Welcome back, friends. So glad you are still around! Did you miss me? I missed you!
I took a little blogging break because I’ve been doing some soul searching lately, trying to figure out where my space is in this blogging world. And I needed to dig deeper which required time away. Time to reflect through abstinence. Or something like that 
I started out blogging because I was on a weight loss journey which turned into a passion for healthy cooking… and I really wanted to show the whole world out there that it IS possible to lose weight and eat healthy but still deliciously. It was an innocent hobby that made me dream of bored dieters and overweight souls getting in on this amazing little secret of healthy cooking. And changing their lives. And I had a little part of that! Such sweet dreams.
But then it got more complicated. Picture quality started to matter and there was all this pressure (there are some incredibly talented food bloggers out there, many of which focus on healthy recipes… and who the hell am I to compete with that?). And yes, I’m going to go out there and just say it – it became a little about competing with them in my mind. And I was clearly the loser.
Adam likes to remind me that I have over a thousand readers so clearly a lot of this serious self doubt came from my own insecurities that just needed to be dealt with so I could move on. But there was more.
I also realized that I, in fact, did not have all the answers. And cooking elaborate meals every night became a little more challenging than the newlywed Elina thought it would be (and well, just too much). And most importantly, it’s not always about the food.
I’ve been up and down over the past 2.5 years. And many of you have followed my journey throughout. Thank you! But like I said in the beginning of this post, I really did need to figure out why I still blog and whether it is still for the right reasons. This blog has obviously become so much more than just healthy recipes (in fact, those are few and far these days, aren’t they?). Which posts make me happiest? Is every post something that feels truly right?
For several weeks there were so many days I just wanted to unplug that I started to wonder whether giving myself permission to do so permanently, would help answer many of these questions including the biggest one – do I want to keep going… and if so, on what terms?
This break gave me a lot of perspective. I realized that I was allowing the negative thoughts, the ones that said I wasn’t good enough and that I might as well give up, take over. I forgot that blogging has become a part of me, the one I want to keep. And that it doesn’t need to be all or nothing. It doesn’t need to be perfect. It can be whatever I want on any given day because I am a dozen different things throughout each and every day. And I want to give you a glimpse into a life of a “normal girl” that does not have all the answers. The one that on some days can’t think of anything better to do than meal plan for weeks ahead and then cook her little heart out (and share those meals with you!), and on others feels insecure and wants support from a thousand of her closest friends. 
Thanks again for reading. Healthy and Sane is here to stay!!
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Oh and the winner of the Cabot serious snacking giveaway is #66. Shannon, can you please email me your address? Thanks for playing! 
