Sheesh!

I struggle a lot with my opinion of the internet.  It has outstanding qualities, and it also has many pitfalls.  One of the things I worry about in regards to blogging is the idea that it is not person to person communication. It's mass communication.  And I worry it might lessen my relationships somehow.  Like if I blog about it then maybe we won't talk about it.

So thus far I've used my blog mainly as a project list.
But I think another big reason I've held back is fear.
Fear of rejection and being hurt.
The internet is a big place, full of lots of opinions.  They things I say may get trampled on.  I don't know if I'm ready for that.
I also don't know if anyone really wants to know what I have to say.

But, today, I let all that go and I share.

I feel famous!

When I started writing this blog, I was pretty awesome at updating it once a week

and at some point I started letting life stuff keep me from the keyboard.

Being the mom of a toddler has been keeping me on my toes.

I've been able to get some projects done, but blogging them has been another story.

J just isn't in love with sharing me with the computer, and it's so tempting to use her sleep times for other things.

Well, recently, one of the things that was keeping me occupied was

 getting ready for my first ever public appearance!

I was asked by Bethel Baptist Church in Galesburg to speak to their Mom2Mom and Double Duty Moms Groups.

 I was seriously honored to think that anyone would be interested in hearing me talk. But I was also fairly nervous since I haven't done any public speaking at all (unless you count the college class).

But I was received so warmly by everyone there that I ended up feeling really at home in front of these ladies.

Here's a really short clip of my talk:
(the lights were down to see the slides, so I'm just a dark shadow.)
At this point I am walking the ladies through my home, showing them the different things I have done on a tight budget.

I had a great time with you all

 and just wanted to thank you again for having me.

It was a wonderful experience!