretty great! When you really look, there are tons of options for Catholic toys and the best part is that you'll often be supporting small shops and work-at-home-moms! Win. Win.

Here are some things we have and some things I'm dying to make or buy for Cana in the near future (her birthday is right around the corner)!

Wooden Rosary: I picked this up in a parish gift shop last December. It's eternally in the diaper bag and the only "toy" Cana is allowed to have during Mass. The best part is that she will eventually be able to pray it when she's older!

Immaculate Heart of Mary doll: This gorgeous doll was a gift from Cana's godmother, Katie for her baptism. The best part is that it was handmade by my sweet friend Raquel! She custom makes Saint dolls (literally any Saint, she's amazing) and loads of other cute things over at The Little Rose Shop! I definitely plan on getting all our future kids their patron doll and perhaps just some other fun friends to have hanging around! 

Wooden Saint Peg Dolls: These twenty peg dolls were part of an exchange my friend out together! It was such a blast. Each mama picked one saint and painted twenty pegs (I did Mary, mother of God). Then we all got together and swapped! We each ended up with twenty different Saints and a booklet of prayer cards about each saint in the bunch. We are already planning a Nativity swap (with animals and everything!!!) and another Saint swap with more obscure Saints! These dolls are sure to inspire loads of holy imagination!

Stuffed Cross Taggie: This is something I made for Cana (and it's my new go to baby shower gift!) with my awesome sewing machine! I'm just learning how to sew and this was the perfect beginners project! Babies love soft toys and of course silky tags, so why not make one in the shape of a cross? So easy and so fun! (The photo is unstuffed... Sorry!)

Mass Kit: This is something we don't yet have, but once we have a boy, I will be making one ASAP! I've seen these sell on etsy for a whole lot of lettuce, but figure it would be super easy to put one together from scratch. And what better way to get your kids interested in the Mass and possibly inspire a future vocation to the priesthood! 

Children's Nativity Set: Like I mentioned above, we are planning on making a peg doll nativity set, so we do t have this quite yet. However, I can't wait to read the nativity story with Cana next advent and allow her to play with her very own set. Hands on learning, folks! 

Books and Puzzles: Cana already has a ton of religious books on her shelf and I always enjoy finding more at thrift stores and consignment shops for next to nothing! As she gets a little older I hope to add in a bunch of puzzles as well! They're all over the place and usually on the cheaper side, so perhaps I should start looking! 

And there you have it! I'm sure there are more religious toys hidden throughout our home and a quick google search will show you pages and pages of ideas, but these are our must haves, so far! 

Anyone have any other ideas I didn't mention? I'd love to add more ideas to my birthday present list for Cana!