Hey everyone.  Today’s blog post topic is one that hit me hard just yesterday.  It was Mother’s Day and I was so excited to spend time with mine and Grant’s family!  I woke up and texted my own mom and some of my closest friends who are moms and told them Happy Mother’s Day.  Grant’s mom, Godmother and my Nana aren’t really the texting kind, so I waited to tell them in person at lunch.

I’ll tell you more about our day below after I ramble to make a point that may help some of you feel more relieved about social media posting.

I am someone who chooses to LIVE in the moment rather than scrolling through everyone else’s social media during a special day like a Holiday!  I know this can seem crazy to some since I am so active on social media, but I am to the point now where most of my content is planned out and gathered in advance.  I had put together a wonderful Mother’s Day blog post last week (read that HERE), but that was to encourage people to spend more quality time with their moms and focus their gifts on meaningful, irreplaceable, and priceless rather than expensive and materialist.  While we were driving home from our long and special day spent with family, the car got quiet because honestly everyone was tired and starting to drift asleep.  I pulled up the Facebook app on my phone to see my friends posts and I noticed one of my friends posted that she had taken a break from her phone so she was late to the posting game at 9pm.  Since when are we all expected to have our pictures taken and posted ON the day of the Holiday we are enjoying?  Here I am posting about my Mother’s Day and all of my photos two days late.  To some, my post may be old news, however this was JUST TWO DAYS AGO!  I love taking a photo probably more than anybody you know and I share more of my life on the internet than most people you probably know, but honestly the majority of it actually is my “work”.  My happiest times and memories made are always living in the moment when I am NOT WORRIED ABOUT MY SOCIAL MEDIA or if other people are “liking” or engaging on my posts. Running an online boutique and my own lifestyle blog, it can be so easy to get caught up in the technology world, but I want my actions to prove that my marriage and my relationships come first!  Even if being a blogger, content creator or social media manager is your full time job, I am a firm believer that work is not the most important priority in life.  I have been consciously choosing to not put unrealistic expectations or deadlines on myself, thus I am proud of my 2 day old Mother’s Day photos below.  If there was in fact a deadline, I am not worried about being late.

I try to make a conscious effort to engage back with all of my followers, so a Holiday or a vacation is not a practical time to make this happen.  If you’ve been following me for at least a few months, you’ll know that I unplugged for mine and Grant’s 1 year anniversary trip to Cabo.  I didn’t even get my blog overview posted until another month.  You have to realize that blogging is a full time job and career to a lot of influencers you will see on your instagram feed.  Their content is strategically planned out and captured in advance.  I have heard so many non-bloggers talk about not wanting to post or share their moments because they don’t compare to a lot of the normal instagram feed you see these days.  I say share what you want to, because even as a blogger and micro influencer myself, I still love to share my REAL life, rather than planned content that matches my feed.  I like to keep my followers on their toes rather than them being able to already know what each of my upcoming posts will be.  Sometimes being late to the game or showing up on your own time can make people more eager to hear from you.

Wanna know the one thing that I hear the most compliments about on my social media?  Believe it or not, it’s the fact that the majority of my instagram stories are taken in real time when my hair is a mess and I have absolutely NO MAKEUP on.  I think it helps people to better relate to me, rather than feeling less than of me.  Nobody is instagram perfect all day every day, so don’t you think less of yourself, your life, your photos, your memories or the things you share on your own social media.  If there’s any point I make from this rambling of a blog, it’s to gather more content of your own life rather than always scrolling through someone else’s.  Life is short and can change negatively or be taken away from any of us in the blink of an, so love hard and capture the moments when you feel most alive.  You never know when you just may wish you had an updated photo with a loved one. I don’t see anything wrong with being an active and engaged social media follower, I just encourage you to not let it get in the way of your very own life, especially family time during Holidays.  Being more “present” in your own life will probably help you to realize just how blessed you are, at least this works for me!  Life is precious and real as to where a lot of things you’ll see online have been planned, edited, curated and sometimes simply they are not a direct reflection on someone’s reality.  I know I’ve rambled, but hopefully this all makes sense and encourages some positive advice for your own life!

So, here’s a run down of our Mother’s Day yesterday.  Forgive me for posting it a day late, as I run my own social media and take my own Holidays too.

We enjoyed a lovely lunch at Traditions Country Club! Here is my husband Grant with his mom (left) and Godmother/2nd Mom (right).

Please ignore my younger brother’s mustache lol, but here we are with our mom!

Sweet Nana matched her outfit to the orchids we got everybody.  I love to give something that can be kept alive rather than flowers that will have to be thrown away.

Here is my Aunt Dee.  She sustained a stroke 17 years ago and is fully dependant upon my grandparents.  She never had her own children, so Jacob and I always celebrate her on Mother’s Day too! From left is my mom, my Nana, Grant’s mom and Grant’s Godmother.  I thought the bright pink orchids were so beautiful and perfect gifts for Mother’s Day! Mom had to stop by to see Bucky’s mini stroller.  She enjoyed it, he did not lol.   Now here are the instagram-driven photos that match my feed and aesthetics and what you would probably have expected to have seen on my feed.

I know I’m not a human mom and I don’t have to change dirty diapers or hire a babysitter every time that Grant and I go out for an evening, but I do still love Bucky the Bulldog so very much.  He is the closest thing to my own child that I have ever had.

Grant and I went to my hometown to spend the evening at the farm.  We picked dewberries, checked on the garden and went hog hunting.  My Nana and Popo loved having us back.

How funny is my outfit that Nana gave me to go hunting in?  Grant told me the pink was too bright and I needed something darker, so purple it was haha.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother’s Day weekend.  If you feel you need to be a little more “present”, just try to make a conscious effort of it at the next family function.  Don’t feel guilty because they purposely make the scrolling effect on social media to be super addictive.

I know myself I have let social media get in the way of my productivity, so I’m always trying to make a better use of my own time management and attention as well!  I’m a constant work in progress that’s  just trying to be the best version of myself that I can be.

xo,