In Defense of Mormon Mommy Bloggers

Some people say that in an attempt to make their lives seem perfect, Mormon Mommy Bloggers (like me) have left out any tough stuff or real issues.  The blog seriouslysoblessed.blogspot.com exists for the sole purpose of making fun of the idealistic Mormon Mommy Blogger. But I disagree, I think being idealistic can be good, bueno, fantastico, and really healthy. To me, idealistic does not mean unrealistic and naïve or in denial. It means being able to see the good in things and choosing to be grateful when things can seem hard. 

 90% of our outcomes are based on our attitude. (That is a provable statistic).  For instance, yesterday I was really frustrated about my baby throwing her food off her tray onto my just mopped kitchen floor. I was mad about a few other things too, but the angrier I got the less capable I was of responding nicely and being a nice mom. When I finally decided to change my attitude I had a lot of fun reading to the little one at bed time and had way more patience to help her fall asleep when earlier I had wanted to just let her scream.

So my point is, sometimes things are hard. Things like: having a screaming baby who arches her back every time you try to pick her up; your car breaking down and you don’t want to have to pay for it; your rent being more than half your monthly income; or it being stinkin’ cold in Kentucky in January and you’re from California; or your husband not giving you a kiss on his way out the door this morning.

The point is, you don’t have to wallow in those things to experience them or deal with them and in my experience those things in the preceding paragraph are a lot easier to deal with if you decide to be happy instead. Because when we choose to be happy instead we can see how most of our trials are derivatives of our blessings. So here's a trials to blessings list I made to help me be happy and (dare I say it?!) idealistic.

1. Screaming baby all day long—greatest blessing I’ve ever had and if I lost my baby, I don’t know where I’d be.
2. Broken down car you don’t want to pay for—we have a car, we can pay for it, even though we don’t want to, and I’ve gotten to be more creative about how to get things done while I wait for a car. 
3. Rent is more than half of your income—we have an income instead of debt. Our apartment is clean and safe and cheaper than any other place comparable to what we have.
4. It’s stinkin’ cold in Kentucky—I can’t think of how to see this as a blessing.
5. No kiss from your husband when he left this morning—I hadn’t brushed my teeth yet anyways. Or more seriously, I have a husband and I love him, we still want to kiss each other, my husband has a place to go to school/a job.

I am so grateful for what I have and I really think that my trials are all just proof of my blessings.