Erica Kartak

image via Death to the Stock Photo

I’m back! These past two weeks with a newborn have been among the best and hardest of my life. Between a lack of sleep, sore nipples, raging hormones and a baby that’s decided he doesn’t want to take a nap, it’s been harder than I ever expected. But one look at him and I fall more and more in love.

Since I underestimated the amount of free time I’d have to spend on Luv in the Bubble, I’m not committing to regular posting at this point. I hope to get back into a groove, but my primary focus is on Lawson and enjoying every moment with him and cherishing these first weeks together…the perfect transition into my post for today!

I read an article in Glamour recently that discussed the impact of technology on our love lives. Although the main focus was around sexting, the article made me think more about my desire to be constantly connected and how it impacts my relationships.

My word of 2015 is “present” (you can read more here). Sometimes it’s a struggle to be present. I’ll admit I’m quite connected to my iPhone and iPad. I reach for it during a commercial break or when at a stoplight. Although I am proud that I generally don’t have it out during a meal with others, I certainly reach for it as soon as there’s a break in the conversation or someone steps away from the table. I can hardly manage to keep from looking at Instagram during a 3-hour girl’s night with my favorite friends.

With more and more information at our fingertips, we’ve trained ourselves to need that constant stimulation (or at least I have). God forbid I be left alone with my thoughts for a few minutes or let a real conversation develop during a moment of silence.

Of course my dependence on technology isn’t all bad. It’s easy to send a friend a quick message when I’m out and see something that reminds me of her or that I think she’d like. And I do feel more connected to Jim when we exchange quick messages throughout the day. I probably FaceTime my parents once a week and I love being able to actually see each other even though we live 1500+ miles apart.

In the end, it’s about finding the right balance. In my quest to be more present in 2015, I’d like to focus on disconnecting a bit more. Do you ever feel the same way? Tell me I’m not alone! Do you have any tricks I can try?