Happy Birthday little blog! Time has passed so slowly and so quickly at the same time over the past year. In the life of a go-get-it type of person, patience is sometimes rare, and I have had my moments of wanting to give up this past year. I can’t thank YOU, yes you reading right now, enough for any and every time you stopped by this website over the year. Thank you! There’s a giveaway at the end of this big ol’ post to thank you a little more! 🙂
Lessons learned:
Photos are important. If you look back at some of my old posts, even a couple months ago, the photos are tiny and AWFUL. I am pretty proud of the improvement in my photos, even if a lot of times it is just because of chance and fiddling with the camera settings!
Every blog has its own voice. I don’t need to try to write like or live like or eat like anyone else. The more a blogger realizes this, the more he or she shines, and seriously, the more fun blogging becomes. It is a hobby for most of us, after all, though I would certainly take a blogging job!
Likewise, feeling jealous or competitive in the blog world is frustrating and pointless. It saps your own energy and takes away your voice a little bit. It may at times be hard to feel as though you are working hard at what you do and seeing other people get opportunities you would love to have, but it is all about patience, consistency and content. Keep readers coming back by writing what you love.
Community is key. I have had so many great opportunities to meet and get to know other bloggers. Events such as the Healthy Living Summit, the Foodbuzz Festival, the Healthworks Blogger Bash, the Austrian Wine Tasting, lunch with the Stonyfield CE-Yo or just running get togethers have really given me the opportunity to network, make new friends, share frustrations, and find great new blogs. It’s actually pretty crazy how many bloggers I have met in real life! I also have loved having the opportunity to “meet” bloggers through my Friday Foodie Feature. . . and I need Foodies to feature for upcoming Fridays! Please email me if you would like to be featured!
Over the past year, I have also observed lots of blogger trends. As I kind of jump back and forth between being a healthy living blogger,a foodie blogger, and a wine blogger, I have to say that the most trends came from the healthy living world. On one hand, it’s great to learn about so many new foods/exercises, but on the other, it’s kind of interesting to see how much “jumping on the bandwagon” there is. And I am totally guilty of doing it too! As long as it’s a healthy bandwagon, I say get on board.
Trends I have adopted:
- Green smoothies – all the way! I swear by these and their contribution to my overall health,energy levels, hair, skin and nails. I am drinking one right now: kale, blueberries, almond milk, banana, ginger, maca powder
- Amazing Grass: I was a convert after my first taste. I KNOW that no matter how hard I try, I am missing things in my diet. Trader Joe’s Super Red Drink Powder is a very close second to Amazing Grass now in my diet.
- Almond butter: I prefer to it peanut butter, but I think I have overdosed on this delicious stuff.
- More natural, organic food. I did this before, but the year of blogging and lots of blog reading has REALLY got me looking at where my food comes from. Everybody wins!
Trends I never really got:
- Smoothie in a Bowl (SIAB) and Oats in a Jar (OIAJ): never really saw the excitement of either!
- Jillian Michaels: I just can’t watch her videos, I just can’t.
What trends have you adopted from the blogging world, and what trends have you bypassed? I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic!
And now for the giveaway! I have worked with so many great companies over the year that have generously allowed me to do giveaways: Honest Tea, Good Health Natural Products, Blue Diamond, The Olive Press, Cabot, Equal Exchange, and Olivia’s Organics to name a few.
This one is from me to you: one lucky reader will win wine and cheese, a $25 gift card to wine.com and a $25 gift card to Cabot. It will, as always, be a random drawing which will take place this Saturday, June 5.
To enter:
1) Leave a comment on your favorite and/or least favorite blog trend!
2) If you have a blog link back to this giveaway.
3) If you are on Twitter or Facebook, give it a shout out.
Good luck, and thanks again for reading!
