How long have you been blogging?
I’ve had various websites since 1999, although they were all deleted in fits of frustration or depression. I’ve been here at kristyk.org since November of 2003. In June of 2008 I crashed my blog and started over. Slowly but surely I’m re-posting some of the older stuff.

Why do you blog?
I do it because this blog is a reflection of who I am, and sometimes I lose that.  I’m too busy for play dates and coffee with friends. I am lucky to make it to all the school functions, doctor’s appointments and practices. My husband works a lot, so I spend almost all of my time with children. I love my children, but they don’t care much about my ‘inner self’. I am mom. Period.

Someday, these kids are going to grow up and move out. I don’t want to be sitting in an empty house all by myself and realize that I don’t know who I am. This blog helps me to evaluate myself as a person and examine my life as it happens. It brings me a great deal of joy to take my camera with me and take pictures. I like sitting down and writing about what I am going through. I am also able to connect with a wide variety of people from all over the world.

How do you do it?
Do what? Just kidding. I get this one a lot and my answer is you do what you have to do to get through the day. Days turn into weeks. Weeks turn into months. Months turn into years. I try to live each day to the fullest and hope that in the end, my best will be good enough.

I’m confused?
Our family tree is a bit on the tangled side, so I don’t blame you a bit. Here is a quick introduction:

• Mike, my husband. He is a painter by trade and an artist by choice. He spends most of his time at work in order to provide for our family, but when he is home he makes the most of every second. He loves the outdoors and often takes the kids hunting, fishing or camping. When I met him, he had four kids:
• Justin, his oldest son. Mike and Julie had Justin in high school and he is quite a few years older than the other kids. He is married to Michele and they have two daughters, Madison and Aspen.
• Mica, Mike’s oldest daughter with Julie. Her given name is Micyala, named after Mike. She was three when Mike and I were married and she has lived with us most of her life. She is definitely daddy’s girl!
• Michael, Mike’s son with Cecelia. Because of the situation and his age, I won’t be writing about him in the blog unless/until he approves.
• Mikal, Mike’s younger daughter with Julie. She was also named after him. She came to live with us in 2001 and has been here ever since.
• Kristal, that’s me. When I met Mike, I had one daughter from a previous marriage:
• Mia, my oldest daughter. When I found out I was pregnant with her, I was finishing up my senior year of high school. There were many people who counseled me to have an abortion. I didn’t. I named her Mia because it means MINE, and I wanted her to know that she is mine. She is the light of my life and the best kid anyone could ask for. I can’t imagine a world without her in it!

• Bleu, our first son together. When I was a little girl, I had a crush on a boy named Bleu. I told my sister that if I ever had a son I would name him Bleu. When I found out that I was having a boy, I didn’t mention anything about the name to Mike and we decided on a different name. It was a difficult delivery and the doctor ended up using forceps and suction. When Bleu was born, he didn’t make a sound. I was asking why he wasn’t crying and Mike wouldn’t let me look at him. He held his hands over my eyes and tried to comfort me. When I heard the first cry, it was such a relief! Mike decided to name him Bleu because of his color when he was born. It wasn’t until afterwards that I told him the story of my childhood crush. Coincidence?
• Butterfly, our only daughter together. She is a tough one! She gave me a hard time when I was pregnant. I developed a hernia and had to wear a brace. She ended up being born a month early, but strong as a horse! We let Mia pick a name for her and she chose Sky. The doctor had told us that the baby’s kicks felt like butterflies, but I was complaining to Mike that this baby kicked MUCH harder! “We should name her Butterfly!” he said. “Butterfly Sky.” And that was that.
• Jonathan, our surprise. Just a few months after I had Butterfly I found out I was pregnant again. This was a difficult pregnancy. My body wasn’t ready to go through the process again and I wasn’t mentally ready for another child so soon. I spent the last month of my pregnancy in a hospital an hour away from our home. Jon was born almost a month early, and has always been a little sickly. Mike wanted a son named Johnny.
• Echo, our baby. He is the light of my life and spoiled to death. When I started telling people I was pregnant, we heard the same thing over and over: Again? Another one? I joked to Mike that it sounded like an echo. We laughed and decided that whatever we had, a boy or a girl, we would name the baby Echo. His middle name is Chance, as a reminder that he is our last chance to get things right, our last chance to experience the wonder of being parents.