Find Me Here:

I am super busy in the details of this weekend's conference but I did want to pop in and let you all know that yesterday I was at Blessed Is She with the devotional. Here's a glimpse at it:

Today’s Gospel shares a good litmus test for prophets and, I think, friends.

What does a friendship bearing good fruit look like? Well, it should be rich with the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. (Gal 5:22)

Love: Are our friends willing and able to hope all things and endure all things for our sake, and are we willing and able to do the same? (1 Cor 13:7) Do we want the best for each other, and help one another find God’s will in our lives?

You can read the rest here.


Then today I am guest posting at my dear friend Katie's blog, Look to Him and Be Radiant. She is running a week-long series on why it's important to make things beautiful and she asked me to write about why I decorate my home for holidays and holy days. Here's a snippet:

Why do I do it? For three reasons. First, because decorations are a simple way that I can bring the rhythm of the Church's liturgical year into our home. This is helpful for me as a mom - the decorations add an extra emphasis on what we are celebrating or why we are fasting. They are a sort of visual aid for my children as I teach them about saints, Jesus' love for us, doctrines of our faith, and the culture of our catholic Catholic church. But really it's not just for the kids - even as a 34 year old woman I find it much easier to enter into the liturgical seasons, the feasting and the fasting, if I am reminded of them by my surroundings.

You can read the rest here.


This weekend I'll be on Instagram taking pictures of the conference - which you can follow with the hashtag #findingyourfiatconference. I may even pop in on Facebook and share some live videos.

A Little Post About Little Blogs

Perhaps I am clinging on to a dying breed. But I like it and one day maybe it'll be on trend again like knitting or newsboys caps, which pop up again and again.

I'm talking blogging. 

Every once in awhile a blogger will write a State of the Blog type post and... they really don't mean anything to me. Now of course those bloggers are writing those things because writing helps them think and so it's good that they are putting the words on paper, so to speak. But what I mean is that I don't get worried about if blogging is a dying thing. I will read their post and think, 

"If you need a break - take a break - live your life. It will be good." 

or

"If you don't really like blogging, it's okay to stop blogging. It will be good."

or 

"If you are maxed out then reel it in, stop trying to keep up, and get back to why you fell in love with blogging in the first place, be it the journaling, the community, the photo dumps, or because deep down you always wanted to be an essayist. It will be good."

or 

"If you love your little blog with its little following and your little creative space where you can come and go as needed then keep going. It will be good."

I'll be honest, those little blogs are my favorite. Of course there are a few blogs with larger followings (I'm talking 5k or more FB followers) that I still read but mostly I am drawn to the smaller blogs. The ones that are pretty and crisp looking but still honest and vulnerable and fun. They are just as likely to share a burden with their readers as they are a favorite recipe or pictures of a fun party. They feel like... friends. Some of them write things I agree with, some of them don't. Some of them carry very similar crosses as mine and some of them don't. All of them are pursuing Christ and I have found that their companionship has helped me in my pursuit for which I am very grateful.

One of those little blogs has a new home and a new name and I wanted to share it with you because I'm still on "maternity leave" but mostly because Ashley is just wonderful. 

Really. She is. 

Five years ago, when we were still figuring out just who and how James would be Ashley had enough courage and compassion and charity to tell me the truth: James might not be okay. There might not be a miracle. Having a family member with severe disabilities would be hard. Her words meant a lot to me; in fact they still do. I am still grateful that God sent a person to acknowledge my fears and that she was able to speak to me in the exact language that would impact me as needed. I know that's probably weird but it was a blessing and I have followed Ashley ever since. 

So if you're looking for that kind of blogger - someone who is brave and kind, someone who can be fun and funny and honest - Ashley and This Good Life are exactly who and what you're looking for. 

And if you want to find more possibly-new-to-you blogs to love and follow, well, I'll be hosting the Sheenazing Blogger Awards again this year once maternity leave is over. 

Related Posts: 

You're Not a Big Deal and That's Okay

Blogging About Blogging

And I'm fairly active on Facebook and Instagram if you ever want to say "hi" and follow my micro-blogging. :)

Photo by Glen Carrie

Confessions of a Bad Blogger

So who knew that writing about being poor would be such a popular topic?!

I was surprised by and grateful for all the kind, supportive words and I was impressed with all the great questions that came in the comboxes.

And when the series was over, I confess I knew that I should post some great follow up. I should have kept that momentum going with a wonderful Welcome to all my new readers, or some insightful further comments from the series, or I don't know, just a killer post.

But instead I took naps, baked mini apple pies, tidied the house, spent Friday night with some friends from my parish, attended a wedding, and went on a special outing with my kids, mom, and mother-in-law. I didn't take a bunch of pictures to edit and share on the blog. I didn't Instagram it all. I didn't write another post. The reason is because I'm a bad blogger, but I'm getting really good at living.

I'm not commenting on others' blogs or lives of course, but it is funny because I run a side business helping other bloggers grow their readership, make their goals, and better utilize social media. Basically, as a blogger myself I do exactly what I tell them to do and follow none of the advice they are usually looking for.
`
What I tell them to do is to blog so they enjoy it, otherwise they will grow to hate it. Blogging for me has always been a hobby. It's a nice way to communicate my thoughts and likes and family memories. Growing a blog, increasing hits, and gaining new readers and a significant income comes down to two things: a lot of work and at least a little bit of luck. I don't want to do all that work, I just want to write when I'm in the mood to write.

The minute blogging stops being fun and starts being work is when bloggers feel stressed and burnt out, it's why so many walk away from blogging. Now there are a lucky few who happen to love the work of blogging so for them it continues to be life-giving, but that wouldn't be me.

So I guess I want you to know that about me: by many standards I'm a Bad Blogger because I don't always make shareable graphics, I don't post on a regular basis, and I'm not writing "click bait" titles. But by my standards I'm a Great Blogger because I've been doing this for eight years and I still enjoy it. I don't get caught up in the stats and I don't sweat it if I walk away for a bit so I can focus on life.

It's a lesson I had to learn over those eight years, and my blogging is definitely different than it used to be. For example, I used to share lots of pictures of the kids but not any more. About a year ago I had this realization that while many of my regular readers do care about my family there are plenty of people who pop over here because of Sheen's cause who don't really care at all about my family. They are consuming a story and then they move on. I don't want them knowing all the details about my kids, so I shut down the blog for a bit (having a bit of a freak out moment), and when I came back I stopped using their real names and started only sharing pictures of their faces that are blurry or partial.

Again, it's not a comment on any other blogger or how they do things, it was just what I needed to do. And I thought you should probably know that, too.

So I guess this is that follow up post I knew I needed to write. It's not a killer one, but it's one I wanted to write - a little chat about blogging.

Thanks for reading, guys. Thanks for showing up again and again and for being a part of my community. You're the best.

a blogging conference re-cap

One day a few months back my friend Oliva asked a question about blogging conferences. The wall of the Facebook group filled with responses, starting a long thread of a conversation. Women mentioned the conferences they had attended in the past and ones they hoped to attend in the future. They discussed what they had liked about the conferences they'd been to and what they found lacking. Cost, speakers, faith-based or not, break out sessions, meeting other bloggers face-to-face - we chatted about all of it and it was really interesting. 

And then someone mentioned that what they really wanted from a blogging conference was something small, intimate, 20-maybe-30 women. Laid back, low key. No swag bags, nothing fancy, and a nice, low, affordable cost. Fun but informative, with plenty of opportunity to chat with and learn from one another. Sandwiches for lunch, spiked coffee as pick-me-up in the afternoon. Being surrounded by women who blogged and were Catholic and didn't think there was anything weird but everything wonderful about both those things. 

Funny enough, there were a lot of women who wanted the same thing and by the end of the day Olivia's question had produced several regional blogging conferences for Catholic women. 

Last weekend was the first one, held at Notre Dame University, and filled with women from Iowa, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.

It was great. So, so great. 

Katrina from Cedars and Tiny Flowers did most of the heavy lifting for the event, with a little help from Ana at Time Flies When You're Having Babies and the aforementioned Oliva from To the Heights. So mad props to them!

I was supposed to emcee the day, didn't realized there was a time zone change, and walked in 30 minutes late instead of 20 minutes early. oops. 

We began with a prayer and then Rhonda took it from there, sharing lots of great graphic design tips.

 And then we all lined up for lunch, chatting and looking fabulous the whole way.

 A friend of Katrina's offered to decorate for us and her touches of beauty and Spring were so appreciated!

My new pink shoes photobombed the spread.

One of the ways we kept costs low was asking ladies to sign up to bring a dish. Costco provided the salads and sandwiches and then sweets, fruits, and hummus all came from the attendees.

It was so cool meeting all these women whose blogs I read. What a thrill.

Lots of group photos and selfies were taken, of course. You can find the selfies under #CWBNIndiana.

We also had a real life photographer with us that day - she signed up to attend and then we asked her if she'd be willing to take head shots for any interested women. Giedre was fabulous to work with (and I looooved her style! Oh goodness she was so hip and sweet.)

There was plenty of time for chatting and sharing ideas and encouragement with one another. 

And it was a really special treat for me to look around a room and think, "I read her blog, and her blog, and her blog, and her blog." All those women who usually live in my computer were right in front of me!

I was even able to rope two of my friends to come along with me for the day. I don't have a picture of Katie, but Nancy is the one on the right in the picture below. Everyone was gushing about Nancy - how sweet and wise she is - and Katie and I were like, "I know. She's our friend." Instant status boost. ;)

After lunch Nell from Whole Family Parenting did a great presentation on social media and building relationships with brands. She nailed it and did a great job talking about the importance of supporting one another as bloggers.

There were also lots of babies and random diaper changes. And I loved it. I loved that there were women who were pregnant, others who were nursing, others who are hoping to conceive, and others who were single. All these women, coming together not as mothers, but as women, with no judgement, only love.

When Nell was done with her talk Kathryn from Through a Glass Brightly presented, challenging us to baptize the secular in our writing. She was funny and intelligent and did a fabulous job.

Then we chatted. We sat and shared. We talked about why we blog and the focus of our blog. Some of us went back to the classroom and gave one another feedback on our blogs.

We closed in prayer and then most of us headed off for dinner out on the town.

On our way off campus Katie, Nancy, and I made a couple of stops to admire Notre Dame's beauty...

And to prat at the grotto.

It was such a great day, and if you were one of the women who attended: thank you! It was such a joy being with "my people"! I want you all to know (if you all even read this, who knows) that you doing your thing and being so authentically YOU is so inspiring to me. Your writing, crafting, blogging is making a difference. Thank you!

Back row, left to right: Amelia: One Catholic Mama, Annie: Annery at Home, Nell: Whole Family Parenting, Michelle: My Domestic Monastery, Katie: Look to Him and Be Radiant, Elizabeth: Copper Top Kitchen, Kathryn: Through a Glass Brightly, Katie: Sugar Salt Straw, Katrina: Cedars and Tiny Flowers, Melanie: Virtue and Veuve, Jacqui: Mexican Domestic Goddess, Nancy: Reading Catholic, Mary: Couch of Red, Cat: Cartwheels and Windmills

Kneeling, left to right: Ana: Time Flies When You're Having Babies, Sarah: Fumbling Toward Grace, Cammie: A Woman's Place, Me!, Amy: Motherhood & Miscellany, Anna: The Heart's Overflow, Theresa: Little House in Chicago, Caitlyn: Harvesting Home, Rhonda: Real Housekeeping, Giedre: Walking Dot Photography

A new look and good friends

What do you think of the new look? No disrespect to Our Lady, but I was really itching for something fresh and pretty and bright. I also wanted something that looked a little bit more like my home. I think if you came to my house for a chat it would look and feel more like the blog does now than before.

And Our Lady is still here, as a patron of the blog.

I also freshened up my About page. I felt a little bit like a hypocrite, advising other bloggers to add links and pictures to their About page and there sat mine, with very few links and no pictures.


******************************


Totally changing the topic, if you're following Imagine Sisters on Facebook then you might have seen a picture of one of my very best friends - Sr. Miriam Caritas with the Sisters of Life. I am able to see her one or two times a year and I make up reasons to call her a couple more times a year but I really don't see her enough. She is so fabulous and I miss her a bunch. It was a real thrill to see her pop up like that.


******************************

Finally, my other dear friend Katie made a terrific Lent-like playlist. She shared it on her blog last week and I asked if I could spread the love with you guys. There were several musicians I'd never heard of before - maybe some of them will be new to you, too. Enjoy!




PS - Tomorrow I'll finally be able to share a pretty big secret with you guys so make sure you check back in with me!

Hey there, new readers!

In the last month I've picked up a good handful of new readers and so I wanted to take a break from the regular programming to say a few things. 

First:Hi! 

Some of you came by way of the Sheenazing Awards - those were a lot of fun.

Some of you found me through the Fountains of Carrots podcast - that was also a lot of fun. 

And some of you found me when Kendra shared my Tips you might not learn in RCIA post - thanks for that love, friend! 

And now here we are all together and I am so glad you are here. 

Let me introduce myself. 

Blurry pic. Sorry.

 I'm Bonnie. My husband and I just celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary. We had five kids in five years; our oldest is now six and attends parochial school. Additionally I have two pre-schoolers and two more in diapers. Our first baby was lost due to miscarriage and I spent the first four years of parenthood suffering - and making everyone else suffer - from postpartum depression. I live small town Illinois and I'm in my early thirties.

Me breastfeeding my baby, drawn by my daughter.

Truth be told, I have a hard time remembering exactly how old I am. There's just too many numbers to remember with the kids' birthdays and what time school lets out and which zip code we live in now. I digress. 

I really like music, British television shows, baking, decorating, and being Catholic. I also like reading, wearing red lipstick, and moms' groups.

 See! I told you I love baking & being Catholic!

My family has a special connection with Venerable Fulton J. Sheen and his cause for canonization and I'm really blessed to be able to travel the country to share our story. (Maybe I'll be in your neck of the woods sometime soon! It would be so great to meet you!)

Blogging is a lot of fun for me and I want to keep it that way, which means I don't let myself get too stressed about posting on a schedule, writing clever post titles, or making money from blogging. I write when I write and it's always honest. I hope you're okay with that. (Oh! And I think Blogrolls are a good way to see how someone fits into which corner of the blogosphere. You can see mine here, if you'd like.)

Also, I have a dumbphone & a real love for dangly earrings.

And I think that's about the gist of it all. 

Now I'd love to meet you! If you're a new reader please leave a comment below, introducing yourself. Tell me if you have a blog or an Instagram account. Are you Catholic? Who's your favorite band? Are you a crafter, a baker, a programmer? Married? Kids? Do you work outside the home? Let me know! 

If you're new here, stick around! You can follow A Knotted Life on Bloglovin' or Feedly.
Plus, I'd love to connect with you. You can find me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook. I hope to "meet" you soon!

Winners for the 2015 Sheenazing Awards!

The 2015 Sheenazing Award season has come to a close. I am so happy to announce the winners and the Runner Ups in each category. 

Thank you to all 2,493 people who voted! This is a fun way to for me to promote one of my favorite saints and celebrate the wonderful community I am in: the Catholic blogosphere. Also, it's incredibly interesting to see how blog readers vote. Some blogs won by a landslide (cough, cough Most Inspiring cough cough), some were neck and neck with the First Runner Up. Some blogs that were all over the ballot in previous years only popped up a few times this year and some new-to-me ones dominated. And more than one person asked, "Where's Grace?" The answer, dear friends, is that Grace won so many categories the past two years that she wasn't eligible to be on the ballot for any of the categories she was nominated in. But watch out, because next year she'll be back. 

If you happened to see any blogs missing from the nomination list please be sure to head over to Erica's and join her link-up of "Blogs That You May Not Be Reading, But You Should" on February 2nd and give a great big shout out to your favorites. 

When one of the winners told her family that she had come in first her daughter said, "Oh! Do you get prize money?!" Sadly, no. But if you come to my house I'll bake you cookies. 

Instead, the winners all receive a firm virtual handshake, the pride in knowing that they've been named the Best of something by a fairly obscure blog, and the right to display a winner's button on their blog. 

Enough with the prattle - on to the winners!

Funniest
First Place: This Ain't the Lyceum
Runner Up: Mama Knows, Honeychild
Catholic All Year
The Fike Life
House Unseen, Life Unscripted
Mary Big Hair
Clan Donaldson
Mama Needs Coffee
Call Her Happy
A Blog for My Mom
Svellerella
The Rhodes Log
Daniel Bearman: Acts of Idiot Praise

Best Looking
First Place: Catholic All Year
Runner Up: Like Mother, Like Daughter
Team Whitaker
Svellerella
California to Korea
Fountains of Home
The Big White Farmhouse
Blossoming Joy
Motherhood and Miscellany
In Honor of Design
Call Her Happy
In the Heart of My Home
Cedars and Tiny Flowers
Like Mother, Like Daughter
House for Five
To the Heights
Small Things
Kelli Seeley


Best Lifestyle Blog
First Place: Catholic All Year
Runner Up: Tie between Whole Family Parenting and House Unseen, Life Unscripted
A Slice of Smith Life
Team Whitaker
To the Heights
The Rhodes Log
Call Her Happy
Two O's Plus More
The Corner with a View
The Fisk Files
A Blog for My Mom
Amongst Lovely Things
Ordinary Lovely
Better Than Eden
Between the Linens
Mexican Domestic Goddess
My Domestic Church
Dora's Table
Bean in Love
The Fike Life

Best Under-Appreciated Blog
First Place: Faith and Peanut Butter
Runner Up: Molly Makes Do
Someday Saints
Blessings in Brelinskyville
Cathofeminism
The Heart's Overflow
Little House in Chicago
Filling My Prayer Closet
My Domestic Church
Bear Wrongs Patiently
Lindsay Loves
McSisters
Half Kindled
My Domestic Monastery
The Fire Within
Pitter Patter Diaries
A Modern Grace
Bluebird Songs
Annery at Home
Good One God
Fear Not Little Flock
In the Sheepfold
Scribbles of a Catholic Girl
Two O's Plus More
Books, Roses, and Wine Oh My!
Saint Affairs
We Make This Look Good
Our Life as First World Missionaries
Jumping in Puddles
Equipping Catholic Families
Our Amazing, Beautiful, Crazy Life
Better Than Eden
Surviving Our Blessings
Motherhood and Miscellany
A Mom's Life
This Felicitous Life
The Corner with a View
Joyfilled Family
Ordinary Lovely
Through a Glass Brightly
Molly Makes Do
Revolution of Love
Abigail's Alcove

Campfires and Cleats

Catholic Coffee Drinkers

Super Swell Times

Between the Linens

Planted and Blooming

Mexican Domestic Goddess

Contranaut Girl

Three Plus Me

In Endless Song

Bella Vita Dolce

Sometimes Martha, Always Mary

And Sometimes Tea

Blessed to Be

Holloway Family North

Smartest Blog

First Place: Mama Needs Coffee
Runner Up: Carrots for Michaelmas
Amongst Lovely Things
Carrots for Michaelmas
Designs by Birgit
Through a Glass Brightly
Barefoot and Pregnant
Little Catholic Bubble
Unequally Yoked
These Walls
Molly Makes Do
I Have to Sit Down
Daniel Bearman: Acts of Idiot Praise

Most Inspiring Blog
First Place: Passionate Perseverance
Runner Up: Carrots for Michaelmas 
Molly Makes Do
Surviving Our Blessings
Call Her Happy
Shoved to Them
Our Home Under Mary's Mantle
House Unseen, Life Unscripted
In the Heart of My Home
To the Heights
Blessings in Brelinskyville
My Spare Oom
Joe Sales Says
Mama Needs Coffee
Conversations with Women
Svellerella
Catholic All Year
Held by His Pierced Hands
Amongst Lovely Things


Miss Congeniality
First Place: Mary from Passionate Perseverance
Runner Up: Dwija at House Unseen, Life Unscripted
Amanda from Erring on the Side of Love
Nell from Whole Family Parenting
Rosie from A Blog for My Mom
Susan from Sole Searching Mama
Olivia from To the Heights
Tracy from A Slice of Smith Life
Emily from Raising Barnes
Chris at Campfires and Cleats
Colleen from Martin Family Moments
Lacy from Catholic Icing
Jenna at Call Her Happy
Haley from Carrots for Michaelmas

Coolest Blogger
First Place: Haley from Carrots for Michaelmas
Runner Up: Kendra from Catholic All Year
Kelly from This Ain't the Lyceum
Amy from Charlotte Was Both
Leila from Like Mother, Like Daughter
Haley from Carrots for Michaelmas
Blythe from The Fike Life
Hallie from HallieLord.com
Jenna from Call Her Happy
Olivia from To the Heights
Elizabeth from In the Heart of My Home
Kate from The Rhodes Log
Christy from Fountains of Home
Nell at Whole Family Parenting
Jenny at Mama Needs Coffee
Dwija at House Unseen, Life Unscripted
Rachel at Testosterhome
Simcha at I Have to Sit Down
Jenna at Wilber Huset



Best Vlogger
First Place: Haley from Carrots for Michaelmas
Runner Up: Blythe from The Fike Life
Kathryn from Team Whitaker
Jenna at Call Her Happy
Ana from Time Flies When You're Having Babies
TJ from TJ Burdick
Iris Hanlin at The Starving Inspired

Best Podcast
First Place:The Jennifer Fulwiler Show
Runner Up: Fountains of Carrots
Catholic Answers Live
This Inspired Life
Stories of an Unschooling Family
Taylor Marshall
Amongst Lovely Things' Read Aloud Revival
Catholic Stuff You Should Know

 Best Blog by a Man
First Place: Daniel Bearman: Acts of Idiot Praise
Runner Up: Doug on Tap
Fr. Paul Nicholson
Brandon Vogt
Joe Sales Says
Adam's Ale
Shaun McAfee
Happy Budget, Happy Life
The Catholic Book Blogger
Standing on My Head

Best Blog with Multiple Contributors
First Place: Blessed Is She
Runner Up: EpicPew
Catholic Bloggers Network 
Psyched Catholic
Unpleasant Accents
One Peter Five

Best Blog by a Non-Papist
First Place:A Holy Experience
Runner Up: A Beautiful Mess
Sugar, Spice, and Incense
Erstwhile Dear
Elenatintil
Second Terrace
Becoming Peculiar
Small Town Simplicity
iHeartOrganzing
The Nester
Sister, Daughter, Mother, Wife
Mel's Kitchen Cafe
Sally's Baking Addiction
Everyday Reading
New Wave Feminists
Tales of Me and the Husband
Art of Simple
Fun, Cheap, or Free
Milk and Pickles
::Meditatio::
Becoming Minimalist
Urban Simple Life
Vita Familiae
Aimee Lynn Photography
The Inklings, Etc.


Honorable Mentions:
Three Plus Two
The Lactating Catholic
A Fly on Our Chicken Coop Wall
The Breadbox Letters
Homeschooling with Joy
Shower of Roses
The Busy Budgeting Mama 
Wildflowers and Marbles
Little Bit of Paradise
Adoro Ergo Sum
And Sometimes Tea
Laughing Joyously
Fumbling Toward Grace
Unam Sanctam Catholicam
Cosmos in the Lost 
Sipping Lemonade
Edward Feser
Jess
Reflections of a Paralytic
My Child, I Love You
Harvesting Home
Catholic Hunter - Gather
Vine of Plenty
Home to 4 Kiddos
Peace Garden Writer
Mama's Notebooks
Real Housekeeping Magazine
Catholic Inspired
Conceiving Hope

Bloglovin' -- Feedly -- Instagram -- Pinterest -- Facebook

You're not a big deal and that's okay

Alright friend of mine, there's something I want to tell you. Actually, I already told you, but I'm going to say it again:

You're not a big deal and that's okay.

I'm not either, so we're in this together.

I know there's blog posts and Pinterest pins and podcasts and magazines that are telling you that you can be GREAT. I know that a lot of our American culture, especially as it is lived out via social media feeds, sets us up to believe that if we just do these Five Quick Tips we will be awesome. We will have arrived. 

That's just not the way it works.

I'm going to speak very specifically about the world of blogging because that's where I see it play out so vividly and also because it's something I want to tell every client I've worked with in my blog consulting business.

I'm 99.9% sure that you're never going to be a BIG Blogger. You're not going to make a full time salary from blogging. You won't be giving away KitchenAid stand mixers while you work hand-in-hand with major corporations. You won't get your own show. You're not going to be a big deal. And I promise, promise, promise you that that's okay.

A mistake many bloggers make is to live in hopes of the 'k'. I know because I've done it too.

What's the 'k'? It's when you have so many likes or followers or fans that IG or FB or Feedly uses the letter 'k' instead of all the zeroes that mark one thousand. 999 likes + 1 = 1k. Or 27k followers or 350k hits a month.

Don't live for the 'k' and definitely don't write for it. If you do, you will grow to resent successful bloggers (who are really only successful because of luck - sure talent and effort too! but mostly luck). If you do, you won't be happy with the two comments you did get out of the pool of fifty people who did read your post. If you do, you will feel blogging burn out and you will feel like a failure.

The truth is, the only thing you've failed at is appreciating what you have. And you have a lot of good things:
- a creative outlet
- a way to improve and showcase your photography / graphic design / computer / writing skills
- a virtual scrapbook your loved ones can appreciate years later - the things you loved, thought, felt, did at a specific time in your life in a specific moment in history
- a way to connect with like-minded people

It doesn't matter if you are thinking of starting a blog, if you've been blogging for two years, or if you've been blogging for 10 years - the only reason you should blog is because you enjoy it. 

All of this is not to say that it's bad to want to grow your readership! Not at all! The best part of blogging is the community that comes from it and your readers are your potential friends.

If you're blogging for the community - we can tell. If you're blogging because you want to be famous, make money, go viral, etc - we can tell.

Speaking for myself, the best blogs (usually not this-once-was-a-blog-but-now-it's-a-website-making-me-money) feel like a living room. I come to your site and there's a bright, cheery picture of you smiling and welcoming me to your space. It's decorated like your living room - reflecting your style, faith, family, loves, and interests. We sit and chat about movies, kids, books, politics, faith, celebrations, school, losing weight, sleep, recipes. Some of the conversation is light - almost fluff - and some of it is really personal, beautiful, trusting, and sincere.

Most of those blogs don't have the 'k'. Most of those bloggers are not a big deal. Most of those bloggers have 25, 67, 120 followers and really, truly that is fabulous.

And what about the ones who do have the 'k'?  That Big Blogger who has made it. We think of her as a Big Deal.  But her neighbor across the street just thinks of her as a mom who takes lots of pictures of all her kids and gets lots of packages. Really, even she is not a Big Deal. She's a person who started something, kept doing it because she loved it, invested her talents and effort into it, and then just. got. lucky.

If you're blogging to be a big deal maybe you should take a step back.
If you're feeling burned out for other reasons maybe you should take a step back.
If you find yourself feeling jealous more than feeling happy for other bloggers' successes maybe you should take a step back.

But keep your blog. Keep it hanging out in the internet so that when you are ready to write or share again it's there and so are your followers. Keep it so that when you comment on other blogs there's a site linked to your name so people can still get to know you. Keep it so that when you're ready to enjoy blogging and you're ready to not worry about stats and likes and being a Big Deal - it will be ready for you. And so will we.

If you're new here, stick around! You can follow A Knotted Life on Bloglovin' or Feedly.
Plus, I'd love to connect with you. You can find me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook. I hope to "meet" you soon!