Five years. Do you remember where you were five years ago? What you were doing? What your plans and dreams were? Me? I was the Mama of two girls, ages eight and ten, and they were my entire world. My dreams? I wasn’t able to dream much beyond the next vacation. I was feeling….stuck.
One very cold night in February I found myself sitting alone on the couch, reflecting. I had just turned down a very sweet job offer and I had no one to talk to. Those happy little girls of mine were tucked into their beds, my Hubby was off on a golf trip, and I was alone. What had I done? I had given up a career I loved to stay home with my babies. I know for them and for me it was the right choice, but “Career Girl” gone “Stay At Home Mom”? Gulp. Those words stuck in my throat. Not because I wasn’t proud of my decisions, not because I was afraid I’d made the wrong choices, because I needed something else. Dare I say I was lonely?
I started to write. I wrote my heart out! Then, I started a blog. A place where I could vent, emote, and connect with other Mama’s. I started How To Survive Life In The Suburbs. I threw my heart and soul into this blog, and it saved me. Each article I wrote felt right, each “like” and comment I received gave me a validation I didn’t know I needed. More then that, each e-mail from other Mama’s out there thanking me for speaking the truth, laughing and crying with me, made me smile. We were all in this crazy world together; laughing and living our lives as best we could. We were surviving, we were thriving, and it was going to be okay.
This month I celebrate my 5th Blogging Anniversary and I am a little bit proud.
I started out in this “space” truly writing only for me. I wrote anonymously and loved every second of it. It was easy to pour my heart out when there was no fear of neighbours, friends or family judging me for my innermost feelings and thoughts. The only problem, it was not possible to take these connections further until I let a little bit more of my real self though. So under the advice of a few professionals who wanted to work with the “real me” and some new on-line friends who said “Go for it girl!”, I plastered my face up on my blog and let the whole world in. This change in direction made my road through this blogging life both more intimidating and more exciting. I’m grateful for every incredible experience that has been thrown in my lap and even more thankful for the one’s I worked my butt off to earn. Yes, I am grateful to a blog. Blogging has changed my life.
These past five years, I’ve made real true friends and maybe even some frenemies. I’ve shed some tears, and been blessed with some incredible adventures. I’ve had dreams come true, and even been allowed to dream new dreams.
Today, I want to say thank you. Thank you to the readers who have been with me for five years! Thank you to those who joined me somewhere along the way, and to my newest readers, thank you and welcome! I need you to know that each click, like and comment you leave on my little piece of the cyber world is appreciated!
To try and thank you for your love, your comments and giving me a little bit of your time each day I’ve lined up a few giveaways! Yes! For the next few weeks I’m throwing my very own FIVE YEAR CELEBRATION! Woot! During this celebration I will be hosting a few giveaways of some of my favourite things. Starting tomorrow I will present to you the tried and the true, the brand new to me, and maybe even the greatest of escapes from these suburbs! Thanks for sticking with me in my little corner of the suburbs, I can’t wait to see what happens next! XOXO
Congratulations on 5 years of blogging – you ought to be very proud of what you have accomplished! It was great meeting you and your daughters last year – hopefully we will cross paths again in 2014!!
I am so thrilled to have met you and your daughter last year and hope our paths cross somewhere sunny in the near future! Thank you for the kind words!
Congratulations girlfriend. I’m coming up on six years in this crazy blogging world. I don’t even know where that went but I do know that I’m most grateful for the amazing people I’ve met along the way….like you 🙂
Six years in blogging! We are dinosaurs! Congrats to you and I too am so grateful to have met you on this crazy journey in the blogging world! xo
congratulations on five years and some really beautiful writing!
Thank you so much Wendy!
Happy 5th anniversary & looking forward to following you for many many years !
Thank you so very much!
Happy 5 year old birthday!!!!!! I almost said happy 5-0 but realized that would be um me.
LOL Thank you, you ALWAYS make me laugh!
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! Congrats on your 5th year of blogging! 🙂
As a regular reader of your blog, I can say I have enjoyed the time I have spent reading your posts on here and on FB – they have both made me laugh (The Passive Aggressive letters) and cry (The recent army video on FB that had tears streaming down my face)…. I love seeing the photos of the experiences and adventures you and your family have…
I can honestly say I know you love your work and value your readers… that is very special.
Thank you for opening your heart and home to us readers.. It is great appreciated! ♥
Soozle! Your comment brought tears to my eyes! Thank you so very much, you have no idea how much your words mean to me! Thanks for every time you click through and every comment you leave! All the best! Stephanie
Happy Anniversary!!
Thank you Gigi!
Congratulations! That is truly a momentous anniversary in this transient world of blogging.
Thank you so much!! I’m thrilled to still be here 5 years in and can’t wait to see what the future holds!
Congratulations on 5 years! I’m so glad to have meet you and love reading your blog…….
The feeling is quite mutual! So thrilled to had the opportunity to read you!! Thanks for the blog love!
Congrats on your 5 yrs blogging! 🙂 I loved the story about how you were inspired to begin writing your blog. Here’s to the next 5 years!
Thanks Karen!! I do think I will still be blogging 5 years because I almost can’t imagine my life without it!
Wishing you a very happy blogiversary! So blessed to have met you 🙂
Thanks for the well wishes! So blessed to have met you…through a blog?! Who could have ever guessed!!
Happy Anniversary! I will hit my 5 year mark in October and when I think about the life of its own that my little blog has taken on over the course of those years, it blows my mind!
The time will fly for you between now and October!! Isn’t amazing how our blogs become our voice 🙂 Congrats to you too!
Happy to be one of your newer readers!! Congrats to you on your anniversary!
Thank you so much!
Congratulations, my sweet friend!! I’m proud to say I’ve been here since the beginning. =)
A huge thank you for sticking with me for all these years!! Thanks for letting me follow along with you too!
congrats on 5 years….
i started because i was told i should but when i lost my job it became a life line for me….connecting to others…making friends…it def turned into something well beyond what i thought it would be
It is amazing to me how many people started blogging for one reason, to vent, to emote? Then had our blogs turn into so much more. So glad yours turned into so much beyond what you ever thought possible too!