Statement of Purpose

Welcome friends!

I like doing things on purpose. I'm purpose-driven. So I decided to start this blog with a few purposes:
- keep family & friends updated on our life together
- keep records of our life together
- share pictures, stories, and musings
- reciprocate my love for reading friends' blogs by sharing my life, in blog form

I guess I could break each of these down for you.

Update.
We are moving away from most of the people we love to be around and keep in touch with. Family. Friends. Co-workers. And, even though Will and I aren't exactly "phone people", we still want to keep those people involved in our lives. This seems like a good space to share those experiences.

Record.
This summer, I have quit my job, gotten married, moved away from Charlottesville, started a new job, and moved to Massachusetts. A lot is going on. There's a lot to record. I don't want to forget some of the details just because I don't have the brain capacity to store it all. So this, too, seems like a good space to keep a record of all of these changes, and any other changes that we venture upon!

Share.
Specifically pictures and vignettes. Not our day-to-day life together (we can't possibly be that stimulating), but funny stories, touching stories, and stories that have helped form our lives together. In that sense, sharing a "snapshot" of our life. And, also, literally sharing pictures! I'm a visual person, so I'd like to share some visuals of our life.

Reciprocate.
People use blogs for 1,000 reasons. Raise support/awareness. Accountability in healthy lifestyles. Tutorials on cooking or cosmetics. There are a plethora of reasons to blog. And I enjoy many of those reasons. I like the personal touches of a blog; the casual cadence of sharing thoughts and reactions to something. Blogs feel like an invitation into someone's life and home. You don't have to read it, but you're welcome to if you so choose. For friends and family that are far away, it feels like a way to hospitable to them... open my home and space and time for these people. When I read my friends' blogs, I feel invited into their home. So it feels good to reciprocate that hospitality with a blog of my own.

So that's why Ginger Snap exists.

And a few words about the title. Will and I are, obviously, both redheads. This detail been a huge identifier in both of our lives; it has gotten the most reactions of any other feature of ours; it attracted Will and I to each other. It's a fun facet that we share. Will's family has lovingly named us "The Gingers", making us a cohesive unit under our little copper umbrella. I associate very fond feelings with being called one of "The Gingers". So that's the (probably unnecessary) explanation of "Ginger". "Snap" ... well, mostly because I thought it would make for a good (and memorable) title. But also going along with the stated purpose: a snapshot into our lives.

So that's why Ginger Snap is so named.

Thanks for coming to visit with us. I hope you enjoy this space as much as I intend to!