Ks Are Wild

Yep, with this blog post, consider my cherry popped. Or is it resoluted when you make it your New Year’s Resolution to do it? Whatever the case, there were many reasons for it such as avoiding the repeat phone conversations, emails, and mass emails. However, there were a couple of main reasons that kept me dragging my heels.

For starters, I wouldn’t consider myself or my life an exciting one, to write about or read about. There are many days when the kids are finally asleep and I feel my day is just beginning. When asked how my day was, or what I did today, I often become befuddled at the complete lack of any actual accomplishments besides general transport, care, and feeding of my children. I sometimes joke that I chose to let the kids live on to adulthood, at least for one more day, so all-in-all I’d call it a success.

The other major negative feeling I had regarding myself blogging was that it feels pretty self-involved and egotistical to do it and say – “Hey everyone look at me! See what I’m doing (or not doing as is so often the case with this procrastinator) and note what delightfully random and somewhat deranged thoughts I have!” I mean, I love reading others’ works, but it’s different when it’s you out there. My brother-in-law, Chris, and his wife, Sarah both blog and I often think “J.C.!*&$^#*($” (Yes, I swear a lot; even in writing.) The normal 24 hr. clock doesn’t apply to these people, who have 4 children all under the age of 8 by the way! They have a new home that they designed and built from scratch together, she is a wonderful writer, a fantastic cook and baker, and she owns and rides horses, is a very involved mom, sews many of their clothes, handmakes many delightful presents, are active with their church/community/family/and friends… It always makes me realize that I watch entirely way too many movies through Netflix.

Okay, enough negatives, here’s the MAIN reason why I’m committing myself to write/post something daily: (There, I just put my goal in writing so I can be held accountable.) I’ve noticed a drifting of me from family and friends and me away from me. Does that make sense? I’ve had a lot of major life transitions in the past 5-7 years: gotten married, moved away from my home state of California, and had two babies. And I find myself conversing with people from my past, in the past tense. “Remember when….?” I find myself telling the same old stories to people here in Oregon and thinking, “Wow, I really need to get some new stories.” I desire to build up those relationships with more current shared experiences and knowledge. And that goes for myself too.

Nearly 5 years after having my first baby, and with the other having just turned 3 and entering the potty training stage, I’m finally able to contemplate my answer to the “Now what?” question. And reevaluate who I’ve become because there’s no doubt that I am very much changed from becoming a mother and moving as often as we have. For now, all I’ve been able to come up with is that I love being a stay-at-home mom. They drive me crazy and I love my alone time BUT I feel like I’m where I need to be and doing what I should be doing…for now. It works for me. If I got the itch to do something else, then Lord knows Kham would be behind me 5,000% (he’d be more excited than me, frankly).

With my reasonings being excessively and perhaps unnecessarily explained, on with the blogging shall we? Or is it I? Man, I’m out of practice writing. The Type A in me has a really difficult time with the verbal diarrhea, barely, if at all, editing nature of email and blogging but I just won’t do it if I don’t do it that way.

So, the name of my blog “Ks Are Wild” – Not only is it a play on our initials, K.S., but I have been known to respond with that when people hear that we both, already having K names (Kham and Kari), purposely chose to continue with the K naming tradition of my family and name our kids Kosette and Kellen.

I chose this visual background wordpress theme “Forbidden Forrest” because:

a) It seemed WILD and unruly like in the title

b) it seemed organic

c) green like Oregon and plants (both things I love and am surrounded by)

d) it reminded me of the book/musical WICKED, which I love, and which seems a little bit Wicked to go with something so visually dark and unusual

e) it made me stop in my tracks when searching over 1,000 different themes (I kid you not – for hours I looked at themes because I’m the Type A type that likes to assess all my options before I make a decision).

f) it was just a bit disheveled like my purse, car, garden, home interior, life and therefore a bit of a reflection of me – but in a lovable way right?

Well, I guess this is it for today. I’m sure the look of this will evolve as I figure things out.  Besides pick a background and favicon, I have done no design or layout alterations.   And I’m sure I will include lots of links, photos, and video clips in the future. I almost feel like the second I hit “publish” and send out the mass email to people saying I’ve started the blog that I’m having a housewarming party or inviting an exchange student into my home. In that case, welcome to the Casa de Kari. Oooh! Maybe I should’ve named it that instead. Nah!

Off to prepare for an in-person houseguest – Morgan, one of Kham’s coworkers. She’s vegan and I’m making a vegan potato leek soup. I got the recipe off the internet from Alton Brown. I made it just last week with the dairy. We had it hot the first night then served it cold the next with slices of sourdough, a pinot grigio wine, and a salad with a white wine vinegar base as a dressing. Both were great. The cold version felt more substantial and seemed more filling. Kham liked the cold version a bit better. I think I liked it better warm. So, I’m making it again tonight to truly compare while I still remember the tastes well enough to make a fair assessment.