Greetings. I am a 27-year-old woman who has been married for nearly 4 years to a wonderful man named Jarred. He's wonderful, but I'm sure there will be quite a few posts dedicated just to him. LOL. We were blessed with our first child in February 2008. The pregnancy and delivery were fraught with complications, but we survived and are now thriving (if you don't count the baby weight I gained). My son's name is Evan and he is doing very well. At 3.5 months old, he's smart, active, and cute as a button.

The point of this blog is to log my rantings, my feelings and opinions that are best not spoken out loud, in deference to those I love and respect who would whole-heartedly disagree with my ramblings. It's about a process of self-discovery and understanding, and it's also merely a way of venting without getting in trouble.

I would also like to use this blog to keep track of my experiences as a first-time mom dealing with the pressures of two generations bearing down on me as well as the pressure from myself to pursue my dreams and be a good person, a good wife, and an educated woman.

I have a wonderful family, even though we don't always see eye-to-eye, but many of the older folks--the experienced mothers and fathers, indeed, grandmothers and grandfathers--feel that the role of the woman is domestic. Complete domesticity. The man is the breadwinner and the woman is the housekeeper. Yuck. I've always detested the polarity of such descriptions. The real world today does not function that way, at least not my world. Yes, I have chosen to stay home with my child for as long as is financially viable and/or productive. However, I am not willing to accept or embrace the stereotypical, 1950's stay-at-home mom (sahm). I have to admit that there are some characteristics of my life that overlap with the stereotypical stay-at-home-mom; however, my life is painted in color, not in Leave-It-To-Beaver black and white. This will undoubtedly be a topic of many discussions. I have a desire to be the best mom and the best wife, but I haven't quite figured out how to define those things. Do you have to be a certain way? Is it universal/relative or both? Lots to discusss, but not now.

Over the course of this blog, I would like to discuss my ever-changing perceptions of the following: (1) domesticity; (2) motherhood; (3) marriage--especially inter-faith marriage; (4) religion/spirituality; (5) in-laws/family; (6) children; (7) health; (8) politics and (9) relationships. I'm sure the list could have been longer, but these broad categories should suffice.

I love lists. They get me on track, maybe not a track I intended, but on a track nonetheless. I figure things out by talking and since I am a sahm now, I don't do much talking: the cat does not count. Yes, I talk to my 3 month old son, but his best responses are smiles and gooos. :-) I love those smiles and baby jibber-jabber, but I need something in addition to it.

Motherhood is wild ride. It's nothing like I thought it would be, and so much more than I ever dreamed. It's cliche and original. Maybe this blog will help me be able to define it, even describe it out loud.

Well, that's it folks. That's the preview for this blog. Best wishes.