Why I Love Pinterest. (And not for the reasons you'd think)

**I think Andrew edited this post somehow. It looks different but I can't put my finger on it.**

I've been working on my humility forEVER. That is probably why God graced me with twins and the inability to keep up the Super Woman gig.

Being someone who loves "having it figured out," Pinterest just spoke to me. Now don't get me wrong, I'm all about bettering my housewifeliness, but Pinterest is WAY more than that. I'd like to set forward the idea that there are "Stages of Pinterest."

• Lack of Interest - This is the "What on earth is this Pinterest thing?" stage. I have many friends who are still here, but I'm trying not to write them off completely. 
• Curiosity - But the world keeps on Pinning, and that seductive red P is everywhere. What's a girl to do?
• Disgust - Right after you log in for the first time, you think, "This is just nutso. This website is going to turn me into a Mason jar-hacking Stepford wife." There is some truth to that. I think Andrew is stuck somewhere between curiosity and disgust.
• Honeymoon - Then you figure out how to use it. Suddenly you're PINNING ALL THE THINGS! Wahoo! 
• Deep Appreciation and Wonderment - This is the stage I'm at. It's sort of like the Enlightenment stage.  

I think I finally get it. For me, Pinterest is one of those things where I think, "Holy Crap, THIS is what the 21st century is supposed to feel like!" We live in the information age, and it's so easy to gather data and learn things. We're connected with the entire world at once. It's just mind-boggling. But being as it's so mind-boggling, I feel like my mind is boggled all the time. 

Enter Pinterest. You know when you were about 6 and your mom would say, "We're going up to have coffee at Julie's!" and you would sort of roll your eyes? "Just let me finish this cup. Just go play! I don't care how bored you are! Go climb a tree! There are five of you standing here - surely you can find something to do! Now go!" And a cup turned into a pot. Maybe more than one pot. Who knows what happens when those tricky moms get together.

Now that I AM a mom, I'm so well aware of the need to sit around and tell my kids to disappear so I can chat with my friends and catch up on some adult time. Only, we moved far out of town and I'm seriously being Gullivered out here by all these tiny people. My "girl" time is more often than not a quick text to Katie, chatting on gmail with Katherine, a call from Charlotte, a few minutes on Facebook. We live in a neighborhood with ZERO stay-at-home moms in our court, so life gets a little "blahhhhh..." Don't get me wrong - I'm a total homebody. I'd rather be at home than anywhere in the entire world. Going out just requires so much of me. Shoes...pants...brushing the kids' hair...tell me, is it really worth it??

Additionally, we live far from our family. We always have. My "village" is spread so far and wide that I really find many of my answers on the internet. All of those interesting little tricks I'd glean from grandmas, girlfriends, my mom, aunts and strangers all sort of come together on Pinterest. All of the arts and crafts my friends would otherwise tell me about? Pinterest. Advice on parenting, large families, meal ideas and crockpot recipes? Pinterest. Little snippets of inspiration and phrases to motivate? Pinterest.

It's the new Village. And I dig it.