Happy Blogiversary to Me

I know you won't believe this, but I just now realized that it's been exactly one year since I started this blog o' mine. I am one of those horribly unsentimental people who let all kinds of important dates slip right on by with nary a comment, let alone a gift or card. I remember my kids' birthdays, of course, but rarely do I commemorate my wedding anniversary or Valentine's Day. You can forget about St. Patrick's Day or Grandparents' Day, because I certainly do. My husband lucked out big time when he married me, because when it comes to the Five Love Languages, I do not speak gifts and he totally got away with that one Christmas when he didn't buy me a single present. I know! Most women would divorce a guy over such an egregious transgression, but I was remarkably okay with it.

I actually was working on a little post with pictures from the gorgeously sunny day we had yesterday, when I noticed the date at the top of my monitor. I had told myself months ago not to forget April 29, because I could take advantage of it and offer a giveaway or something to market myself. Readers would flock to my blog and . . . 

. . .  I'm back now. Sorry about that, I fell off my chair laughing. It was one of those desperate, needy laughs that is altogether unpleasant and my falling resulted in a bruised buttock. That's what I get for using the word blogiversary. Still, I don't want to let this one slide by like I did my 100th post. I mean, one year of writing on a fairly consistent basis has got to count for something, doesn't it? DOESN'T IT??!! she shrieked at the silent screen.

So what have I learned in one year?

Most blogs don't last. I am amazed at how many interesting blogs have come and gone in the past year. It's always shocking, because one day they just disappear. Deleted! Or they completely stop publishing. You're going along, checking your favorite site a couple times a week, and the posts stop. No explanation! You keep checking for awhile, and then once every couple of months, and then you accept that it's over. Occasionally, you wonder whatever happened to that person whose life you were following? Are they okay? I promise that if I ever decide to stop blogging (shut up, one-time visitor, who's thinking YES! PLEASE STOP BLOGGING! YOU STINK! I'M OUTTA HERE!), I will leave you a carefully-worded resignation letter.

When you first start a blog, you look at the world through bloggy eyes. I found that tendency in myself really annoying, but I couldn't stop. I was constantly observing everyone around me with a secret agenda. Is that conversation something I could blog about? Should I take a picture of that event and write about it? The upside to this malady is that I started looking at my routine world in an entirely different light. I began noticing the extraordinary moments in an otherwise ordinary day. My bloggy eyes only lasted about 6 months or so and now here I am on the morning of my ONE-YEAR BLOGIVERSARY writing on the fly without any concern whatsoever regarding content or style or reader-interest, which I am so going to regret the second I hit "publish post."

I was an ignoramus when I created my blog. I did not know one thing about uploading pictures, posting videos, or Dooce.com. I read my stepsister's blog and thought to myself That's a cool idea! I hit the "create your own blog" button on a whim, without any forethought, let alone research, which—in retrospect—I realize would have saved me from naming my site The Mommy Machine. THE MOMMY MACHINE? Really??!! Way to alienate half the population, as well as all childless women. Not a single person has e-mailed me to say, "Kim, your blog name is so intriguing. What does it mean? How did you come up with it? Why, oh, why couldn't I have created such a brilliant name as The Mommy Machine? Surely it took weeks of sleepless nights to come up with that one. No? You thought up that gem in two seconds? You're a genius!"

When I first started blogging, I didn't know who my audience would be. I wrote in secret for a couple of months, while I got the hang of it. I kid you not, I didn't even tell my husband! I didn't know what I was doing and I wasn't sure I wanted anyone to read what I had to say. Like most mommy bloggers, I figured my site would offer more of a family newsletter for friends and relatives. What's interesting is that hardly any of my family or friends read my blog! It's not for a lack of subtly-worded emails on my part requesting their attention. I guess my Christmas letter is more than enough information for them to handle. So thank you, Hen and Kel, Barbara, and Aunt Janny for letting me know that you do, in fact, stop by once in a while.

And to the rest of you who have never even met me in real life? YOU ROCK. Thank you so much for your interest, your kind words, and your fantastic blogs that I look forward to reading each week. I am sorry that I don't have a giveaway for you on this important date. It would have been lovely to reward my two faithful readers with a gift or a card or SOMETHING other than my coffee-fueled blathering. The best I can do is say THANK YOU. Sincerely. From the heart. Thanks for popping in and checking out what's going on in my part of the world. You keep me going.

Dinner last night: grilled chicken, baked beans, potato salad