14 February 2008

Feelin' the love!

Happy V-Day to all! I had a ton of fun this morning making my kids' lunch as well as a special breakfast. Even my husband got the royal treatment this year, with a foot long sandwich and heart o' chocolates (and some love coupons ;))! Cupid came last night and got each child a small treasure to play with after school (board games). And now I will run from classroom to classroom all day being the dedicated mom. Lol!


Yvonne,at the The Life and Travels of Me gave me this award last week. Thank you Yvonne! Yvonne is one of the sweetest women I've met in blogland and I really appreciate the compliment from her. :)


The rules for being A Roar For Powerful Words recipient are that I share 3 writing tips and pass the award on to 5 more bloggers worthy of recognition and esteem. So here goes my unsolicited advice!

1. Chances are, you began blogging for fun. After a while you get more and more commenters and before long you think you're "all that" and have to become more and more impressive. Don't let blogging take away from your life. It is too easy to get hung up over the number of comments you receive and your stat numbers and your ranking. And if you're really in it for the writing, then you probably already know this. If you don't have time to comment on your 30 commenters blogs each and every day, don't sweat it. Those bloggers who really enjoy what you have to say and are genuine friends will stick around. Trust me.

2. When you get an idea for a post, save it with the rest of your published posts. I usually have about 10 drafts going for ideas for future blogging topics. I used to jot them down on a piece of paper, but then I had random blogging ideas stashed all over my house. Not the easiest way to go. Just remember, when you finally do post your idea, that it will be published with the date you saved it. You need to adjust that using Post Options (for Blogger) for it to appear as your top post.

3. Just be real. Be yourself. Let your blog represent who you are. If you'd like a good tutorial on how to make a personalized header for yourself, read this tutorial posted at Design Mom. Also, blogrounds are fun to play around with, and you can find a nice selection here and here. And for even more unique ideas check out this site.

I feel this award should be passed on to 5 women who I have thoroughly, and I mean thoroughly, enjoyed reading. I'd like to thank them all for their way with well written words, and I encourage you strongly to visit them and see for yourself what I mean.

Lords of the Manor
Bells on Their Toes
Life is a spasm who flow
mind-muffins
Tongue in Cheek


Hope you all have a lovely day!

8 comments:

Lucy said...

Lei, I think it's amusing that I'm blushing right now. You're kind of a "blogger plus" in my opinion, with such a gift that I feel all lowly and "aw shucks" at the mere mention of you enjoying my own blog. Thanks for the kind words. You are most deserving of a roar - because you certainly do.

I like your advice. I never do drafts. I might need to take that advice. I'm always in such a hurry to publish and if the moment has passed, I never write it down. I'll have to try your way.

Yvonne said...

Such a well deserved award. Thanks for your kind words.

Your advice is wonderful. I always save my drafts.

Allysha said...

wow, thanks lei! That's a fun valentine to get! nice advice, too!

also- I'm very impressed by all of your valentine preparations! so fun!

Lara Neves said...

I never thought of doing drafts for my blog ideas. I don't even try to write them down, either. I kind of just stash them in my head and inevitably forget several of them. Of course, right now, my head is totally empty, so it doesn't matter. But that is an excellent plan.

utmommy said...

I've never done blog drafts. Smart idea though!

Glad you had a good V Day!

Kasie @ ~The Art of Life~ said...

Wonderful advice Lei.
Thank you so much for sharing it.
I truly do enjoy reading your blog.

Shelah said...

Hey Lei! I loved your advice. Back when blogging really got my juices flowing, I always had drafts in the works. Maybe if I started them again, I'd feel more inspired.

Michelle said...

I agree, your award is very well deserved. It's what you say that keeps bringing me back. :)

Thanks for the advice and blog recommendations!