Absolute Mommy: Happy, happy birthday, Bloggy {three years and counting}

Today my little bloggy that could will be three. THREE. When I started this adventure in Internet land, I never once imagined that I would still be pounding the keys three years later. This has been a labor of love. This blog has taught me things about myself. Things I would have never discovered if I hadn't taken a chance that day. There is a lot of talk these days about screen time. Spending too much time in front of a screen and away from my family. But in my defense, this blog has made me a better mother, a better wife, and a better person. I can find lessons in the mistakes I made. I can take to my laptop and type away a confession, an admission, an apology. This blog has turned into my therapy, my drug, my happy place, my calm. I'm so thankful for it every day.
Over the last few months I've been going back over the blog posts from my first and second years. I cringe at some of my posts from the first year. I can see the novice, the voice that wasn't quite as steady as it is today. My second year posts had a stronger voice, a little more sure of itself. And last year, with a voice strong and loud, I took chances on my writing. I still wrote with force, I still wrote with honesty, but I let a little bit of my fearfulness go. I said things that I may have been afraid to say in the past. I cussed more. Dropped a few more eff bombs. I talked about delicate situations, and sometimes I gave away too much information. I went out on a few limbs, sometimes on tiptoe.
And I survived.
This blog has survived too. Survived my thirst for followers and not readers. Survived my focus on ads and self promotion instead of writing. Survived trying to present content I thought was wanted in the blogging world. This blog has survived those three years of finding my place on the Internet. And trust me it's a small little place I carved out with the help of some really great friends. But we all know this space has never gone viral, and to be honest it may never.
But this is my place and I'm so happy to be here. I'm so happy that you are here. This year is going to be quite different. I'm working now. The blog is taking a backseat to other things in life. Like life itself. I'm working on other projects. Projects that I've been thinking about launching for the life of this blog. Thanks to this blog, I have the confidence to do that now. I'm a little nervous about the year to come, but I can't stop writing. I can't stop coming back and letting my heart bleed a little at this keyboard. Words are my oxygen. I need them.
Like I've said again and again, I'm so thankful for you. You, reading this right now. When this blog was born it had five readers. One of them was my mother, the other my best friend, and a few others along the way. That's a big change from what this blog sees these days. I've made some lasting friendships via this blog. Friends that I have never met, never hugged, but I know the days that their sons and daughters were born. I know that their son lost a tooth, and their daughter likes purple glitter polish. I know how sad they were when their grandpa died. I've prayed for them, cried for them, laughed with them. They are real friends, in real time, because despite the absence of a hug, they have touched my heart.
This year I have so much to celebrate. Three years filled with words and stories and love. Three years of connections and friendships and a shared community. Three years of finding my voice, finding my way, discovering me. Three years that confirm this is exactly what I should have been doing all along. Writing. Living. Loving. Laughing. Three years, and counting.