1. have a 2-month-old
2. have a messy house
3. need to decorate for Christmas and buy/wrap/mail gifts
4. have scrapbooking things littered all over the dining room for Evie's baby book, lifebook and my family scrapbook and
5. attend not one, not two, but three mommy/baby exercise classes each week (2 aerobics and 1 yoga)
6. have a nativity quilt that I've been working on since last October and desperately want to display sometime in December this year. OK, just kidding, I know that quilt is just not going to happen. Next year, I promise.
Nevertheless, I happily joined up with an online site called YouData after reading this. It's a company that will pay your PayPal account for clicking on their ads and being linked to the advertisers' sites. And no, Lori is not paying me for all of the linking to her I've been doing. :) YouData isn't yet as great for me as it was for her, I only earned $2.23 my first day, but it was pretty quick and easy and I was surprised at what great websites it sent me to. I actually printed off a coupon that I know I'll use and found a website with beautiful fair trade gift items that will be perfect for certain beloved relatives who read this blog, so I'm not going to say any more. On their site they say one of their target demographics is women and "mommy bloggers" so head over and earn some cash. Unfortunately I spent my $2.23 a few times over on cool stuff, but hey, I needed Christmas presents anyhow, right? ;^) (Just to clarify, I chose to spend money on the sites, it is not a part of the YouData program. You don't have to spend a single penny.)
More joining...if your blog qualifies as an infertility/loss/adoption blog, and many of us do, you are not only invited but encouraged to head over to Stirrup Queens and sign up for the Creme de la Creme 2008.
The Best of the Adoption/Infertility/Loss Blogs of 2008
The logo says I'm on it, but I'm not yet. I will be. Go over to the site to read about it, it would take too long to explain here. The hardest part of getting on the list is choosing a "best post." Here's the way I feel about my blog: 1. I have some good stuff on here, but none of the good stuff is so concentrated into one post that it makes it stand out as the best and 2. I am such a perfectionist that when I go back and reread my posts to try to pick one I just end up wanting to click the little pencil icon and go back and fix my run-on sentences and wordiness. When I started the blog I promised myself that I would write from the heart and proofread for typos and spelling, but that I wouldn't obsess about word choice and grammar. That might sound strange, but if I tried to write "my English teacher best" on every post, I would spend 2 or 3 times as long writing and Evie wouldn't approve of that. I know my posts are long, but I am a super-fast typist and prefer to spend my time thinking about content, not sentence fluency. Sorry. Anyhow, my point is that I need help. It sounds self-seeking to ask you all to tell me what my best post is, but I'm honestly stumped here. Please help by leaving a comment and telling me what your favorite post has been. It can be anything, since I started the blog in 2008. Otherwise, if I'd started in a previous year, only 2008 posts would qualify. Please, please, help. Thanks. And if you fit the criteria (loss/adoption/infertility) get started choosing your own best 2008 post and go join up. Good luck deciding!
While you're over at Stirrup Queens, add yourself to her "Stirrup Queen's Completely Anal List of Blogs That Proves That She Really Missed Her Calling as a Personal Organizer" by e-mailing her the address of your blog. You can find out more here. I've found some great blogs on her list and I've had wonderful people find me through the list.
And if you're not writing a loss/adoption/infertility blog, congratulations :) and I have something for you, too (as long as you're a woman, I don't think they "take" men): The Secret is in the Sauce. I found this blog after a SITS blogger commented on my blog and I went to check out hers and saw the link in her sidebar. I've been wanting to become a SITSer ever since but at first I didn't have the energy to commit to it (ahem, newborn) and now I'm doing nablopomo...so I'm planning to join SITS in December. Come join with me, it'll be fun.
Posts
My favorite post of yours, admittedly from only the last few months that I have read, is Oct. 3. The last line or two of that post just really painted a beautiful picture and it made it obvious that you really felt like a mommy. It was such a intimate example of your growing bond with Evie and truly represents the point of a blog like yours...letting others see the real you and sharing the emotions that happen along the way in life.
ReplyDelete+T, thanks for the nomination! The other thing I love about that post is the pics of her smiling and with J kissing her head, so it's definitely a good suggestion.
ReplyDeleteYour check from ME is in the mail!
ReplyDeleteSeriously, thanks so much for including me in your posts. And for spreading the word about Creme. I'm so excited for the new list to come out!
You actually did really well for a first time on YouData, especially if just for a day or two. The more eyeballs they get signed up, the more advertisers they'll attract, and the more there is to be made (money and cool finds). I've been averaging $2-3 a week, but they sometimes run out of ads :-(.
Hope your weekend is fabulous!