out of office

Hello! Things have been kind of quiet on the blog front lately, hey? Which couldn't really be further from my reality right now. I'm missing checking in here. I'm missing sharing my photos and my ramblings and our adventures. I'm missing reading posts from all my favourite bloggers. But lately life is well and truly getting in my way.

I've always found blogging to be the kind of thing that goes through phases; phases where I'm really inspired and full of ideas, and then quieter times when I have less I feel I want to share. I've always been the kind of blogger who only blogs when they feel like they really have something to say or share, so by my nature there have been times in the past when Dear Beautiful is either a flurry of new posts, or a little quieter.

But this isn't one of those quiet spells. This is a spell of life where life is quite firmly getting in the way.

Right now I have more than a dozen posts in a 'half ready' state... half finished... half complete. I've snatched opportunities to make a start on something but not been able to finish them. Photos waiting to be edited, text awaiting photos, text that isn't quite finished. I can't even tell you all that incompleteness grates on me...!

I actually have loads I want to be blogging about right now; lots of inspirations for posts and new features, great brands I've been collaborating with and can't wait to share, ideas for vlogs and a mountain of video content to edit together... but it just isn't happening.

I just have an awful lot of my plate. Obviously there are three children to care for, but also a husband too. A husband I'm hardly seeing lately because he also has a lot on his plate workwise. I won't complain... his work is what means I can stay home with our beautiful children, his work is what puts food on our table and clothes on our backs, his work is what means we'll hopefully be moving home this year. But his "other job" of Daddy is much more of a part time gig at the moment (something which I should add he HATES!) and it means I'm busier, doing most of the parenting and trying to hold down the home front in between. So  the things I enjoy are on the back burner. In all honesty, anything other than what we need to do to get through the days and survive are kind of on the back burner these days.

I'm not apologising for my lack of blogging, nor am I bemoaning my lot. In actual fact I've never felt more "mummy" than I do right now. I love juggling the needs of my three favourite little people. I love spending time with them all, watching them grow and change before my eyes. I even quite like the fact that I kind of feel a bit like superwoman at the end of most days when I tuck them all into bed, happy and healthy after a busy day of looking after everything they need.

But then I generally fall into bed not far behind, basically spent and running on empty.

So I will be back as and when I can be. With photos and adventures, with vlogs and brand collaborations, with a new blog design which I've been working on for ages and which is finished but I simply haven't had time to upload.

Thank-you to anyone who has missed us, who has messaged me to say how quiet I seem. We're all okay, actually we're more than okay. We may be busy and in need of another day in the weekend and a few more hours in a day, but we are together and happy and healthy and just trundling along with life.

But for now I'm officially setting myself as "out of office" while I do my most important job to the best of my ability, and make the most of this busy and amazing season of life with my family. I know that in years to come when my hands don't seem quite so full, when the kiddos are all at school, when beds are always made, when I'm always on top of the laundry, when I have time to blog and do other 'me things'; that a part of me will crave these days of madness with my little loves.

And as if to prove my point... I started this post on Monday. And I'm posting today... three days later... on Thursday. Such is life!