All about Meme: Blog Edition

My new bloggy friend OHMommy tagged me for my very first meme! I see these things flying around all the time, so I am very excited to finally get in on the fun!

So here goes my first attempt at this blogging phenomenon:

How long have you been blogging?

I started blogging in November 2006. Wow, I can't believe it's been that long already!

What inspired you to start a blog and who are your mentors?

I started a blog to be more connected to my friends and family. I had recently moved away from the HMIMs and was so sad that I wasn't going to see these gals and their children, whom I had watched grow, on a daily basis. And I was hoping they were going to miss me and my girls too! And with my family scattered all over the country I wanted there to be a place for them to "see" the girls and hear their stories. I'm not so good with the mailing pictures and phone call thing!

My sweet friend Shana got me started on this blog journey. I would constantly ask her how to do this and how to do that. Really, I am not very computer smart at all! It wasn't that long ago that I actually learned the joys of copying and pasting, wow does that save a lot of time! And my dear friend Narci would make my headers for me, often. Because I get bored very easily. And as much as I WANT to learn Photoshop and excel in fantastic photo creations, I'm not done reading the For Dummies book.

Are you trying to make money online, or just doing it for fun?

Purely for fun. I don't know how people make money. I hear about those whopping 30 cent checks other bloggers get, woo hoo. I know there are some big names out there rolling in the dough, and I honestly don't know how they do it.

I did try the ads, for about a day. I didn't like how they looked on my blog. I like to keep my blog neat and orderly, it's the one place where I can accomplish that. Because my house is sure a long, long way from neat and orderly!

What 3 things do you love about being online?

Old Friends: I love being connected to my friends and loved ones, even though we are all scattered now. I love that I get to see when a friend's child has lost a tooth. Or see someone's vacation pictures. Or just read about the wacky things that happen to them in their day to day lives. And I love that I get to share these same things with them. Phone calls are not an easy thing with four children. So I tell my stories here. And through commenting on their sites and them commenting on mine, we get the stories of our lives. And blogging has definitely deepened my connections with some people. With my friend Jodi, we didn't spend all that much time together, but through our blogs I adore the friendship we have made! Which carries over to emails, and her quite often being a voice of reason for me or giving me great advice or sharing inappropriate humor. I am so sad that we didn't have that time together in McKinney, but so thankful for her now!

New Friends: I love all the new "friends" that I have made! Who knew there were so many amazing people out there? Sometimes I think is there something wrong with me that I go and "peek" in on random people's lives. But if you know me, you know I am quite a reality TV junkie and this is so much better! It's so strange to have things in common with random strangers and I feel compelled to let them know that yeah it took me a while to get back into my jeans after baby too or that my kid does that same exact thing or that I went on vacation there and you really must eat at this place. And then they come and visit me and share their stories here. It's AMAZING, this community! And there are several moms I have met that I wished lived nearby so we could drink wine and have playdates! OHMommy being one. I wish I had "met" her before my family moved from Ohio and I endured all those road trips from h-e-double hockey sticks.

Saving Money: No, really. Now instead of shopping Pottery Barn or Gap or lord knows what other online retail sites, I read blogs. And before whenever I was bored at home, I needed to GET OUT! Usually to the closest Target or Barnes and Noble. But now there is an insane amount of entertainment to be found online. No, not that kind... So if the kids are happy for a bit, I'll sneak over to the computer and catch up on what you all are doing.

What 3 things do you struggle with online?

Being entertaining: I love telling stories. I think my day to day life is quite amusing, I have to, it's what I got. I think my children are the cat's meow. I like to share these things. I sometimes sit and wonder, well how do I tell that story without it being completely boring. And I don't always succeed. But then this isn't an entertainment site, it's a site about me and my family and our day to day lives, and it's not always funny or glamorous. But it's us.

Technology: Like Photoshop, I look at other people's sites and photos and fun creations and think damn, why can't I do that? And I know I can, one day. I really am quite intimidated by the computer, by technology in general and learning new programs is pretty overwhelming. It took me YEARS to finally get a digital camera, and even then it was a gift. I am definitely the one you are all honking at in the slow lane of the superinformation highway. HTML? Like speaking Greek to me! Well maybe not Greek, I do know a bit of that language. Like speaking German. It's insane all those things out there. And all those fun little things that others have on their sites, that I would love to put on mine, not a clue!!

Alchemy: Totally unrelated but have you played this game? If not, I don't recommend you try it. I am totally addicted. And totally pissed off that I can't get past Level 9. Oh, I can get to Level 9 with one square left to fill, and can never fill it. It has to be my biggest online frustration, EVER!

Alright that's it. Now with these meme things you are supposed to tag others and get them to play along. I'm going to start off slow...

Sassy because she loves blogging as much as I do.
Traci because I really just can't read about your dog's poop anymore, it's time for a new post!