It has been a year.
Wow! A. Year.
I have recently seen a surge in questions surrounding my blog and my evident absence from blogging. It makes me feel great that I was missed, but a little bummed out about being gone. I hate feeling like I let anyone down. So, I wanted to post a few thoughts on being missing in action.
…So where have I been? …
Whew! If I told you, you might get as tired as I do thinking about it. I have been chasing a toddler, primping a pre-teen, training a teenager. I am busy being super-mom, taxi-driver, drama diffuser, Hockey Momma, Kung Fu Mom, makeup/beauty guru, and more.
Although, I have not been posting to my blog, you can still find me on Facebook (look for the CurtsyGirls Page), Twitter (@CurstyGirlCBC) and Instagram (@Curtsygirls). Come see me there and hang out with me daily. I would love to connect with you and share what is happening with my life, my ministry, and hear from you!
…Why haven’t I blogged?…
Clearly, based on my blog history, I have not been blogging. Not because I do not love to write, because I do. Oh, I do! Not because I have lost my passion for working with young women, because I am still working with young women (and their moms), and have absorbed my attention into more coaching and group work. But, I have not blogged because I do not think it was an effective tool for the audience I really want to reach.
During the past year, I have done a lot of writing and coaching in different areas, based on requests for information about single parenthood, toddlers and teens, general beauty and hygiene for young ladies. You name it.
Although I miss blogging, I found that I was not getting much traction, due to a singular stumbling block: most of the young women I work with, and those I would like to work with, rarely read blogs.
Really. Many do not read much outside of school requirements. They have Instagram accounts and Tumblr apps. They tweet and Snapchat, but rarely sit down for 15 minutes, or even 5, to read a blog.
True story. Kinda sad, but true! So I will be modifying my blog and restructuring it to be more geared to Moms, while still having shorter articles for girls that will look and feel a little different. I am uber excited to be changing gears and blogging again!
Have I still been working with young women?
Of Course! That is the short answer.
Long answer, I love it and will never give up. Working with young women and their moms is my calling. Past mothering my own children, it is where I find my "inner yes."
I feel there is more pressure than ever on young women. I know it and feel the weight of it when I hear my own tween lament about the pressure to perform, to have more followers, play more sports, be an overnight sensation, look like a supermodel, increase their thigh gap, be better/prettier/funnier than the next girl, have more friends, be more popular, and the list goes on. No, really, I cannot make this stuff up. All this junk. More of this junk. All distractions from their ONLY PURPOSE – to be their best self. So, I will write, coach, talk, teach, and whatever else I can to speak to the heart of young women about their gift and purpose, and never give up. If I save one girl, I will have accomplished my calling.
Am I still doing hair and makeup?
I am a makeup junkie and find that somehow it meshes hand-in-hand with my love for all things girlie. It is part of my gift and a special part of my calling. If you can get a girl in a makeup chair for 30 minutes, you get her ear, you get to listen to the beat of her heartsong. Most people really just want to connect; as much as we love our phones, they do not hold a candle to really talking and sharing lives in person. I also love to justify my cosmetic purchases. Come on, this is the no judgment zone, right?
Really? I love hair and makeup for the same reason I love changing furniture around, doing new things with clothes, love to see someone grin ear to ear. I can see the potential in everything, and love to see something – anything – at its greatest potential. I love to see women bloom into the beauties they were meant to be, from the inside out. I think it is an incredible gift and live with excitement that I get to use it.
Do I still teach?
You better believe it! My daughter would say I love to preach, but she will appreciate it one day (I tell myself, and her when she is listening)! I live every day to create and inspire. Sometimes that happens when a young lady asks me what I think of her outfit, sometimes when I get asked to pageant prep, sometimes when a young lady’s mother comes to me with a question on how to talk with her own daughter during a difficult time, it really comes at me during prom season. It comes at me, flying like a rainbow of colors. I just love it! I look forward to any opportunity to share my love, mistakes, and victories, so someone else is saved of the pain of stepping into those traps themselves. I stay open to the teachable moments with my own daughter and anyone else who is looking for an ear, a shoulder, hope, and a hug. I just stay real and humble enough to share the challenges and victories.
Teaching? Yup. Always.
So come back and visit soon. I will be here, looking forward to seeing you!
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