Monday 14 October 2013

The First Time

There are first times for everything, I guess, and a year ago today I wrote my very first blog post. I'd been an avid blog reader, lurker and follower for a few years before taking the plunge and starting my own and I'm so glad I did. I'm not sure that anyone, other than my family or close friends, read that first post or many of those that followed, but the process of thinking, writing and recording my thoughts is an enjoyable and strangely therapeutic one.  Now my blog is a year old today I thought I'd share with you what I've learned about blogging (probably a short post then!)

Blog names and Post Titles are Important
If you want someone to read something think carefully about how to draw them in. I rest my case with this post's title - 'The First Time' - which might just make someone curious enough to read on!
I chose Little House in The Borders as a nod to, yes you've guessed it, Little House on the Prairie. That whole series of books are favourites of mine and my childhood daydreams and imaginary games often had me as Laura Ingalls, bravely exploring the frontier of our back garden.  Consequently, I've found that many of my regular readers tend to like them too. I'm drawn to funny blog names often suggesting an honest appraisal of family life hence Hello Wall, 3 Children and It and Slugs on the Refrigerator are regular reads.

Visiting and Linking are Fun
I always feel that if someone has taken the time to read and comment on one of my posts that I should do the same. Receiving a lovely comment really makes my day and I like to read comments on other blogs too. I've found that if I like what a commenter has to say then I'll often like their blog too. 
Linkys are fun and I've discovered so many other lovely blogs that I have to discipline myself to how much time I spend online. I'm not much of a crafter or a cook but I am a great admirer of those who create such beautiful and delicious things. Haggiz and The One Handed Cook are frequently visited and Rusty Duck makes me determined to untangle our wilderness of a garden.  


Blogging is an Enriching Experience
I haven't learnt very much at all about the technical side of blogging. I have yet to work out how to add a button for Instagram or Pinterest (other guilty pleasures of mine).  I also have no real knowledge of how to increase readership; my followers are few and once I've discounted the spam robots my statistics make for dismal reading! 

What I have learned though is something just as valuable to me and that's the fact that blogging makes you truly thankful for what you have.  Sometimes my posts are more of a rant, sometimes about trivial things I find amusing, but very often, I blog about things I want to cherish and remember. Blogging has a way of making you mindful and reflective about the good things in your real world. Whilst it's easy to look at other shinier blogs with images of a seemingly perfect family and imagine that your life somehow falls short, I feel certain that there are less salubrious aspects that are simply hidden on these blogs and not shared with the online audience.  There may be things I would like to change about my life but a quick scan through previous posts and images reveals the many things I hold dear and wouldn't change, not for a minute. 




23 comments:

  1. Happy 1st blogging birthday Helen, I didn't realise you started a couple of months before me, I thought you were an old hand. Thanks for the mention... made my day, truly. I love reading your blog and think of you as one of my 'blog friends' after our little comments to one another over the last year. Here's to the next year! Julie x

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    1. Thank you Julie. I think of you just the same way and there's been many a time when your kind comments have cheered me no end. Helen x

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  2. Couldn't agree more with pretty much everything you have said here! I love my blog for helping me remember all the truly wonderful things we have anddo, and, yes, I'm sure even the shiniest blog has some less shiny unseen sides too. Here's to the next year. Juliex

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    1. Thanks Julie. Looking forward to following your blogging adventures. Helen

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  3. Congratulations!! Happy 1st blog birthday!!

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  4. Congratulations! I didn't realise your blog was so 'young' either... you write like a pro! Thank you for the link. I'd live with the wilderness of a garden if I could gaze out at your wonderful view.

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    1. Thank you for your very sweet comment. I tend to keep my back to the garden and eyes on the view!

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  5. Happy Birthday little blog! Thanks so much for the mention :) I had no idea you were only a year and I'm very surprised you don't have many followers..... X

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  6. Congratulations on your first year! I love your
    blog, even if I don't get to read it every time! Keep it coming!

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    1. Thank you Charlene. You were the first person to comment on my blog via Facebook and your words were such an encouragement x

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  7. Congratulations on your 1st Birthday! ;D
    I fully agree with all you have written and I couldn't have put it better myself!

    I'm so glad that my daughter persuaded me to have a go...(I hadn't even heard the word 'blog') and once I started I've never looked back :D

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    1. I'm very glad your daughter persuaded you to start a blog too. I'm really glad to have discovered it - your blog is such a good read. Helen

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  8. With you on the spam robots... Grrr... They are annoying! Absolutely agree that blogging is an enriching experience. I've been blogging 5 years now and loving it more and more! :-)

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    1. Thanks Claire. I'm impressed with the 5 years of blogging!

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  9. A celebration of a year, I'm glad I found your blog!

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    1. Thank you! I love reading about The Savages! I could and should have included a whole extra paragraph about favourite blogs 'across the pond'. It's always so interesting to see and read about family life in the US - perhaps that's material for a whole other post. Helen

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  10. Congrats on your 1st year of blogging. Cheers to the net year ahead!

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  11. I am so honoured to be listed as one of your frequently visited blogs! I mean it - it means such a lot to know people like what I photograph and write. I am completely untechnical, but have learnt to not feel inadequate and just get on with what I enjoy doing. Authenticity is key. Keep on bloggin' lady! xx

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  12. Hello! I stumbled across your blog a few months ago, and I love popping in on Saturday mornings to scroll through your beautiful pictures and writings. Keep up the good work!
    Fellow blog reader from Washington state,
    Bekah

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    1. Thank you for your kind words - it's lovely to know I have a visitor from 'across the pond' :)

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