I started blogging in October of 2008. I'd been out of school for 9 months and I was trying to find something to fill the time I had previously spent on homework. My aunt suggested blogging and so I started posting stuff. It wasn't that interesting but it was a start.
Around the same time my mom was working at a job she didn't particularly like. She would spend her breaks reading blogs. I made sure that I posted things so she could have something to read. So at first I was just blogging for me and my mom.
Then family members started to tell me that they enjoyed reading my blog. That encouraged me to keep posting.
My blog became my journal. I loved posting things about my life because not only could I write about what I did, but I could add pictures! I was always thinking about what I could write on my blog.
And then I got pregnant - with twins - who survived what I thought was a miscarriage. I couldn't have planned a better way to attract blog readers. During our stay in the hospital this blog averaged over 100 page views a day.
After we came home to our internet-less apartment people started telling me that they missed my blog. I missed my blog too. It was a wonderful day when Brandon first watched the girls and let me go to the library with the laptop.
We thought about getting the internet at home, but I prefer to leave and focus on my blog without the girls. I type up the posts at home and then upload them while I am at the library. I even figured out (by accident) how to schedule posts so they can post on different days.
I use blogging to motivate me to do things. I've always wanted to write down my girls camp and youth conference stories. I never could write them because I felt they had to be written perfectly. Committing to post them once a week on my blog has helped me write them. It's okay if they aren't perfect as long as they are posted on time.
I also try to do a project a week so I can have something to post. This helps keep me busy at home, and is helping me rediscover my hobbies.
Right now blogging is my way of feeling like I am connected to the world. I'm so glad that I have this place to share my life. And thanks to all of you who read this blog. The Stats tab on my blog has become one of my favorite places to visit.
I always feel more like blogging after visiting with my family because I realize how much it keeps us connected. I started blogging as a way to record our family life for our kids, and for me...so I wouldn't forget, but having family and friends tell me that they actually read it keeps me motivated. I loved your post about your day with the girls. I remember recording a 24 hour period when Maddie was a baby, just so that I could figure out if she had a "rhythm". It turns out that she didn't, but it did help me to realize why I was always so tired. You are doing such a great job Valerie, you inspire me.
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