Cali bound!

7 weeks from today I will be boarding a plane to head for the wild west. You see, this will not be a family trip, nor a trip away with my husband. No, this time away is all about ME. Something happens when you become a mother in particular that stops that "me time" thing. I mean, it really takes planning and forethought! You don't just exit stage left and go do whatever you want for a few hours. My friends, I am pleased to tell you - with just a teeny bit of sadness - that my "me time" will last nearly 3 weeks. My belly flips at the thought. I have never, ever left my kids for more than a week! The flips come though more so because I am embarking on the adventure of a lifetime. Well, at least an adventure to spring me from this jail called Toledo that I rarely escape. I will be part of a stage show in Venice, California called "Expressing Motherhood"! Upon the recommendation of my friend Jess, the very same one who suggested this little blogging idea, I wrote an essay on my struggle with postpartum depression. I sent it to LA thinking that it was just good to have written down my thoughts and feelings. I certainly did not think I would get chosen, BUT I DID! I will be doing 4 shows during the first two weekends in August. Myself and 14 others will bare their souls to 100 spectators nightly and tell what mothering really is all about. Being part of this show is such an honor for me. It is a dream come true. I am the girl who rarely wins anything. I am the girl who didn't make cheer leading. I am the girl who doesn't really stand out. That is why this means so much that someone read my piece and saw my struggle for what it was - it was real. Now I see this experience as a way to help someone who may be wrestling with the same thing. I see it as a way to let a friend know how to help a another who is struggling. You better believe that my countdown to Cali will continue on here and while I am there I will document in print all the amazing things that happen. This is a dream come true for me and it will be an experience of a lifetime - I just know it.