Five years later

I have been thinking about blogging, and writing in general.  The writing that has become the norm for me lately is writing that no one else will ever read.  While that has an important role, it is so different than writing for an audience.  Today, a sick day home with Stella, I found my old blog after exactly five years.  So much is the same and some things different.  But the thing that remains is how I want to remember.  I read some of these posts out loud to Stella (and some from my old column at the Patch), while she soaked in the tub.  We laughed so hard at some things she'd done and some things her brothers had said.  A few times I had to stop reading because I was going to cry.  These were about my mom or about times when I admitted how hard it can be watching your kids change and grow.  But I was so happy to have these memories to share with Stella today.  Even though my children are a little older now and the sharing will be different, I want to continue here.  On this day with quiet Christmas music playing, thoughts of the season on my mind, and a sweet eight-year-old girl in her jammies, I am reminded that my children are the most important audience of all.