32 WEEKS HONEST

When I first read this article, Stop Instagramming Your Perfect Life, that a friend recently posted on Facebook, my first impression was that it was much ado about nothing, probably because I recently went through a Facebook cleanse and pared down what I view on my news feed anyway. And I simply do not have the time to pine over someone else’s 5-star restaurant meal or trip to Disney.

But when it showed up again on Kelly Hicks’s blog (one of my favorites), it got me thinking. How honest am I, really? Where do I draw the line between putting my best foot forward and creating a false reality just to impress others? I’m not very sure. So I thought I’d accept Kelly’s challenge, pull back the curtain and show a little more of my messy, daily life.

Some days the bed gets made; most days it doesn't.

Why put away toiletries when I'm just going to need them again later?

Clean dishes right where we can find them.

This is coming to mind since I’m 32 weeks pregnant this week. Tying shoelaces are a thing of the past, since I can’t reach my toes, and there is usually a sprinkling of matchbox cars and puzzle pieces on the floor for my husband to gather up when he gets home because I just can’t bend down to pick them up anymore. I mostly have to leave things where I drop them and wait for someone to come along and pick them up. Thank goodness my son is starting to learn how to pick up his toys!

Kicking them out of the way counts as cleaning up, right?

Pay no mind to the spattering of fingerprints on the glass door or the dusty floor!

I also vowed that with this pregnancy, as soon as the hyperemesis waned, I would stick to a healthy diet with very little junk. Well, that was before I started having an overwhelming craving for pop tarts. Does anyone even know what pop tarts are made of? I don’t. But that didn’t stop me from eating five s’mores pop tarts in one day. (I believe that was why I’d gained four pounds at my last doctor’s appointment!) Why oh why does pregnancy cause us to eat things we would never put in our mouths otherwise? How is it even possible to crave things that I don’t remember ever tasting before, like Cap’n Crunch with Crunchberries?

I'll get around to picking up the crumbs...eventually.

Liam finally got four molars and his top two canines to come through, and now he’s working on four more bottom teeth (I don’t know all the names of them). Yesterday, I discovered he had a fever of 102 from a virus. So he’s been pretty grumpy for his usually sunny disposition. The only upside? I’ve gotten lots of cuddles from him this week. 

Despite the unmade bed, cluttered bathroom counter, or coffee grounds in the kitchen sink, I still wouldn’t trade my life for that of my former college classmate who’s traveling the world. Our lives may be messy, but that’s what makes them beautiful!

One day we'll get a toy box. Until then, the corners will do just fine.