It's that time again.. time to see what I did and did not accomplish in August for goals and what to expect as goals for September. Let me take you back..

I planned to use August as a month of forgiveness and letting things go. That didn't happen as much as I anticipated, but that doesn't mean I haven't put some stuff into place for next month to make it better.

I set a goal to sponsor 3 blogs. I didn't exactly do that. I have been hanging out over on Anne's sidebar this month and will be gracing Christine's in a few weeks. I suppose 2 out 3 ain't bad right? I will strive for more in the Fall for sure!

I vowed to pin more.. well that kinda sorta happened cause ya'll I got engaged!  (see what I did there?) I need to start pinning all those amazing wedding ideas right?  Are you following me on Pinterest by the way? If not, why not?!

I talked about my upcoming series.. Which is still in the works as well as a new series so I'd say I nailed this one. Stay tuned this fall for some fun new series and collaborations!

Last but certainly not least I was going to use my media kit more often. I am happy to say even though I did not use it as much as I anticipated to, I did have a an opportunity come my way because of it. So I'd say that is a win as well.

Now lets take a look at what September has in store..

First and foremost the Blog Staycation is back for the Fall! If you are unfamiliar with the staycation; it is a 4 day online blogging event that helps connect you with the blogging community as well as helps you to grow your blog. This will be our third event and it has been a success each time! Go check out the announcement page and get all the deets!  Go now!

To start off September, I always set a theme to go along with my Happiness Project. This is part of my personal growth goals which I feel are just as important as monthly goals. This month I have chosen self improvement as my theme. Because last month I failed at my forgiveness goal, I want to continue to work to get past some of those hard things and let them all go. I want to start September with a clean slate to enjoy the magic that Fall brings. Now onto my monthly goals:

• Start a journal. If you read my blog on Friday you would see I talked about starting to journal. Not only for self improvement but to also improve my writing. I would need an interactive journal as I would not be able to commit myself to a blank journal. I am planning once I receive the journal to spend some time with it each night, helping me focus on writing more down. Wish me luck!

•  Next up is collaboration. I really would like to collaborate more in the blogging community and pull myself out of the slump I feel like I have been in. I have a really great idea for October and would love to share it with 2 or 3 others for lots of blog love! If you're interested in collaborating please shoot me an e-mail!

• Continue to use Pinterest and grow my following. I am starting to pin more with the upcoming wedding whirlwind so I am hoping I will pin more this Fall as a whole. If you  have any tips please send them my way!

•  Reach 10,000 monthly page views. I know this one seems very hard but I am SO close I can taste it! I suppose if I had did more with getting myself our there and sponsoring more blogs I could have already achieved that. Minor details right?

• Blog planning. I think this seems to be my biggest problem lately with getting quality stuff posted. I always feel like I am rushing to get stuff done once my work day ends. If I could sit down 1 or 2 nights a week and plan better I think I could completely cut down the frantic moments I have in the evenings before I plan to post something. We shall see. 

So there you have it. I have a lot of my plate for September but I'll be damned if I don't make it work. I hope you all have a wonderful Monday!

Writing has never come naturally to me. I have never considered myself a writer. I know; shocking considering I write a blog regularly. I am one of those people who has really great ideas and I can picture it all in my head. Every last word right there in my mind. I sit down to write, and bam! it's gone. I remember the concept and what it was I wanted to talk about, but it never sounds quite like I remembered it in my thoughts. Does that ever happen to any of you?

Recently I have had the urge to pursue writing in a different way. I have noticed lately my emotions play a lot into my writing. When I am upset or angry about something in my life, the words keep flowing smoothly from my mind onto the paper. I read it when I am done and I am proud of what I wrote. My words flirt with the paper as they create a great piece. Something I can call my own and not feel inadequate about calling myself a writer. 

Because I am trying to pursue writing in a different way, I have been looking at different journals and options to keep my thoughts flowing. I am not really interested in a blank journal as I am not great at writing daily. I am looking more at interaction journals. Things that will inspire me to participate in writing daily. Not only will it encourage me to write more, it will give me ideas of what I should be doing. I have been looking at thinks like The Wreck It Journal or Live Out Loud. Both of these books are by Keri Smith. I really love the concept of these books and I think they would both be very therapeutic for me.

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Happy Friday!