Oh Em Gee this week has been B-U-S-Y! I just wrapped up the Blog Staycation 2014 with my lovely co-hosts Julie, Jen, and Farrah. Make sure you stop by their pages and show them some love, because they truly are amazing! The Blog Staycation was an event to bring together bloggers and help them get their blogs organized as we truck into the Fall.



I had a little bit of a conflict when I realized the planned dates for the staycation was inter-twining with my vacation. I was going to be out of town for the grunt of it and I had a little panic attack trying to get everything together and ready for the launch and then the 4 days of events. (I ended up having more time when events went on then I though, which was AWESOME!)

With that being said, the most important things I learned during the Blog Staycation was time management and multi-tasking. I could plan ahead with great content AND enjoy my time away knowing everything was taken care of. This is such a great goal for me. Time management has been hard lately, and I nailed it this past week!

I connected with some great bloggers. So many creative minds in one place really got the ideas flowing. This motivated me to get my September schedule planned. A new series is in the works, which will ultimately lead to some other plans for the Fall. I also toyed around with some other ideas which I am really excited about. I couldn't have asked for a better group to explore my blogging goals with. I cannot wait to do this again soon! Please follow me on Twitter and Facebook to stay up to date on when the next event will be!

Have you ever participated in a blogger event? Did you enjoy it? What do you think about the online events? Tell me below! 

Don't forget to link up if you participated in the event! We would love to see what you accomplished!



Stayed tuned for my Maine Recap. I had a great time with some amazing photos! You can expect to see that early next week! Happy Thursday!  

   

Hello there! Welcome back to Blog Staycation 2014! Are we having fun yet? There have been some fun topics already! I know I am learning a lot! Yesterday I wrote about scheduled posts and why they are a blessing! Today I want to talk about the importance of using photos in your posts.

Bloggers come to the internet to talk about a variety of topics. Anything from experiences to DIY tutorials. With our words, we create a picture. Because we all think differently, we all create different pictures in our minds. This is where inserting a photo would be helpful. We want to create a picture of our topic, but we also want to show what it is we are talking about.

If I were going to write about a crafting project and I told you all about it, how to make it, and what it SHOULD look like at the end, do you think you could do it? You probably could. But if I added some photos, you would be able to see the finished project. You would know what it was supposed to look like at the end.

Same thing goes for an experience. Anyone can write about their experience at a concert, but would you want to read it if there were no photos to go along with the story? Humans are very visual creatures and we enjoy to see what you saw in those moments. A good writer can create that picture for you, but in certain scenarios when you are talking about something that happened, it is best to provides photos.

When deciding to use photos, it is best to use your own. You do not want to get yourself into a situation where you used someone else's work and did not give credit for it. There are sites out there that allow you to use their photos for free, but they don't always have what you want. I suggest taking your own photos and editing them from there. You are probably thinking,  "Really? I don't know how to take photos!" That's okay. It is really easy to take a basic photo for your blog.

First thing you want to do is make sure you have enough light. Natural light is best. This is why you see a lot of bloggers outside when they are using photos in their posts. The natural light will show true colors and won't make everything look yellow. If you absolutely can not go outdoors, open up your curtains and blinds and let the light come in. Turn on an overhead light and use a backdrop. You can create a backdrop easily if you are just photographing small items. Use white paper. The white paper brightens up your photos which eliminates the yellow cast you tend to get indoors.

If you are photographing yourself it is easiest if you have someone to take the photo for you, or invest in a tripod for your camera. The same rules apply here as above. Move on outdoors or come inside and stand in the natural light. See the difference below?

Left photo there was no natural light, right picture I stood in a well lit area with a white background

Once you are done creating your photo, if any editing needs to be done I recommend PicMonkey or Canva. They both offer free options that have basic options for your needs. Both programs are user friendly and help you along the way. I suggest playing with the options to get a feel of what they offer and what you want. You can change colors, add text, add icons, and the list goes on.

Now you are all set to add photos to your writing. Paint that picture and then show it to us. I hope this was helpful and it gives you an idea of why using photos are important and why good photos matter. You do not have to run out and buy a fancy camera right away. I took both photos above with my smartphone. Just play around and see what you get!

Are you using photos now? How do you take them? Do you enjoy mini photo shoots? Tell me below!


Although Blog Staycation 2014 is nearing the end, that doesn't mean you can't continue to learn new things for your blog. I hope to see you all around again! I have enjoyed sharing content with all of you!

Welcome back to another day of Blog Staycation 2014! Yesterday I talked about why it is so important to interact with your readers. Today I want to talk about how to manage a blog with a full time life. For me personally, it is REALLY hard to post everyday on top of social media to go along with it.. I work a very demanding job that keeps me in the office about 10 hours a day. However, I still manage to get my post live AND social media in all day while I am working. I do this with scheduled posts.

Scheduling your posts ahead of time does not work for everyone, but I find it to be a blessing When I get free time I sit and write all of my thoughts down. Those thoughts become my blog posts for the next week. Now that I have blogs ready to go, all I have to do is schedule them to go live on the specified day. Easy peasy!

We all know social media is a HUGE part of blogging today. We need social media to alert readers of new postings and projects, to inspire, to gain new readers, and the list goes on. If you manage a full time job, have children, other responsibilities, or just want to have a real life outside of your blog, scheduling social media posts is the way to go. It allows you to have a social media presence without having to spend all day at your computer.

Facebook now allows scheduled posts. You have to have a fan page for this option. The option is easy and before you know it all of your posts are ready to go. All you have to do is click on the clock (Diagram below) and choose your date and time. Voila! You are all set. No more sitting on Facebook all day!


There are a bunch of programs out there to help you manage Twitter. I personally have used Twuffer and Tweet Deck. I prefer Twuffer, but Tweet Deck also helps you manage all of your tweets on top of scheduled tweets. I have also heard good things about HootSuite. These programs are similar to scheduling posts on Facebook. You type in your post, pick a date and time and it saves it and schedules it. The picture below shows how to schedule a post using Twuffer.

Hi everyone! Yesterday we kicked off Blog Staycation 2014! As promised we will be bringing you  tips on getting your blog organized and ready to interact with your readers. I could find no better way to start of this event, than to talk about why it is SO important to interact with ALL of your readers.
I understand that not everyone who gets into blogging is looking for mass amounts of readers, but it would be nice to go have SOMEONE looking at your daily posts. As bloggers we need other peoples opinions on what we are writing. The content we put out is hard work. We take time out everyday to bring the best content we can to the internet for the world to see. There is no reason why we shouldn't ask for feedback and get to know our readers.

Asking for feedback is important. If you don't ask, you won't know. A few ways to do this is:

• Host a poll: Ask your readers questions about your blog. Be specific because chances are if they are willing to take your poll, they will give you honest feedback.

•  End of post questions: Ask your readers questions in relation to the post. This will strike up conversation and help your readers relate to your content, and you get to know your readers.

•  Use Social Media: Social media is a great way to connect with readers. You can ask for feedback with simple tweets like "I love reading about food, what about you?" or "I love so and so's blog, who do you read?" Questions like these will engage your readers to tell you what they like without feeling like you are being pushy. 

Talk to your readers! Interacting with your readers gives you a feel for what they like and why they read the blogs they do. Make sure you follow these tips to keep your readers coming back:

• REPLY TO COMMENTS! This is a biggie. If you aren't replying to your readers, they have no real connection to you and probably will not be back. 

• Reply to E-mail: Whether it be a simple compliment, complaint or collaboration, reply to your emails. Replying to a compliment will show you care about you readers and are excited that they are excited. Sometimes that complaint can make your blog better. More eyes on your content can see things that you may miss. Maybe a business opportunity comes up, but you are not interested, replying that you are not interested is professional rather than ignoring it. There may be something in the future you are a fit for, and they will consider you again.

• Participate in chats: Whether it be Twitter chats or Facebook chats, get involved! You get to meet other bloggers and readers this way. Host your own or participate in ones already established. Either way you are interacting and getting feedback.

Help your readers: Helping our your readers in anyway you can, will always bring those readers back. Positive actions bring positive feedback:

• Bloggers: If your reader is also a blogger, visit their blog! Leave comments! Help them the way they help you.

• Shops: Do you have a reader who has a shop? Visit the shop. Buy something if you find something you love. Give them feedback.

•  Ect: Engage in anything your readers throw at you. Maybe they are hosting a blog hop, or a link up, or even an e-mail chain. Check it out. This doesn't mean you have to get involved, but at least give it a chance. You may find something new and exciting you never would of though of on your own.

 So what do you think? Do you interact enough with your readers? Is there something on this list you need to work on? In what ways do you interact with your readers?

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you are enjoying Blog Staycation 2014! Make sure you follow along on Twitter with #blogstaycation!

Wow wow wow.. I can not believe this blog is 3 months old already! I feel like I just started yesterday and here I am 90 days in..  I have learned so much and yet I feel like I could still learn tons more.  I could spend weeks reading all the things I think I need to read to get my blog viewed, liked, followed, ect. So now that I have come this far I figured, why not join up with some wonderful ladies and help you all while helping myself. Yep you heard me right. I want to introduce you to something special. Something that came out of a normal chat with some inspired blogging ladies. Ladies (and gentleman respectively) welcome to Blog Staycation 2014!!








Trish, Julie, Jenn & Farrah

It is Monday again. I feel like I just came off a weekend course for blogging. I took all that I did this weekend and realized how important it was for the writing if my blog. Noticing all the little things around me and the events I attended helped create a vision to where I am going with my writing. Here's a little recap to what inspired and educated me...



Friday night was the first night I had completely free in what seems like months. I reflected a lot on "me" time which ultimately turned into "blog" time. When I started this blog it was only planned to be an escape. A place for my voice. It didn't matter if anyone was listening. I just wanted to write. I have never been a great writer. I had started journal after journal with no real direction. I would open a journal and notice my last entry was a year prior. Awesome. I had no memories jotted down to relive. I had no ambition to write.

Friday night I re-read all of my previous posts. (There are 48 by the way). It amazed me that I have dedicated myself to this blog. I have started to freeze memories in time, where not only myself, but you as my reader can see. This makes me proud. I have succeed in breaking down a wall and letting my voice be heard. I also noticed my writing getting better. It has more direction. This little realization makes me feel so many emotions. Happy. Excited. Hopeful. All positive thoughts.

I never thought I had anything good to write about. I attended my nephew's 2nd birthday party on Saturday. A day trip back home to spend with loved ones. This reminded me that as long as I get out and experience life, I will have something to write about. It inspired me to keep on pushing towards getting better. Keep challenging myself. The words will follow.

I spent a good portion of Sunday reading blog after blog. Educating myself on what works and what doesn't. I was exhausted and honestly blogged out. Everyone has a way, or a tip on what you should or shouldn't be doing. I took a break from reading to go to an outdoor play of Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost. Watching this comedy written by a man hundreds of years ago make me think. He had a grip on writing epic plays long before we had tips on how to write a great blog.

So what would Shakespeare do? I think he would write his little heart out without tips and see where he goes. That's what I concluded with this weekend's lesson. Do what feels right for me and just keep writing. I will keep living life so I can write a out it. Bring more to my to my tiny corner of the internet. Now if you got through all of this and are still with me, thank you.

Happy Monday!

Monday already? How does that happen? Even with a 3 day weekend thrown in there, Monday always seems to creep up WAY to quick! Not only is it Monday, but it's a summer Monday. What do I mean, you ask? It means you probably ran ragged all weekend long, got no real relaxation in, and now it's Monday and you are right back into the grind. I don't know about you, but that equation is just all out exhausting!

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE summer and all that it brings. I would not trade in the nice weather, summer parties, or drinks on the balcony for anything... However it's the fact that in today's world we try to fit in every event, every vacation, every anything else that needs to be done into 3 months! That's roughly 12 weekends we try to jam pack with anything and everything so we don't miss anything. We then grumble back to work every Monday complaining how tired we are only to put in another 8 to 10 hours in at the office. Does that sound like fun to anyone? Anyone? Didn't think so.



One of the best plans I have come up with in order to help cut down on all of the craziness that is summer weekends is to plan at least 1 weekend a month where you stay home and take some "me" time. If you have a family plan a family "us" time. Follow these simple tips and you are on your way to a little less stressful summer..

•  Make a list and prioritize it. Include 3 categories. High, Medium, and Low. Add all of the things you want/have to do in the summer. Separate them into the 3 categories.

• Keep a calender. Look at the list you just compiled and add all of the high priority items first. These normally include things such as vacations, weddings, and family events (birthdays, graduations, ect).

•  Once you have all of your high priority dates listed out in front of you, it gives a better idea on what the rest of your summer looks like.

• Take all of the medium priority items and add them into the calendar. These items are normally events like fairs, sports events, and kids events. 

• Now that you have all of the important dates on the calendar you should look at your weekends and see whats open. Pick 1 weekend from each month to use as your "me" or "us" time.

•  If all of your weekends are not totally full at this point it leaves room to add items. These are events that may not yet have a firm date, annual things you attend every summer if you get the time, or things you really want to do but isn't a priority. 

• One of the most important tips I can offer is to learn to say no. You are not obligated to attend every single event that comes your way. You can politely decline if you feel like it is going to be to much. Summer is a time for fun but you also don't want to burn yourself out.

Now even if you cannot commit to taking a full weekend off each month, try for a Sunday. This way you can commit to an event on Saturday and still have one day to relax and recharge. Do what you have to do to give yourself some time away from all of the craziness that is summer time!

What do you think? Do you run ragged every summer only to wish you had slowed down just a bit? How do you balance it all? Leave your answers in the comments! Happy Monday!!

Okay I do have my tickets, but I think bringing whiskey would be frowned upon and I already have some sweet company. Oh, and yeah, I am leaving tomorrow. Where you ask? Why I'm glad you asked! I have been keeping a secret from the world, and I am so excited to finally tell you! I am boarding a plane and heading down to the deep south to visit my best friend from kindergarten! We attended school together in the *gasp* 80's and reunited for a few days in the late 90's and its now been about 18 years since we have last seen each other. Thankfully the internet and social media reunited us again a few years ago and now I am finally getting to meet up with her and meet her family!

I now have an opportunity to show off my awesome travel tips. You see the first time I stepped onto an airplane by myself as an adult (I was 21) it just happened to be when all of those fun rules went into effect. You know the ones about liquids and little baggies and all that jazz? I have traveled a lot since then and have picked up some tips to get you in and out quickly. The tips I am sharing today will help you save money and time when traveling.

• Checking bags aren't cheap these days kids, so if you can cram all your stuff into a carry on you will be golden. You are allowed one carry on (Up to 45 in/115 cm (14 x 9 x 22 in or 36 x 23 x 56 cm) and one personal item such as a purse or laptop bag. Ladies you can pack a lot in there if you follow the tips below. 

This is the largest you can go with a carry on. I fit it all in for my 4 day trip!

• Get familiar with where you are going and what you are planning to do. I always start checking the weather 3 days before traveling to pack the appropriate items. This will keep your clothing options limited and won't cram up your bag with unnecessary items.
• Pack clothes that can be mixed and matched. This will allow you to make multiple outfits so you can save room in your luggage. This will save you lots of space in that carry on for souvenirs and other random things you may pick up.
• Make sure you have all of your liquids in the notorious plastic baggy so you're ready. This gets you through security so much faster if you are prepared.

Worse picture ever.. but it is my baggy. I crammed everything into that baby!

• Leave anything at home that you are unsure of. If you are nervous about something or really unsure, either look it up or just leave it at home. It will save you the frustration later.
• Wear shoes that can easily be slipped off. You will be required to take them off. They don't care if you are wearing boots that are laced up to your knees. They must come off. 
• Dress comfortable. This is not a fashion show ladies and gents. You will be shuffled from place to place and then forced to sit next so someone for the duration of your trip. Even if you are in first class, it is still close quarters and being uncomfortable is never fun.

Okay, now that we are packed like a champ, avoided frustrations in security, and saved lots of money on luggage fees, we can enjoy our trip! I am off on my adventure! See you all back here on Wednesday!

In the mean time I have some awesome guest bloggers coming your way Monday and Tuesday. On Monday you can expect some fitness humor from Christine over at The So-Called Homemaker and Tuesday, Stephanie from The Life of a Mother and Teacher will be talking about why she blogs.
I hope you enjoy what they have in store for you!

Follow me on Instagram to follow along with my adventure :)