My Manifesto on Blog Parties

So here's the deal.

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I like linking to blog parties. I like hosting the occasional blog party. They're a great way to interact with other members of the blogging community, but let's be honest...the main purpose of participating is to increase traffic to your blog.


I don't think there's anything wrong with that, but I do think that there's a way to participate in a classy way.


I've heard some murmurings of discontent regarding blog parties from several bloggers, and I thought I'd share my personal philosophy on blog parties. My ideas may be different than many of yours, and that's okay. We can agree to disagree, right? Please don't send me hatemail. Seriously.


One of my biggest pet peeves about some of the parties in Blogland lately is that many aren't parties, but merely long lists of links. To me, the word "party" implies some degree of socialization. 


Example: If you showed up to a a real party at my house, dressed in your finest, consumed all the refreshments, and allowed people to compliment you repeatedly while you sat in the corner basking in the glory and not speaking to anyone...people would start to get annoyed. I wouldn't invite you back.


Why should a blog party be any different? I personally try not to link up to a party unless I know that I can take the time to visit at least two or three blogs on the list. Truly, if I can spend the time writing a post, adding a link to the host site, and linking up; then taking 5 minutes to do a bit of socializing won't kill me. It might in fact bring me a new friend or two!


That said, I think there's a big difference between linking up and doing a bit of visiting later on in the week and just linking and leaving. The same would go for returning comments left on your posts. It's taking me longer to return visits now than it did when I had fewer Followers, but it is something I make an effort to do. I don't expect someone with 700 Followers to get around to all 68 comments on their post, but it's nice for those of us with smaller blogs to take the time to return comments.


When leaving a party, would you just walk out the door, hop in your car, and drive away? I've also noticed that the number of comments for blog party hostesses are drastically smaller than the amount of links. Take a moment to thank your hostess for going through the trouble of creating a MckLinky list, writing a post, whatever. It's just the polite thing to do.


I hope I haven't offended anyone! I just wanted to share my thoughts on what may be a touchy subject.


{I'd love to read your thoughts on ways to make a blog party successful!}

Signs of Spring: Easy Blueberry Streusel Muffins

I can tell that Spring is near when I start getting a hankering for anything blueberry. 

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We have a playdate planned this morning while Natalie is at preschool, and I always like to serve a little treat when we have friends come over. With the unprecedented Spring-like weather we enjoyed yesterday, I thought something blueberry-esque would be nice.


Unfortunately, I had a very busy schedule last night of watching the Oscars and folding 687 pairs of little girls' white socks. 


So I broke out the Ducan Hines Blueberry Streusel Muffin mix.

It don't get much easier than this, y'all! Yes, I did have to break a can opener out to open the can of real (!) blueberries, but it was all downhill after that.


Mix it up, dole it out, bake for 15 minutes or so, and Voila!

A tasty treat that any toddler (or her mom!) will devour. 


{Do you have a favorite last-minute treat that you serve?}


*Please come back on Wednesday for the very first Show Me the Progress party! 

The party will go live on Tuesday night at 10 pm (ET), and there's a great Giveaway contest for participants. Remember, your progress can be anything from ideas you have for your Dilemmas to completed "After" photos. I'd also love to hear about other ways you've made progress in your life: work or fitness goals, reading lists, schedules or routines with your kids, you name it!


*I'm editing this to link to Kimba at A Soft Place to Land. I could have just bought donut holes, so taking the time to make boxed muffins, albeit delicious ones, is DIY in my humble opinion.

Friday Favorites Feature ::Weekend Bloggy Reading::

There was a technical difficulty with yesterday's planned Giveaway. The co-hostess is experiencing some problems with her site, so we will plan it for another day.

In other news, I hope you are pouring through your old Decorating Dilemmas posts to find some inspiration for the Show Me the Progress party party! Meet up here on Wednesday, March 10th for some fun (Giveaway contest for participants!). I can't wait to see the different ways my readers are making progress, whether it's in their homes or their day-to-day lives.

Here's a little light reading for your weekend...some of my favorite posts from around Blogland this week:

Kimm had a fantastic post last Friday afternoon with her Top 5 Budget Decor Rules.

I would never have thought to take a saw to a coffee table, but Melissa did and ended up with a completely new set of furniture. Check out her Cut-up-Table Entryway Benches!

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Because I love frugal decorating ideas, here's a link to Jane's tea towel art.

I want to start a local dinner club. It would be nice to eat a meal that does not consist of chicken nuggets. Or tatertots and jello {wink, wink, Jen...you know I love ya!}. Laurie over at Tip Junkie had a great post on How to Start a Dinner Club.

Laurie also had a wonderful post with some ideas for Kids' Spring Break Activities. Yes, please.

Laurel's Baby Blanket with a Twist.

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I hope you have some fun things planned for your weekend! We have a trip to the dentist AND the doctor planned for this morning. I'm not sure what I was thinking. I bought a small Polly Pocket toy at a consignment sale yesterday as a down payment for Natalie not going into hysterics when the nurse breaks the shots out. We'll see how that works out.

{Have a wonderful weekend, my wonderful readers!}

What Have YOU Been Up to Lately?

The Show Me the Progress party will be here before you know it! 


Are your calendars marked for Wednesday, March 10th? The party will go live on Tuesday night around 10 pm (ET) and I'll keep it open until Thursday evening.


I have a wee little Giveaway contest/drawing for the participants this time around.

You do NOT have to have linked to a Decorating Dilemmas party to participate in Show Me the Progress. 


I originally planned this as a way for those who have linked to DD to share their updates, but I think it would be fun to read about the progress you're making in any area of your life (weight loss, cleaning up clutter, a book list, meeting a work goal, finishing a craft project, you name it!). 


Here's a little repost with the details in case you're new to the blog and would like to participate:

Progress:
{Pro-gress, noun.} 
1. Movement, as toward a goal; advance.
2. Development or growth.
3. Steady improvement, as of a society or civilization.


I love a good "Before" and "After" post with lots of photos.


But some of us take longer to accomplish those "Afters." 


Sometimes it's laziness, lack of funds, or days filled with work and activities. Sometimes it's just not knowing exactly which direction to take so you can get to the "After" shot. 


That's why I'm hosting the "Show Me the Progress" Party on March 10th.

It's going to be a time to celebrate the little steps you're taking to improve those Dilemmas you've been linking up with here at Serenity Now. 


Remember...you don't have to have a complete, finished Delightful "After" photo to link up. 


Progress can be anything as small as listing the ideas from Decorating Dilemmas comments you received that you really liked and want to implement. 


Or, tell us your plan for your Dilemma and show us a photo of the supplies you're planning on using. 


Halfway done with the transformation? That's okay...we want to see and be encouraged!


If you're new to the blog or haven't linked up a Decorating Dilemma before, then you can take some time to share progress you're making in any area of your life at home. Have you been more consistent with your Meal Planning? Have you started a work out routine? Have you read any books on your 2010 "must-read" list?


We all know that it's one thing to link up a Decorating Dilemma and let the advice start rolling in. It's another thing entirely to work with the feedback you've been given and push yourself towards a goal. 


I was really inspired by the comments I received on my January post, and I've been making some plans for my Family room. I actually have some Progress to share with you all, based on the comments. I am so excited to show you what I've been working on and where I'm going with the room!


I hope you'll go back through your posts or look through your home and find a small area you've made some Progress in this winter! 


{Hope to see you on March 10th! It's coming soon!}


**Please check back in later today for a surprise Giveaway!!**

A Most Fortuitous Discovery

The bad thing about cleaning out the "junk basket" in the kitchen sideboard is that it takes away from the time I could be doing something more important, like watching Project Runway on DVR.

But every so often, my hard work yields important results.

Exhibit A:

An anniversary card, circa 2005. From T. To me.

It reads, "Yadda Yadda Yadda...Present this card to redeem 1 room's worth of fancy crown molding (labor and materials included)."

Oh, really?

Exhibit B:

Dining room, circa March, 2010. Fancy crown molding suspiciously absent. (Avert your eyes from the hideous popcorn ceiling. I know.)

I seem to recall a recent argument in which I insisted that he did indeed promise me crown molding in the dining room as an anniversary gift one year.

Now I have the evidence. And I have wisely hidden it so that it does not fall into the wrong hands or the sticky fingered clutches of a two year with a crayon. I know that T forces some of the poor guys at work to read this blog (hi, Travis and Mike) as spies to see what I am up to. I don't suppose I need to say much more.

Except to say that anniversary #9 is coming up in August. I want crown molding. And something shiny.

The End.

My Retirement Plan

Many people pay financial counselors to help than plan for retirement. After a recent conversation with my four year old, I've decided to tell IRAs, Cds, and the stock market to kiss my grits.

We were discussing the future, and I asked Natalie what she wants to be when she grows up.

Her reply?

A doctor "what helps mommies' babies pop out of their tummies."

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Cha-Ching!

She'll be busy with her kids "Davey, Adam, and Emily," and her dog "Buster," but she's promised to make time to visit me and build me a house next door to live in.

I think I'm pretty much set, huh? If she throws in a weekly trip to Starbucks, I will have lived a good life.

The Waste Land

I can see grass again in my yard. 


I had almost forgotten what it looks like, and was planning on purchasing mukluks and wearing them 24/7 with my grandmother's fur coat. But God in His infinite wisdom melted the snow so that I would not have to commit that fashion sin.


I don't care much for T.S. Eliot, but my yard does currently resemble a barren, desolate, empty land. Unless you count the snowman yard stake hiding in the flower bed behind the azaleas.


My other problem? 

 

Although it would indeed appear that I have a green thumb, I do not. This was simply a marker accident in preparation for today's post.


My thumb has not been helpful at all in my gardening efforts. In fact, none of my fingers have been helpful. 


All of the fun new projects popping up around Blogland have me dreaming about Spring, flowers, and outdoor entertaining. I have visions of hydrangeas, peonies, roses, and marigolds. 


So that my future guests don't have to stare at a jungle of weeds, I thought it would be wise to plan ahead and start thinking about what types of plants I'd like to have this year, finances permitting.


Last year, I took a couple of days to chart the sunny/shady areas in the backyard. It was really helpful when choosing a plant to know which areas of my yard were full sun vs. partial shade, etc. I lost that chart, so here is a new version, which I'll be working on this week. I keep it on the counter next to the kitchen sink. It overlooks the back yard, making it easy for me to remember to fill it in.

I made a very rough sketch of the back of my house and the back yard. 

Clearly, it's not to scale. The scribbles that look like clouds are large bushes. I know you're shocked I don't have an art degree.


I assigned different letters/colors to certain areas of the yard and then wrote down what kind of sunlight each area had at different points in the day. 

For example, section D (blue) is full sun most of the day, and was the perfect spot to grow tomatoes. I only had three plants last year, but they more than quadrupled in size. Section E (red) is mostly shade, and was a terrific spot for my hydrangea bush that T accidentally fried with too much fertilizer.

This might seem really boring, and it totally is. 


But I am learning that planning is essential to gardening. I wish I'd known that when I planted my daffodil bulbs a few years ago. It looks like someone just came and threw fistfuls of daffodils in my front flower beds. I may not have the resources to grow my dream garden this year, but I can take steps in the right direction.


...Beginning with finding something to get the green marker off my thumb.


{What's your favorite thing to plant, come Spring?}


Linking to Kimba's DIY Day party over at A Soft Place to Land.