What number of extra recaps like it will I write? I do not know, however welcome to yr 16 in my running a blog journey. I’ve written recaps sharing my weblog story all the best way again to the start in 2007, so when you missed these, it is perhaps value a learn. Running a blog has been a part of my life for thus lengthy that I can’t think about not doing it anymore. This yr has some modifications coming, nonetheless, and I’m excited to share these with you all!
I’ve to say that that is the yr I begin pulling again a bit and never posting as a lot. I’m not planning to stop within the foreseeable future, I’ll in all probability depart my weblog up till the web is not any extra (I doubt that may occur) or I get too previous to sort on right here, whichever comes first. Ha! However, I not have the burning need to maintain climbing increased on the web or social media. That feeling has been with me for just a few years and is much more pronounced now. I wish to settle right into a semi-retirement I suppose you may name it, posting after I really feel prefer it and nonetheless sharing some previous content material as I’ve been doing for a number of years too.
I’ve written round 4,000 posts on this weblog over these 16 years and that’s quite a lot of speaking! It’s been so enjoyable for me and I can’t think about stopping it, so I can’t. However…and there’s all the time a however, I wish to be free to sluggish it down much more than I’ve and never fear in any respect if I don’t put up. I’ve watched others cease running a blog and simply chilly turkey stop. I don’t plan to try this both, however sluggish running a blog is a time period I’m going to embrace.
Mark and I’ve been in our home for five years now and we’re virtually on the finish of our undertaking journey on this home. No, we aren’t transferring both as many I’ve seen do, to purchase one other home or construct a home to then showcase on their weblog or social media. We’re not about to try this. We love our home and are staying right here for the lengthy haul, however meaning we don’t have much more tasks to do and which may get slightly boring since I do write this weblog and DIY and residential enchancment are an enormous a part of what I write about.
My purpose for this yr is to journey extra. I’ve been saying that for awhile and we’re lastly going to do it. The final couple of years have been bizarre journey years anyway, with the pandemic issues have been not so regular, however hopefully that’s all opening up extra now. Thank goodness for that!
This Daisy canine provides me pleasure!
On that notice, let me simply say that as I stated for the final couple of years on my yearly recap that I’m nonetheless extraordinarily involved about our nation and the world basically. Our whole nation appears to have misplaced its thoughts all at one time, on each entrance and it’s very disconcerting to say the least. I’ve by no means been very political on this weblog, however the previous few years have prompted me to do extra analysis and studying than I ever have in my life and what I’ve discovered will not be a fairly image. Lots of you realize precisely what I imply. I received’t get any deeper into the state of our nation on right here (you don’t come right here for politics), however life has been very arduous and is prone to get more durable this yr for thus many. It breaks my coronary heart to see the place our nation is at the moment. When you have been studying my weblog for lengthy, you realize I’m a conservative lady and that’s the place I lean politically. That hasn’t modified a bit however my eyes have certainly been opened much more the previous few years. God is our solely hope, our refuge in time of bother and I do know that His will and reality will prevail. That offers me a lot consolation in what we’re all dealing with sooner or later. The outlook appears so dismal, however my religion is powerful that God will see us by means of, it doesn’t matter what comes our method. We can’t hand over hope.
I liked the December thirty first devotional from my Streams within the Desert:
To this point has the Lord helped us. (1 Samuel 7:12)
Sure, He certain has and I do know he’ll proceed to assist us.
Charleston
So again to the weblog. We actually wish to journey extra this yr…go to new locations we haven’t been earlier than, within the US and in a foreign country. I don’t know but what all that might be, however I’m going to start out planning extra journeys. I’ve to search out locations we will go to that don’t require the vax, you realize the one. We didn’t, nor will we ever get the pictures, in order that could possibly be a deterrent for the place we journey relying on insurance policies sooner or later. That’s not a political assertion, nor do I want to argue, however that’s our place and we’re united on that entrance. As an example, Viking requires all passengers to be vaxxed, so it appears like we’ll by no means go on one other Viking cruise except their coverage modifications. I’m studying up on these insurance policies to search out out which cruise traces don’t have the mandate. Thus far, from what I’ve learn, NCL and Royal Caribbean don’t. I’d love to do a European cruise this spring/summer time after which we plan to return to New England within the fall. So I can see us doing far more journey and weekend journeys and naturally, I’ll share all these right here on the weblog. You may not see quite a lot of model new issues happening home sensible, however I’ll preserve the weblog going at a tempo I’m proud of. Now could be the time for us to journey earlier than we get any older.
I can’t consider that the time has come for me to attract SS funds, however it’s right here. My full retirement age is 66 and 4 months and when you’re near my age, you realize what meaning. April right here I come! I’m wanting ahead to slightly extra journey cash to play with. There are such a lot of locations I’d wish to see and go to and that might be a transparent focus for us as we transfer into this yr, so be ready for me to take longer breaks between posts. I’m simply unsure but what all I’ll be posting, however I do suppose it will likely be much less. My plan is for my weblog to be a part of my retirement earnings and I’ll preserve it going even when someday I cease posting a lot of something new.
I’d love to listen to from all of you too.
What do you want essentially the most? Please be at liberty to chime in right here and let me know what you suppose on what I put up right here on the weblog.
I do know my posts about my mother and father are all the time fashionable and you’re keen on them, so in fact I’ll proceed to share our household. That’s a given. We don’t know the way lengthy we can have mother and pop with us, so I’ll do recaps all alongside about them and their well being.
I’ll proceed to do the weekly collection Dwelling Type Saturdays and Type Showcase with my pals. You’ve in all probability discovered by now that these posts are recycled posts that we share with one another, so likelihood is you may not have seen all of them and it provides us an ideal alternative to share content material with one another’s viewers and sure, helps us preserve visitors flowing on our blogs. Thanks for supporting these weekly options! All of us have some actually nice content material and typically it will get buried so it’s good to indicate it off once more.
I’m unsure if I’ll proceed the Friday Favorites collection regularly. I would do as soon as a month or so, we’ll see the way it goes.
Life feels so quick at instances, the times fly by and we wish to profit from it, so thanks for becoming a member of my journey and studying alongside. I’ll in all probability proceed some trend posts through the yr, however that’s not going to be an enormous focus for me both. I’ll do a pair shares a month. If something, making an attempt to share trend after I began that just a few years in the past has gotten much more difficult since I don’t plan to purchase new garments on a regular basis simply so I can share them and make commissions. That’s the factor about being a trend blogger, it’s important to continuously share new garments to make a residing. I’m so glad I didn’t selected that solely as my subject. As soon as these garments can’t be affiliate linked, they’re ineffective to share. In order that’s not what I wish to depend upon to make a residing, nor do I wish to spend my time on that. There are a ton of trend bloggers to comply with if that’s your factor. I really like garments, however I can’t do it on a regular basis.
I’d wish to get extra concerned in my neighborhood, in order that’s going to be a spotlight too. I’m a member of our native Acworth Enterprise Affiliation and I’ve loved attending to know different ladies in my neighborhood. I’m making an attempt to hitch the tourism board as a volunteer and I’m hoping a spot opens up for me this yr on that. So these are some things I’d wish to get extra concerned in. I’d like to assist make my very own neighborhood a greater place.
How will you assist me and my weblog?
God has blessed my weblog greater than I might have ever dreamed 16 years in the past after I began it. I make a really good residing off my weblog. My advert community income is the principle method I make this weblog work. So let me point out this to you all.
The easiest way you possibly can assist me and my weblog is to proceed to come back right here, LIVE on my weblog after I put up and open my emails after I ship them out and browse the posts right here. That’s the VERY BEST strategy to assist me.
That’s the principle method I make an earnings and weblog pageviews is how I receives a commission from my advert community. I’m so grateful that I’ve the chance to make a enterprise of this weblog and it’s supported me properly for over 10 years of earning profits. God has really restored every little thing I misplaced after I moved from Birmingham to Atlanta all these years in the past (2011). He’s devoted and has by no means let me down and I’m eternally grateful!
I do know that advertisements are annoying and I nonetheless get feedback about that typically. I believe studying on a telephone might be essentially the most annoying strategy to learn a weblog and that’s the place many of the advert intrusion is available in. I learn on my laptop computer for many every little thing I learn as of late and I don’t see the popups like a few of you might have stated. However, once more thanks for wanting previous the advertisements and in your assist all these years. I couldn’t do it with out your continued assist.
Amazon Store and Dwelling Decor hyperlinks
The opposite methods you possibly can assist me is to purchase by means of my affiliate hyperlinks on Amazon and Wish to Know It. I don’t share hyperlinks continuously, however when you can please assist me on the market too. I make commissions whenever you use my hyperlinks and that provides to my earnings.
You will discover all my hyperlinks underneath Store my Dwelling on the house web page of my weblog on the menu bar.
I’ve an Amazon shop with numerous good merchandise that I take advantage of and a few that I really like and advocate as properly. The store has classes you possibly can take a look at with numerous merchandise. Anytime you purchase from Amazon and use my hyperlink, I earn a small fee with out it costing you something further. Thanks for getting by means of my hyperlinks!
I even have many objects linked in my Dwelling Decor web page right here on the weblog that I replace alongside the best way. Among the hyperlinks are issues in my home and they won’t be out there anymore, however I hyperlink all I can which are lively.
One other Reality of Running a blog for So Lengthy
My electronic mail record has declined over time as a substitute of rising. Folks unsubscribe and take away themselves and in order that’s additionally disheartening, however an actual a part of running a blog that I’ve to take care of. My pageviews right here proceed to say no yr after yr, so I don’t know what issues will appear like in 5 extra years. 5 years in the past, my pageviews have been double what they’re now. That’s the reality of operating an internet site and I face all of the challenges with a BIG dose of actuality. There’s a lot competitors for pageviews and though there’s room for all, individuals solely have a lot time to go round and studying blogs may not be on the prime of the record on a regular basis. I completely get that. That’s why I wish to step again and simply do that at my very own slower tempo. I can nonetheless make a pleasant earnings, however I don’t really feel the stress to attempt to develop anymore. I nonetheless see the hustle happening on the market and I don’t wish to be part of that. I’ve carried out very properly over these years and have had a lot success at running a blog well past any of my expectations and I’m so grateful for the blessings that running a blog has meant to me.
As I draw this to an in depth, thanks all once more for ALL your assist and love over time. I’m not going anyplace, however once more, I do plan to sluggish it down and meaning much less posts and extra breaks over the yr. Posts could also be extra sporadic and slower to come back. If we go on trip, I’ll not really feel the necessity to do quite a lot of posts to share after I’m gone. I simply don’t have all of it discovered but, however I really feel the necessity to take any stress off and simply be me, residing life on the tempo I really feel like going. That features social media. I nonetheless have a presence on all of the social media websites, however I don’t really feel the stress to carry out there in any respect anymore. I’ll share after I wish to and I don’t care if I develop on these in any respect both.
This recap is perhaps a bit completely different from the others, however it’s the place my coronary heart is headed for now. Thanks all once more, I might have by no means made this weblog profitable and not using a core viewers to share with and also you all make that attainable! With that being stated, convey on 2023! I’m prepared for it! And I’m able to journey and see extra of the gorgeous world that God created for us!
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