Blogger Recognition Award

I am honored to receive the Blogger Recognition Award. Please accept my version of the logo as a symbol of my appreciation. The knot is a symbol to bind or connect in life. It is also a symbol of good luck and good things to come. As bloggers, we are continually making connections with our global community through writing, photos, and even video. We hope to introduce new places to visit, inspiration to succeed, contemplative issues, mental health awareness, and so much more. It is a very personal and interconnected world of people reaching out. Through supporting one another with motivational awards such as the Blogger Recognition Award, we create a positive force that promotes growth. I feel lucky to have been nominated and I hope that in nominating 15 bloggers for this award, I will have created something good to come. (I feel extra special to have been nominated a second time and hope I can spread the love with five more nominees!)

Thank You!

I have had the pleasure of being nominated by two exemplary women bloggers.

I want to thank the unstoppable Kendra who shares her life’s journeys promoting healthy living and Type 1 Diabetes education. She wears many hats including mom, entrepreneur, wife, and friend. She shares her journeys without inhibition which is an incredibly strong quality. I am honored to have been included in her nominations for Blogger Recognition!

Delve into her blog and share her journey… www.heartsandhouseshoes.com

You can also follow her on Twitter.. as Kendra Hearts and House, @heartsandhouse

I want to thank the simply natural and simply beautiful Swatti Sharrma. She is a social media influencer, entrepreneur and microbiologist! Fascinating! I love strong and empowered women. And to think…she nominated me!

She is a blogging inspiration! Check out each of her blogs…

Health

Beauty

Life and Being Social

Science and Technology

You can also follow her on Twitter.. as Simply beautiful B, @simply_19simply

Blogging Journey & Inspiration

My blogging journey began with my daughter (I know Kendra can relate to my inspiration). She would continually insist that I start a blog. She pointed out how I have a plethora of knowledge; as a mom (aka Momager), in essential life skills, and as a native New Yorker who loves to show everyone the fun places to visit. She pointed out that I have terrific writing skills and I could reach a larger audience that she believed would love to read what I have to say. Ah, daughters…they’re so supportive. How can I not love her to the moon and back?! (BTW-she’s a biologist like Swatti Sharrma, well not the same exact kind (environmental biologist), but still neat!)

I do love exploring and pride myself in my extensive experiences in my home—New York State. I have always been flabbergasted by my friends, neighbors and coworkers who hadn’t taken advantage of the beauty and variety New York has to offer. My blog began as a way to introduce all of the fun and adventure you can find in New York State, especially on a tight budget. It has evolved to include our experience of living in a tiny home (Tiny Living post #1 ), went on to include other great finds in the U.S. ( Tallulah Gorge, Georgia ), and even dabbles in my first European trip ( Peacock Island-Pfaueninsel, Germany ). My overall focus is helping inspire people to explore and enjoy life without breaking the bank.

If you’re looking for more insight to my blogging soul, check out A Guy Called Bloke’s Interview #60

Learning, Knowledge, & Advice for New Bloggers

Blogging is a really interesting medium for getting your information out to the general public. I’ve created websites for businesses before, but a blogging site is different—it’s more interactive with the community. This is something I never thought about in the planning of my blog. It has been a welcome change and I truly enjoy engaging with other bloggers. This type of community has actually helped me improve my methods tenfold which is something I would never have achieved in my previous business.

I’m a fairly new blogger, but here’s some great advice I’ve really benefitted from that I’d like to pass along:

1. Keep reading, keep writing, keep learning. Your brain needs to be inspired and exercised to write long-term.
2. No matter what your blog theme is; write with a beginning, middle and end to your post.
3. Break up your writing with anything—photos, headlines, bullet points, etc.
4. Name all of the photos you use with keywords and descriptions that will lead someone back to your site.
5. Sites like Pinterest have the potential to redirect a lot of traffic back to your site if you use it correctly.
6. Learn about SEO. Just about everyone is offering free courses. ( @crafty_explorer just hosted a terrific e-course. Check her out!
7. Read, converse, like, and enjoy other blogs and social media accounts. This is how you will find a supportive community.

This updated post with my second nomination brings a little more experience to the table. I’d like to add:

1. Stay true to yourself. Numbers will rise and fall, but you need to love what you’re doing to persevere.
2. Don’t be afraid to take the lead in being supportive. Being new doesn’t mean hiding in the shadows or following someone else’s lead. Take initiative and create support. The numbers don’t matter as much as the generosity and support.
3. There are sooooo many terrific ways to monetize your site and drive traffic to it. Take your time. Build good content first. Work one new method at a time to ensure its success. Slow and steady wins the race!

I Nominate These Terrific 15 Bloggers

Their name with a link to their blog, their Twitter account (if known)

1. Suktara @happyystar
2.  A Pair of Travel Pants  @travelpantspair
3. The Unspoken Truth  @theunspokentru5
4. The Frosted Pineapple  @thef_pineapple
5. Hillary  @shmillas
6. MC Adventure Blog  @mcadventureblog
7. Finding the Road to Simple  @destinationsimp
8. The Ray Journey  @therayjourney
9. A.G. Petersen  @agpetersen2
10. Marko Tadic  @mrmbymarko
11. Bearded Igor Blog  @beardedigorblog
12. She Roams About  @sheroamsabout
13. Carpe Diem Eire @carpediemeire
14. Tara Neilson @neilson_tara
15. Junell at Miss Adventures in Adulting  @mainadulting

I’m nominating a few more because it’s so wonderful to promote good bloggers!

1. Bitchin’ In the Kitchen
2. Damsel with a Drill
3. My Unexpected Life, @kevinunexpected
4. Where Gals Wander, @galswander
5. Jackie of All Trades, @jofalltradesb

The Blogger Recognition Award Rules for Acceptance

• You are to accept the award through a blog post on your website (blog).
• You are to describe your blogging journey and inspiration or reason why you chose to be a blogger.
• You are to share your learnings, knowledge & advice to new bloggers.
• You are to nominate 15 bloggers.
• You are to notify each of them about their nomination as the nominee for Blogger Recognition Award.

Enjoy the journey!