Celebrating 4 Years! + A Giveaway

On August 1st this little space turned 4 and I’ve managed to roll right on through the entire month without a proper celebration!  So, better later than never!  Today I’m celebrating 4 years of blogging which means also celebrating my readers.  Let’s face it, if it weren’t for you I would have given this up a long time ago.  So let’s take a little look back and hopefully see how far I’ve come!  I’ll share a little of my professional blogger development this year with ya too.  Finally,  I’ll share where I hope to be by year 5!

Hmm….my very first post.  I was so clueless and it’s hilarious to me I was writing as if someone was actually reading my post!  So many of my initial posts were hasty.  My message may have been thoughtful but my writing was not getting the message across.  Writing is definitely one of those muscles you have to flex often to grow.  And prepare yourself for a good laugh but my most viewed blogposts ever is actually titled Pin-spired to just add mustard.  Really? While I still love these looks and my mustard jeans (are they really 4 years old?!!) the graphic cracks me up.  Hopefully my photography has gotten a little more professional.

Per usual, the most viewed posts always seem to end up being fashion related.  More than likely this is due to those post being tied to linkups.  Readers seem to love a good Stitch Fix review especially a fall and spring box.  I made an attempt to try and combine a little more depth within in fashion posts which also seemed to suit readers and cure doldrums.

While I love sharing my style, the posts I write from the heart are really my favorites.  I don’t feel like I was quite as deep this 4th year which probably correlates directly with the increase in responsibilities at my “real” job.  My birthday post is always one of my favorites and this year you got a big dose of 48 years of me!  Adventures in parenting is still in the forefront as I work to build relationships with my adult children while still raising teens.  Motherhood has definitely schooled me!  This summer has been a little trying with a failed transmission in a vehicle and a costly a/c repair so it’s a good thing I’ve learned how to keep my sanity when life hands me lemons!

While I am far from a travel blogger, I was able to take you all along to Scottsdale, West Palm Beach and Long Beach where we enjoyed some downtime combined with baseball.  We saw Houston in color, spent a weekend finding some hidden gems in Corpus Christi and most recently had a tall time in Sequoia National Forest.

Seems I was into giving tips in my 4th year and wanted you to have quick ways to update your living space, know how to refresh your bathroom and have ways to share compliments.  I love giving unsolicited advice for sure!

And I hosted my very first style challenge!  Granted it was instagram focused by the Moms Rock May Style Challenged seemed to increase exposure and I met some new people.   Plus, it sure did make getting dressed so much easier!

In year four my goal was to improve my photos, increase traffic naturally and give myself real breaks without feeling guilty.  By January 1st I chose my word of the year and knew it would carry me through.  I have taken multiple breaks this year and no longer feel stressed to create a post if I’m just not feeling it.  If I miss one day or two weeks I will not force a post just to have something scheduled.  I want quality over quantity in this space because y’all deserve that!  I participated in an online Pinterest workshop which really helped me to increase some traffic on posts I find more meaningful instead of only my fashion posts.  My photos are definitely better!  And when they are not it is intentional (try on sessions, daily life, etc).

So where do I want to go in year 5?  I’d like to continue with quality over quantity but also become a little more scheduled.  Finding a way to build in a few themes which would roll from month to month and help me stay focused and spur creativity would be a plus.  Becoming brave enough to pitch to companies and actually secure a few sponsored posts would definitely be a huge plus.  While the few dollars I receive from affiliate links does help to keep this blog up and running, in order to continue to bring you the best content really does take alot more than I am making.   I truly want to inspire people and finding a way to reach more people is part of that.  The biggest improvement I hope to make is a ramped up newsletter.  Right now it’s basically just a feed sharing my blogposts and I would really like to see it become a “real” newsletter.

Above all I want to keep you all coming back!  I have been way more absent the past 6 months than ever in regard to interacting.  It is so hard even in slow times to keep up with comments and interact with you all the way I want to but in a season when my “real” job became super demanding it really took a toll.  So please know, I read EVERY comment and always smile when I receive them!

Now, it’s giveaway time!  It’s no surprise my skincare routine includes some Rodan & Fields.   I know it’s not for everyone but I would love to give one reader the Micro-Dermabrasion paste.  I love this product so much and use it a couple of times a week to give my skin a little glow.  I also have 10 mini facials to giveaway!  While I would love for you to pin a few posts or follow me on Instagram, all you have to do is leave a comment on this post and let me know how long you have been reading and what keeps you coming back!  I’ll announce the winner(s) next Friday!  ***Giveaway is now Closed***

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for continuing to support The Queen in Between!