Being Social, Not Doing Social

By ARWB’s All Things Bloggy Gal Alison Chino, Photos photo by Whitney Loibner

I know I was here all last month sharing my journey of blogging, but I am super excited about showing back up at Arkansas Women Bloggers to talk some more about blogging once a month-ish.

So if you have questions about blogging or topics you wish I would cover, shoot me an email (alison at alisonchino.com) or tell me on Twitter!

This month, I want to talk about Social Media, and since there are eleventy million opinions in the world about all the different social media platforms, I’m not going to try to define the right way to go about it. Instead, I’m just going to tell you what I’m doing with social media.

Last fall, I was introduced to the idea that maybe we should view social media a little differently.

Maybe we should work on being social instead of doing social.

Here’s a group of Arkansas Women Bloggers being social!

I was challenged to stop publishing the same exact content to all of my social media channels, but instead to look at social media as a circle and to give people a reason to follow me in more than one place. Since this approach requires a little more creativity and time, I have found that I have narrowed the platforms I”m really using. For example, I have practically abandoned my Facebook page, which I feel ok about since Facebook rarely shows it to anyone anyway.

So here are my favorite platforms and what I use them for, plus a little bonus link to a post from a real expert!

1. Instagram

Instagram is my very favorite social platform. It’s where I put my favorite discoveries, my happiest moments and my most beautiful finds. I often use my Instagram photos later on my blog, but I don’t usually promote my blog on Instagram. I might mention about once a month that I have a blog and the link is in my profile, but for the most part I find that people follow me on Instagram to see the pictures and they don’t really care about my blog.

However, lots of folks have had loads of success using Instagram to build a brand. Katja of Skimbaco Lifestyle has done a great job doing just that and has released a free eBook (when you opt in for her email list) about using Instagram for travel that has a lot of great tips about Instagram in general.

2. Twitter

I publish most of what I write on my blog to Twitter, but I try to make it slightly more interesting than just listing the title of the post. I also tweet other things I read that I find helpful or enjoy. I almost think it means more these days to share someone’s post than it does to leave a comment on it. It validates your content when someone shares it with their friends!

I’m trying to really use Twitter to talk to people. I participate in a couple of Twitter chats about travel and I have several lists in Twitter where I keep up with what is happening in my industry. Then I have another list of Arkansas gals! I also have a list of folks I’m a big fan of and I engage with them when I’m feeling brave. I can be as shy on Twitter as I am in real life though!

Here’s a great tutorial on using Twitter lists.

3. Facebook

I mentioned that I am over the whole Facebook page season of blogging. Now if you want to talk to me on Facebook, I just want you to become my friend. Every once in a while I will share a blog post I wrote on my personal Facebook, but I don’t do it all the time because I feel like it starts to seem like noise. Facebook is where I share pictures of my kids and my family. It’s where I check in with friends back home.

One new way Facebook has been really helpful for me in the last year is in the common use of Facebook groups. I belong to several blogging groups that basically act as forums and are wonderful for sharing information. Arkansas Women Bloggers Facebook group is one of them. I also started my own Facebook group for the #48walks project I am doing on my blog this year. This has been so much more effective than my Facebook page because people are engaged with groups that they join. Of course, if a group member gets tired of the group’s notifications and turns them off, then you lose that engagement, so you have to be careful not to abuse this platform.

Here’s my favorite post from a company on why they are breaking up with Facebook.

4. Google+

These days I use Google+ like I used to use Facebook. I put my photos in Google+ albums, which for a non-Photoshop user like me is handy since you can do simple edits of your photos right in Google+. I also share my blog posts, as well as other ones I enjoy on Google+. I have not learned how to be super engaged with my Google+ feed, but I would say this is the platform that I am growing into the most right now.

Here’s a great beginner’s guide to Google+ for blogging.

5. Pinterest

I go in seasons with Pinterest. I really love how visual it is and so I always pin my recipe pictures. But I also use Pinterest like Evernote and pin lists I want to remember or articles about blogging to a board called Learning. This is very counter productive to keeping my Pinterest boards pretty, which is the expert advice I often hear about this platform.

Since I’m probably doing it all wrong, here’s a tutorial on using Pinterest for Blogging.

Tell me in a comment or on Twitter what your favorite social media platform is and why! I would love to know.

And if you want to follow me on any of these platforms, I’m @alisonchino everywhere.

Here’s a bonus read about why you want all those handles to match.

April 7, 2014

Pinterest Generation

Written by Keisha Pittman, Miss April 2014

Every generation has a title; a label placed on them usually by the generation that follows. These labels are full generalities and certainties found generic of the largest portion of this aged group. We all know them – The Greatest Generation, Baby Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y, Millennials and Gamers (even my spell check wasn’t familiar with this one).

Best sellers, sociologists and educators try with invigorated rigor to “discover” the differentiating factors that tend to lead us all to a narcissistic, defensive place of not letting that label truly define our age group. And, I’ll admit, I’ve been and often still find myself among the groups of people fascinated by these generalities. I mean after all, there has to be something that explains why the large majority of us, in the core of who we are, are from the “world” we grew up in.

I’ll even go further and admit that during my years as Director of Admissions Counseling at the best college ever, I would look up the Beloit College mindsetson the incoming class. I wanted to know “who” they were, what they had always known and what had never existed to them. I’m fascinated with generational studies and if I were to ever go back to get my Master’s Degree it would probably hit that topic (I’m a complete nerd if anyone wants to pay me to go back to school!!!).

But, I’ve been thinking recently about those “things” that influence and morph our generation to fall into all these stereotypes. After all if I look at the description of the class of 2004, I’m reminded that we have always lived in a world where you could reproduce DNA in a laboratory, money always could be retrieved from an ATM machine, McGruff (a brown furry dog who walked upright in a detective trench coat) told us that smoking was really not a wise choice and we were all plagued that the world would end the year we graduated high school (#Y2K…could have been such a good way to start “the hashtag”!).

With the rise of social media and the development of all these incredible communication tools, I’m continually perplexed by one…Pinterest. Yes, I have one and yes I got sucked in to the home design ideas, garden party recipe board and I even pin things for someday when I might get to say “I do”. But, it all makes me wonder…

What will they say of the Pinterest Generation? Will they think we were super creative? Will they think our kids had the best birthday parties? Will they be amazed that we used an inordinate amount of burlap to throw and host weddings (can’t imagine the bell curve there)? Or, will we even remember in 3 years that we all had a slew of cheeky named “boards” that we “followed” and “contributed” to, all while trying to be the best version of whatever our current project held.

I mean think about it. My mom and I used to have to look through a 30 year collection of curriculum books in the summer to work on her preschool lesson plans for the next year. If I wanted to plan a party, I had to stroll the aisles of my favorite craft or Hobby Shop and cross my fingers that the girl who sat in the cubicle next to me at work could make something in Microsoft Publisher I could cut out and tape on construction paper to drop in the mail for my party. I don’t even want to know what Emily Post would say about my vintage chic collection conversation in the dorm room planning my college roommates’ wedding. And yet we’ve done it. We jumped hook line and sinker into a world of perfection. We ladies, and yes even a few gents, have taken the plunge and built ourselves into a box of comparison, value, and mis-measured self-worth.

I love to be as creative as the next girl. I like having one place to go to look for tablescapes, Easter menu ideas and spring trends. It’s convenient to carry all these on that smart, little device I carry in my back pocket. How great it was last week while I was stuck in an airport to have something “to do” (talking to my friends and people watching would just have been too exhausting). But, I want to be cautious and I want to be careful of the new measurement stick I’ve picked up.

We need a good reminder that our kids will remember that they had an awesome 3 year old birthday party even if the cute homemade tutu didn’t get made. A fruit salad at my backyard party will taste just as good as the rainbow fruit skewers I might be finishing at midnight (and less coffee and that puffy eye roller won’t have to be used). My sister got married in December without us actually doing anything we pinned last summer. You can’t be afraid to walk into Charming Charlie’s and just pick out a necklace. They wouldn’t be selling it if it wasn’t trendy.

So, what do YOU think they will say of the Pinterest Generation? (I told you I was going to ask for some input this month!) Prude? Perfectionist? Pretty?

Let’s gather the ideas, but make it ok to go to Brookshire’s and make it happen. Let’s dream big, but realize our friends might have even more fun if the party doesn’t look like its ready for a Martha Stewart Living spread. And for Pete’s sake, it’s still ok to call your mama for her corn dip recipe instead of trying to decide if a complete stranger has a better one. I mean how can you go wrong with Rotel, corn and cream cheese!

April 6, 2014

Sunday Link-Up {April 6, 2014}

April 5, 2014

Big City Lights

Written by Rhonda Bramell

My husband and I have just returned home from a trip to Las Vegas, which surely is the people-watching capital of the world. Even if you never lay down one single poker chip, you can be thoroughly entertained by the sights, sounds, and lights of the city. If you are from a small town, it’s doubly entertaining! We saw Chewbacca, Iron Man, that creepy kid Chucky, Hello Kitty, Barney and some break dancers out shaking their tip jars, all in one night.

This trip was purely celebratory in nature; we were there to usher in our tenth wedding anniversary. While it wasn’t our first trip to Las Vegas, we were able to do and see a few things that we hadn’t done on prior trips. As a bonus, this was our first kid-free vacation ever! Now, you know I love my children dearly, but this mama sure needed a break from the work/cook/clean/booty wiping monotony of my days. And you know what? For four whole days, we played! We didn’t have a schedule; we ate when and what we wanted, we stayed up all night and slept in most days. I even scored a half-day of alone time by the pool! Heavenly.

For me, a few of the highlights of our trip were seeing the Hoover Dam, finally catching a Cirque du Soleil show (we chose Mystere) and having a fantastic Italian dinner on The Strip. My husband might say he most enjoyed driving us in our rented sedan, down a winding, dirt “trail” made for 4 x 4’s, to a beautiful and secluded part of Lake Mead. As long as you aren’t afraid of dying in the desert, I would also recommend this surprising excursion.

Taking care of a marriage and a family is hard work, I won’t lie. And because of that, I’ve realized how important taking a break is, too. Two weeks ago, we were both burned out, cranky and tired. We have come back to the real world rested, refreshed and ready to tackle our routine again. On our return, we were greeted by the loudest squeals and happiest three faces waiting for us at the airport. It was a sweet reminder of the hours, days and years to come.

I live in Northwest Arkansas with my husband and three kiddos. I work full-time in retail marketing. In my spare time, I write at Bramell, Party of Five, where I’ve been blogging for seven years. Life with twins + 1 is a crazy, busy life but definitely provides me with lots of creative inspiration.

April 4, 2014

Dinner in a Box {Foodie Friday}

By Stacy McBryde Valleyof An Awesome Amazing Life

A few months ago, I subscribed to Plated, a grocery delivery service. Each Monday, I pick from seven meal options (four meat and fish options, three vegetarian options) for delivery the following week. I usually order two servings of two different meals for Wednesday delivery. It’s such a time-saver. All the fresh ingredients for a delicious home-cooked meal are delivered to my doorstep, and I get to do the fun part — COOK!

Last night, I made four servings of the Pork and Pineapple Stir-Fry with Napa and Purple Cabbages and Basmati Rice.

Dinner in A box: Pork and Pineapple Stir Fry

2014-03-11 08:22:15

Serves 4

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Provided

1/2 cups basmati rice
1 1/2 cups basmati rice
2 cups diced pineapple
24 ounces pork tenderloin
2 cloves garlic
1 head Napa cabbage
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
1 cup shredded red cabbage
4 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar

Needed from home

2 tablespoons canola oil (I used peanut oil)
2 1/2 cups water
salt and pepper

Instructions

Cook Rice -- In a small pot, bring basmati rice, 2 1/2 cups water, and a pinch of salt to a boil over high heat. Stir once, cover, reduce heat to low, and cook for 12 minutes. Remove pot from heat and allow to stand, still covered, for 10 minutes. Uncover, flush with a fork, re-cover and set aside.
Prepare Ingredients -- Meanwhile, drain diced pineapple. Rinse pork, pat dry with paper towel, and cut into 1-inch cubes. Mince garlic. Rinse Napa cabbage and cut crosswise into 1/4-inch slices.
Cook Pineapple -- Heat a large pan (I used a wok) over high heat. When pan is just smoking, add pineapple and cook, stirring, until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Cook Pork -- Add 1 tablespoon canola oil to pan from pineapple over medium-high heat. Season pork on both sides with salt and pepper. When oil is simmering, add pork and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned on outside and cooked through, about 8 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.
Cook Cabbage -- Add garlic and crushed red pepper, if desired, to pan from pork over medium heat. Cook until garlic is golden, about 1 minute. Add Napa and red cabbages and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Return pineapple and pork to pan and stir to combine. Add soy sauce and rice wine vinegar, stir, and simmer until liquid is absorbed, about 1 minutes.
Plate Stir-Fry -- Taste stir-fry and add salt and pepper as needed. Divide rice evenly between four plates and top with stir-fry. Serve hot.

By Stacy Valley

Adapted from Plated. com

Arkansas Women Bloggers https://arkansaswomenbloggers.com/

My name is Stacey Valley. I’m a wife, mother, and public health professional with a horrible sweet tooth. My life is quite beautifully ordinary and at the same time more than I could have ever imagined. I blog to express my feelings, share photos and recipes, and occasionally rant about health issues or the craziness of juggling motherhood, marriage, and making a living. My life’s motto is “Live big. Love deep.

If you’d like to try Plated for yourself, here’s a link for TWO FREE PLATES: at Plated Com. It is kind of expensive, but considering the time savings, I think it’s totally worth it. If you try it, please let me know what you think”

Blog:My Awesome Amazing Life

Twitter: staceyvalley

Instagram: staceyvalley

Facebook: Stacey McBryde Valley

April 3, 2014

Arkansas Blogger Bake Sale

Did you know that Arkansas is tied with Mississippi for having the highest rate of food insecure households in the nation? I don’t know about you, but I think that needs to change.

Many children in Arkansas are depending on the free or reduced-cost breakfast and lunch that they are provided at school as their main source of nutrition. That means many go without dinner on a regular basis and are without many meals during the weekends and especially during the summer.

Regardless of your political views on federal assistance programs, I hope we can all agree that children shouldn’t be going hungry. Children can not provide for themselves and we have the opportunity to help provide for them.

The Arkansas Blogger Bake Sale began three years ago as part of the national No Kid Hungry initiative. 100% of the money raised goes to No Kid Hungry who then partners with the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance to help distribute these funds statewide through a variety of programs aimed at ending childhood hunger.

This year’s sale is scheduled for Saturday, May 3rd in the Argenta District of North Little Rock and there are several opportunities for you to help out with this event. We have all been blessed by Arkansas and it is time for us to join together and give back.

Arkansas Women Bloggers is the largest statewide group of bloggers, the social media megaphone of Arkansas, and we need to REPRESENT at this event! Let’s do this girls!

Here are several ways you can help!

BAKE

We are in need of baked goods on the day of the bake sale and you don’t even have to be a food blogger! You can even use a boxed mix if you want!

Individual items and small packages of a few items are the most successful. Things like cookies are great, but you can check out our Arkansas Blogger Bake Sale Pinterest Board for all kids of great ideas for bake sale goodies.

TAG PARTY

Come participate in the tag party on Saturday, April 12th from 3-6 in Little Rock. Details of the exact location will be released later.

We’ll be making tags for the baked goods (our own and for whoever asks us to help) and working on any handmade decor for the event. Folks should bring their own supplies (Cardstock, stamps/ink, etc.) and be willing to share. We’ll have a couple of Sizzix (?) machines and other tools. If someone wants to bring supplies for any craft or card project that could be sold on the auction, that would be great. This is a great opportunity for crafters and anyone who doesn’t bake to participate!

ONLINE AUCTION

We are hosting a pre-sale online auction. This is perfect for those of you who make stuff or have a business that would like to donate a good or service to be auctioned off. One of our favorite guy bloggers, Kevin Shalin of the Might Rib, is handling the auction which beings April 14 on http://www.32auctions.com/ARFBBS.

VOLUNTEER

We are in need of volunteers to work the bake sale on Saturday, to help with setup and clean up, and to pick up baked goods from professional bakers on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning and deliver them to the bake sale.

NWA Girls: We are in need of someone (or a group of you) that would be willing to collect baked good donations in NWA and bring them to the sale!

FOLLOW US AND SHARE ONLINE

The Arkansas Blogger Bake Sale is all over the place on line! Please follow us and share us with everyone you know!

Website
Facebook
Instagram
Pinterest
#arbakesale

BLOG

Write a blog post to tell others about the bake sale! Help us get the word out!

COME TO THE BAKE SALE

Who doesn’t love sweets? Come to the bake sale and buy something! We will have a large variety of professional and blogger baked items. We will even have vegetarian, gluten free and low sugar offerings.

The bake sale takes place at 6th and Main in NLR on Saturday, May3 beginning at 9AM.

Oh and did I tell you how to sign up yet? I didn’t?!? You can sign up to help HERE!

April 2, 2014

Can You Stand the Rain? {Wordless Wednesday}

By Carmella of Southern Fried Gal

Carmella Fryar, aka Southern Fried Gal, is a marketing data geek by day and a designer wanna-be by night. She has a knack for connecting the not-so-obvious dots which serves her well for both egos. She’s chatty and creative, an ADHD mom and a recovering people pleaser. She shares her brand of crazy along with inspiration for your home on her blog. Connect with her on Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.

April 1, 2014

Miss April 2014 – Keisha Pittman

(que – Walkin on Sunshine – yes that’s my “walk up song”)

Just to start off, for clarification, I’m not the girl who uses a “$” in her name! But, I am a truth seeking, cancer fighting, Texas tune singing, grocery store shopping, Etsy store owning, scrap sewing, downtown alley photo taking, recipe redesigning, curious little rock star.

I see the power in repurposing.

The promise in college freshmen.

The refreshing nature of a Chick-Fil-A sweet tea.

The impact of an afternoon chat over a latte.

The progress of a downtown square.

I believe in Jesus Christ, a great playlist, sleeping late, drinking from a straw (you know, so you don’t stain your teeth) and the power of the human spirit.

I resist change but know it’s good. Feel my best when I’m giving. Revel in coffee dates, especially when the beans have a story. Think social entrepreneurialism and a 9:00AM start will be the fully changed face of the business world as the Baby Boomers all graduate to retirement (or being consultants while they get their nest egg back up). I’m convinced Zappos and Buzzfeed have figured out something genius about the work environment and think ecard billboards should be the wave of the future (I’m a fan of the cheeky comment!)

I’m random and eclectic. Planned and personable. I usually write half my blogs pecking one letter at a time on my iphone and edit them later (it’s 11:33PM and my phone is 3 inches from my face because I took my glasses off….I’m not even kidding). I get my nails and eyebrows done once a month and have worked a Massage Envy membership into my monthly budget. I pay my property tax with my previous year tax return and save the rest for a sunny day or mystery donations to my favorite causes.

I’m on the go, survive with a series of gadgets and think the greatest invention next to indoor plumbing was the Keurig and the iron skillet.

I blog about cancer because I kicked it in the tail. I tell stories about the single life because I can’t make this stuff up. I share recipes that I develop from the stuff on my pantry shelves. The other thoughts are just by-products of the journey.

So basically, I write when I can in my over programmed life. I fight cancer on all fronts. I have a goal to give away more than I keep (time, resources, and memories). I LOVE to make people laugh, like belly laugh and I’m super stoked to be Miss April and be among the awesome other chicks that I admire in so many ways.
April is the month of my birth. The month of my all-clear cancer-versary and the motto “no rainbows, no sunshine” is pretty much my version of “lemonade”. And, in case you are wondering, here’s my pin up photo!

If all that intrigues you, you can find me on my real day job – just bein’ me!

Blog – bigpittstop
Twitter – @bigpittstop
Instagram – bigpittstop
Pinterest – Keisha Pittman or bigpittstop
Facebook – bigpittstop-new journey, new normal, new adventure

I promise to not always ramble about myself…actually this is pretty hard for me to do. So, stop by several times this month and see all the cool things these chicks have planned and I have a couple other posts coming up that I want your insights on!

March 31, 2014

A Blogger’s Journey: Storytelling

A Blogger’s Journey: Storytelling (alternately titled: Finally Wrapping Up A Blogger’s Journey Series!)

Since we have arrived in Scotland, I have been writing between two and ten pitches every week to random companies trying to get them help us tell the story of our life here, while also promoting their hotel, hostel, tour guide or tour.

My pitches have improved since my first emails to the sunscreen company, but I still get mostly “nos” or “no reply.” For every fun trip I have written about on my blog, you can bet there are twenty trips I did not get to take.

(Remember how I said last time that things are not ever exactly as they seem.)

For me, all the pitching + sealing deals with people = EXHAUSTING.

Sometimes, I would rather just go on a free hike with my family on Saturday than beg, beg, beg for you to let me come stay in your hotel for a night so I can take/edit photos and spend hours writing copy that ends up reading like: Look At This Great Hotel We Got To Stay In For Free.

Because, hello BORING.

But even when I would publish (or just Instagram) pictures from hikes I would find that people often would say “Jealous!” or “I wish” or not anything. And that just made me sad.

My readers/followers and even my friends and family seem to somehow have a threshold for the number of pretty Scotland photos they care to see. (Go figure.)

So there I was, telling a story that I had worked hard to define and felt was true (Outdoorsy Mama Lives A Dreamy Life in Scotland) but that I was afraid was getting boring. Plus still not getting paid for blogging and having to work very hard for free things in blogging.

Enter Mike Sowden’s Storytelling Course for Bloggers.

After taking this free email course, which by the way I HIGHLY recommend, I decided to do an experiment.

(Existential Blogging Experiment Stage 3 Resurrected!)

In December, I told Twelve Days of Stories.

They had nothing to do with my Definitions or Purposes in blogging.

They were just stories from my life.

But y’all, I loved writing them.

After my Christmas storytelling project, I decided that I would continue to tell stories on my blog.

I thought I had been telling stories all along, but these were different. They stood out from the blog posts I had been doing lately in that they were mostly text instead of photos.

(Wait a minute! Text Heavy Blog Posts Only With Punctuation This Time? Stage 1 Resurrected!)

Mike suggested I tell stories once a week along a monthly theme. 12 Themes for 12 Months of Stories to follow up my 12 Days of Stories.

I began to play with this idea, but I wanted all the stories to tie together somehow. In fact, what I loved about Outdoorsy Mama + A Dreamy Life In Scotland was how it tied everything on my blog together. I still wanted an overarching theme.

But I wanted it to be something that was truly me.

And I wanted it to be something that I would not easily become bored with.

When I thought of it, I knew I had stumbled on exactly what I wanted my blog to be about in the next stage of my Blogger’s Journey.

Walking.

I was walking everywhere since I had moved to Scotland. I was loving going for walks on the weekends in the woods and I knew I wanted to walk a lot of new cities this year. I love that in the UK, they refer to hiking as walking or hillwalking.

And I love that the idea of walking is so easily transferable to figurative journeys.

I started to write my introductory post about walking + storytelling. I already knew that I wanted to go on some really long walks in 2014 and that I was going to try to come up with a way to tag them all together. (I settled on #48Walks)

While I was writing, I realized that it would be so simple to invite others to do it with me!

I was so excited about this possibility that I just said, Join in! If you can think of a way to be a part of walking with me this year, then come on!

Honestly the idea was so new to me that I did not have time to create any rules or guidelines.

And here’s what really surprised me. People said yes. People started to tag their pictures with #48Walks. I set up a Facebook group and people joined it. I encouraged people to make a list of 48 walks they want to take this year, literal walks or figurative walks.

I started to write blog posts about the walks I am taking. And I started to write stories about walks of life. In January I told stories about Walking Towards the Unexpected. In February, I told stories about Walking in the Dark. This month I told stories about Walking in the Light.

Maybe when I look back on 2014, I will call it the stage of Walking + Storytelling.

Who knows? But for now, I have found a journey that I am loving and that others can share in, which just makes me giddy. Instead of seeing my picture of a walk I am taking and wishing you were there, I hope it encourages you to find a great walk of your own and show it to me. When someone snaps a picture of a walk they are taking in life and tags it for me to find, it brightens up my day.

As I have shared the story of my blog, you might have noticed that I kept a little bit of each phase along the way. Blogging (and the internet) is always changing, so it is great to experiment! In each phase, I try to keep what is helpful and leave behind what is not.

And even though I have made fun of some of the things I have done in blogging, I want you to know that when I see you trying something new on your blog, I think you are brave.

It’s important to me that you know that. Because there is a lot of comparison and meanness on the internet, you might think I am criticizing you. I promise that there is no question you could ask me about blogging that I would say was dumb. And after seven years of blogging, I know that if you have something special happening on your blog (or in your life) that you worked very hard for it. And that there are probably ten more opportunities you did not get.

Ultimately, I do not think there is any right or wrong way to go about blogging.

Which is the wonderful freedom about blogging, is it not?

I like to remember that my blog is my own creation and ultimately, I can do whatever I like with my little corner of the internet. I can try on lots of hats in that space until I find the one that fits me best. Some days I think the dashboard of my blog will continue to be a virtual costume changing room many years to come. And you know what, I am okay with that.

March 30, 2014

Sunday Link-Up {March 30, 2014}