GOODBYE OLD LAYOUT. YOU WERE LOVED. (AND OTHER FEELINGS)

Spring has undoubtedly been a season for change for My Girl Thursday. My thought process in regards to blogging has shifted significantly and Ill say that Im feeling about ten bazillion times better about my online presence. In reality a lot of changes that Ive made wont necessarily be apparent on this site; its more of a mental thing. I thought Id share a little more about it today because I have a feeling that a lot of bloggers deal with the same sort of mental junk. Ive decided to let go of a lot of guilt that I would carry around in my day to day. For example, last weekend Jesse and I took Georgia on a road trip to a small town event called Kite Day. It was just like it sounds. A bunch of people gathered in an open field, decorated and flew kites. It was fun. Like fun-fun. And all I did was just enjoy it. In the past I havent shared a ton about our daily life. I didnt post a lot of photos or stories about family stuff. But I felt a weird sense of guilt for not doing it. Like I was wasting a perfectly good blog post or something. That, right there, is nonsense. Bull shit even. A perfect waste of mental energy. My blog isnt really about my family. So, why did I feel so bad about wasting a bloggable opportunity? The thing that Ive come to accept is just because something is bloggable does not mean that it needs to be blogged. Some parts Many parts of my life are just to be enjoyed. Conversely, one does not need to live a bloggable life in order to be a blogger. A few months ago Jesse and I were tidying up our living room and he said something about it being a very bloggable space. When he said that I felt a little bit sick. I began to wonder if I was creating a life that would be Pinterest-able content. I felt sicker when I realized that it was kind of true. I remembered the many times I had thrifted an outfit simply because it would be a cute outfit post - not just an outfit. And although the outfit thing was the extent of my infractions I recognized that inauthenticity is a slippery slope. I know Ive been writing a bunch about this stuff. Feelings. Icky, sticky, gooey feelings. But Ive come out of a really dark place and I think its worth talking about. Ive gone from "Screw this! I hate everything about this! Why does anyone do this? I just want a real life." to a place where I feel really content and balanced. I happen to think thats awesome. Anyhow, I know this seemingly has nothing to do with a new design but I can tell you that, for me, it does. A fresh view on blogging deserves a fresh layout. Ive moved away from having a sidebar photo/bio because I dont really want to look at my face every day. Plus Id prefer this site to be more about the content and less about me (a laughable sentiment after a post like this). Ive abbreviated blog posts because I think it looks tidy and it saves readers from scrolling related carpal tunnel injuries. I went with a slider because I love it. It gives me a way to highlight posts that I love (both and old), showcase giveaways and feature entire categories at once. Did I mention that I love it? Its a fairly drastic new look, but Im really happy with it. I used the Instinct template but if you check their demo youll see that I altered it quite a bit. Okay, so that was a lot of talking. Thank you to you if you stuck with me through all of it (and I mean all of it). As a side note, there is still time to take advantage of the free ad promotion. If you do reserve an ad please (pretty, pretty please) make sure you ad size is exactly 150x150. Ive spent hours going through ads and contacting everyone with incorrect sizing. Youll be doing me a solid. Hope youre having an amazing Thursday! ♥