Monday, July 20, 2015

{ Do yourself a favor }

Sometimes all you need is to go back through your blog, really go back and read some of your previous posts.  It was like the light came back on and I remembered why I started blogging and how much I love it.

Life is crazy, life changes, WE change and I feel like at times we're constantly trying to adapt to what is going on around us.

Blogging is not what it used to be, not by far.  What started as a simple way for us homemakers and moms to connect with others, to share our experiences, to stay in touch with family and just have a platform to speak about the mundane things we do on a daily basis, has become something so Hollywoodized....I know not a word, but it perfectly describes what I feel about this.

Flowers and Crochet

I used to be able to look through blogs and find tons of like minded individuals, cute little blogs filled with recipes, family stories, pictures of toddlers getting up to their usual naughty business and moms venting about their feelings of inadequacy or loneliness, or asking for advice, sharing their budgets and their meal plans and giving words of comfort to others like them.

Now, when I try to find blogs it all seems so commercialized.  It's all about how much money you can make through your blog, how many giveaways, how smart, how to write acceptable blog posts and what you should and shouldn't do.

My question....WHY???

When did blogging become a business, when did it become a place where you feel like you should be watching tutorials or reading manuals or taking classes so you can make a simple post about your day?

Morning coffee

It's not something I enjoy and I think it is one of the reasons, amongst others, why I've felt less attracted to the whole blogging thing.  I kind of feel like I want to remove myself from it, like I should be trying to maintain my blog's integrity, shielding it from the ever fast paced life that the blog world has taken on.

But then on the other hand, I look at my blog and I see what it is, why it was started and amongst the ever changing blog world, I want to keep it just as it is.  Maybe it will be one of the very few original blogs that is all about....well.....life, as a mom, a wife, a retired Air Force family, a crafter, and homemaker who makes not a single penny from this venture.

So my challenge to you today, if you've had a blog for years, is to take a few moments, go back to your very first posts and read.  You'll be surprised at the excitement and joy you exuded during those first few words on the internet. Then keep reading, keep going, because if anything it will remind you of what YOUR blog is all about, and what you wanted it to be.

Do me a favor, don't get caught up in the shoulds and shouldn'ts of this *new blogging* world.  There is no such thing as the right or wrong way to write a post, it's your blog, it's about you, and unless someone lives your life and knows what you're thinking or doing, they have no right telling you one way or the other.

Morning light

In this new day and age where the PC police seem to run rampant, and such airs of self importance and self entitlement abound, it's good to remember where you came from and what you're doing, unless you're really into following the masses, in that case, go for it.  But if you're like me, just little ol' me who likes nothing more than to sit down with a good book and a cup of coffee after washing the dishes and straightening up the house, do what is right for you and stick to your guns, don't let anyone dictate what your blog should look like, how many posts you should have, what kind of ads you need on it and how much money you should be making from it.

That's the best advice I can give you.  Usually I wouldn't even make a post like this, but as I sat here thinking about my own reasons for either continuing on with this blog, or stopping altogether, I have received so many messages from other like minded women expressing the feeling that they feel pressured into a certain standard of blogging, and that my friends is sad.

So I'm making a conscious effort to maintain what my blog is about, to never change it, whether its look or the content of the posts, it doesn't matter.  I want my readers who have been here from the very beginning in 2006 to feel like this is home, familiar, not like a completely different blog they stumbled upon.

_MG_8835

I'm not saying that I'll be back to blogging every single day, I'm not sure I'm quite there yet, but what I can promise you is that I'm not going anywhere, and that I WILL continue posting albeit a little sporadic for the moment, and that the posts you see will be all about life and homemaking, cooking, and kids and husband and what I'm watching on TV etc.

If you've been reading my blog for years and are still around, thank you, from the bottom of my heart because you have no idea how much that means to me, and if you're just now starting, then welcome and I truly do hope you enjoy what you see :)

Blessings,
Sandra

28 comments:

collettakay said...

Love this post! I can't stand when I go to a blog and have to maneuver through all the adds just to get to the post. I'm keeping my blog simple, just how I like it :)

Colletta

Wendi said...

Yes! Yes! Yes! I haven't been blogging much because life is just busy. I hope to get back at it soon, but if I don't that is okay also. A tutorial here and there is nice so I can learn things and I don't mind a review or two. I get really turned off by bloggers that make tons of money blogging or speak down to you. Most people don't have magazine homes and when you go to a blog that sets up table scapes and such to photograph and put on their blog it sets us "normal" ladies up to feel discontent. I have been searching out new blogs and leaving many that have become big. I lead a simple life and I like simple blogs.

I will be happy to see glimpes of your life daily, weekly, monthly or whenever.:)

Liz said...

I love this, and what a good idea it is. It's easy to get caught up in Will other people like it, but I want to post our lives and if people don't like it, they don't have to read it. :) You are such and inspiration.

Susanne said...

A very timely post for me. I miss the good old days of blogging. i've sorta drifted away from it a lot because Ive been feeling the pressure of writing witty "important" posts. You've encouraged me.

Renee said...

Such a beautiful post ~ Thank you!

Judy said...

What a wonderful post. I can totally relate, I had thought of quitting blogging about a year ago, and I did step back from all that I had been doing on the blog. Unfortunately I stopped reading all the wonderful blogs I did enjoy, so I went through my reader feed and deleted blogs that I no-longer was interested in. My feed got so filled up everyday that I would mark all the blogs read because I got so overwhelmed with trying to read them all. So, I've downsized my blog reading list and it's working so much better.

Debbie said...

I love your blog! Please don't change!!

Unknown said...

Thanks you Sandra for being genuine and honest! I'm not a blogger just a reader and I truly appreciate those qualities. Yours is one of the very few blogs I read regularly, and have been for a few years. You are so authentic, that's what I love about your blog! Please don't ever change :)

Lori said...

I have been reading your blog off and on since 2008, when I first discovered the blogging world, and one of the things that always brings me back to your corner of the web is how genuine your blog is. No commercialism, no trying to impress anyone, no selling...just you. I look forward to reading your blog for years to come! <3

AllTheMoming said...

I just found your blog about a year ago. I was immediately sucked in because of the honesty & realness. I love that you share with us and enjoy coming to this blog, knowing that its posts about experience & things of importance, not about selling products. Keep doing what you're doing!

Anonymous said...

I agree! That is what I love about this blog, just Sandra and her family loving and living their life without commercialism and trying to outdo someone else also never being judgmental. Blessings to you all.

Laura B.

Rachel said...

Love this post and I agree with it whole-heartedly. There are days where I feel like why should I blog when there may only be a handful that read it at all. However, I started it as a diary of what what going on in our life and as my kids get older, I am using it as a journal to look back on and see what our life was like with the different ages of the kids. Thank you for showing me that I am not the only one!

Sherry said...

I love to read your blog, it's like sitting down with you and hearing about your day and I dont feel like you are selling me your "brand". I shut mine down and considered starting a blog again but havent.

Michelle-ozark crafter said...

You are very right sweetie!

Connie said...

I've been reading your blog for awhile now and always enjoy it. I enjoy a simple blog, nothing fancy but honest. Thanks for that.

Simply Quaint said...

I love your blog keep up with what you do it's what keeps me coming back ;)

Blessings
Rhonda

Amy at love made my home said...

I am newer to your blog, and blogging in general, but I think that you are so right. You always seem very real to me. I try hear to be real and be me, and I think that most of the blogs that I read are like that. If a blog has fancy graphics and is filled with ads and lots of snazzy things, then I tend to just pass on by. If that is what suits you, then by all means go for it, but I just keep being me! I do write tutorials on my crocheting sometimes, and share recipes and things, but that is because I want to share things that I have created and worked out. For me it is about the sharing as I don't have others to share these things with! xx

Carol said...

Yes, yes, yes!!! That's actually one of the reasons I started fresh. I felt my old blog was bogged down with stuff that wasn't really "me." Thanks for writing this - I definitely needed to read it this morning.

Anonymous said...

I have been reading here for years.I love it!!
Monica

catsnmore said...

Hi, I just recently started reading and following you. I love what you said about blogging. I have been blogging on a regular basis since February or so, but have had the blog for several years. Someone asked me if I was going to make money on it. My response was, "Why?" I am not writing to make money. I do not have a great big following. Only a few view my posts. And I'm good with that. It is refreshing to see someone else who isn't out to make it "big" in the blogging business. Have a great day and week!

Elizabeth

Dawn Marie said...

I agree with you so much! I remember when it was like entering someone's brain when reading a blog. You read their thoughts and experiences. Pretty cool. Now it's reviews, giveaways, self-help and all that. I really like reading about what goes on in a person's day and what they've experienced in life and motherhood. It's not that way anymore. I really enjoy your blog so much.

Anonymous said...

Your blog is one of the very few that I still enjoy reading and it is because it
is unique and so natural. You share from your heart and that makes it the best. And whether you only post once in a blue moon or weekly, I will still be reading as long as you wish to continue. Blessings to you and your family!!

~Sara L.

Anonymous said...

Hi Sandra, I just want to let you know that I have followed your blog for a while. Your blog is something I always look forward to. Your blog is so comfortable. I like the peek into your life.

I never leave a comment, but I want you to know how much I enjoy your blog.

I hope you continue to blog for a long time.
Erin

Kelly H said...

Your blog is the only blog that I visit week after week. Thank you!!!!

Sarah said...

Yay! That's why I love you and your blog. Don't ever change. Big hugs all the way from ol' Blighty xxxx

Linds said...

Hi, Sandra - a friend of mine posted a link to something I wrote 3 years ago, and it reminded me why I wrote, what I loved and how much I missed it. It will take time to get going again, but I am also just the same - I am not interested in the commercialism, but what we started, and what it was meant to be. So I am back. Remind me what programme you use to upload photos? I have forgotten all and Flickr is all different! xx

Sarah said...

You've inspired my latest blog post. Big hugs! xxx

Tiffany said...

Wonderful post