Mom Got Blog: Year 2010

Saratoga Battlefield
Summer 2010
K.Pugliano

 
Wow. This year has most definitely flown by, hasn’t it?

One of my favorite bloggers, Scary Mommy had this idea to do write a ‘Year in Review’ post and I thought- hey, that would be fun!

After going through the year, I am amazed at all that we have been through on Mom Got Blog. We have grown quite a bit from our beginnings! We made it to a National Blogging Contest, we had our first giveaway, we had a month of building a better blog, we joined new communities, we gained some fantastic blogging friends, we began to showcase other bloggers for Blogger of the Month and we have welcomed guest posts from around the globe.

Year 2010 would not have happened if not for you! Thank you so much for your support, comments and friendship! You have helped to grow this blog and share my voice with the masses and for that I am so grateful! Thank you for a wonderful year and I can’t wait to start 2011 with you by my side!

Here are some of my favorite posts from 2010:

January: Petra Acker, The “Sweetness" Factor {really fantastic young lady!}

February: Olympic Exhaustion {Can’t believe they were a year ago!}

March: Really?! Part 5 {I love writing these posts. Add an ‘Ex’ in there, & it gets interesting!}

April: Ben, Time is Ticking {Football & dumb moves}

May: Desperately Seeking Balance {really says it all}

June: Wordless Wednesday: Julie & Julia and For The Love of Books {could not have one without the other!}

July: Blog Bucket List {Getting through it!}

August: Dream a Little Dream {One of my favorite new friends allowed me to dream}

September: I Got Lost In the Milkyway {decadence in its purest of forms}

October: Gilligan’s Island The Chicago Series: “The Movie Star”  {One B-I-T-C-H!}

November: “Trick or Tweet” Happy Halloween {This TOT still leaves a smile on my face! Yee-haw!}

December: Single Parents are Superheroes {It is true.}


Have some of your favorites made the list? Tell me about it in the comments below!

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Blog of Christmas Future

Photo from: nonprofitquarterly.org

Part three of the Blogging Christmas Carol is finally ready! I don’t know about you, but the holiday’s seemed to take forever to get here and then when they did arrive, spun me around so much that I lost all track of what day and time it was!


Blog of Christmas Past

Brought you and I to what was happening on Mom Got Blog a year ago. I enjoyed the visit and hope you did too. I think my favorite post to read again was the Snoop-Dog House Christmas!

Blog of Christmas Present

Was fun to write also…but I will give you a heads up. Hubby was not happy that I shared the family Pizzelle recipe, so if you want it, write it down! I will be removing it from the site on January 1st!

Which now brings us to:

Blog of Christmas Future



Photo from: ucdavismagazine.ucdavis.edu

The Christmas Carol brings a bleak future picture for old Scrooge. Since this is a Blogging Christmas Carol, I have decided that the picture not look so downtrodden, but bright and optimistic! Ahh, the future; Defined as “something that will exist or happen in time to come.” What is exciting about the future…possibilities that are out there yet to be discovered. The future can also be scary because of the unknown!

I have been talking about moving this blog for a while now and it is finally happening! I wanted to pull together all the different pieces such as my love of food, sports, photography, books, as well as the main life-story ideas that make up MGB and have them in one spot. It will be easier for me to maintain and will also be easier for you to navigate through the site. I have contacted a designer and they have been working their magic making a new place and look for Mom Got Blog! I like what has been created so far and I think you will too!

Since the new site will be self-hosted, I will be opening up the blog for advertising. Nothing outrageous and nothing that does not fit with the blog itself. As a reader and friend, you know that I share my honest take on things-whether it is a favorite family travel destination or cooking product and I have done so all on my own (meaning that the company behind the product did not ask me to say things about them!). If I can land a few advertisements that can interest you and help me break even on the maintenance costs…then I think it will be a win for both of us.

Blog it Forward

Remember that? Yes, the fabulous idea that started out with such fervor? Well, it is still alive…it just needs a little kicking! I have asked a few blogger friends if they would like to be contributors to the site to help with more consistent content and they have graciously agreed. We are about to brainstorm some ideas and be ready to start back up again in the New Year.

The future holds so many opportunities and I can’t wait to welcome them with you! I am putting fear aside, grabbing 2011 by the horns and hanging on for the ride - hope you will join me!



What are you looking forward to in 2011? Let me know in the comments below!


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Visions of 2011 and New Beginnings

Today's guest post is from our Blogger of the Month, Laurie of Taking the Long Way. I do hope you have stopped over to her blog. It really is a fantastic place and I know you will enjoy her photography as much as the words that enhance the story behind the image. Read her post below, and you will see what I mean! She is one heck of a woman and I am so honored that she was here for December!

Five days. Count 'em. There are five days left in 2010. I'm writing this as I fly against the sun's grain to the east coast. The clouds are white, like a blank slate. The horizon is pink and the sky is bluer than I've seen in months (hailing from Portland, Oregon will do that).

I realized as I took off this morning in the dead of night that I haven't had a moment to reflect on the past year or more importantly set a vision for 2011. My guess is you haven't either. But there's time - five days if you want to hit the ground running and more if you want to ease into your year's journey.

Last year at this time Kelly and I had both received rather disappointing news. We would not be traveling to Vancouver, British Columbia to blog from the winter Olympic games. I was crushed, we both were, but at the same time the moment felt ripe with possibility. The possibility that comes from doors opening and new years beginning. Pretty powerful stuff if you ask me.

I set some goals in that heady moment - a map for my year. I didn't follow the road exactly. (what fun would that be?) But the process and the vision that resulted made all the difference. So I plan to spend the next several days, as I celebrate the old year and ring in the new one, harnessing the power that new beginnings can offer. 2011 is going to be one beauty of a year - filled with love, adventure, grace and blessings galore.

As I set a vision for 2011 I know I owe a great deal to the community of writers and creators I've met in the blogosphere. Kelly is at the top of that list and she's joined by Susannah Conway, Danielle LaPorte, and the reverb2010 project - whose process of living life to the fullest is a continual inspiration and one I drink up at this time of year. So thank you Kelly and cheers to 2011!
 
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Guest Post: Lessons Going in Circles

Good morning! Wanted to let you now that I am a guest over at Tough Cookie Mommy today! I'm so excited!

I wrote a piece on being a speedskating mama!! Go check it out and leave me a comment to say hi!

I would love it if you did.

Tomorrow will be my Blog of Christmas Future post. Can't wait to share with you all the big things that are going to happen with Mom Got Blog! :)

Bitter Sweet Holidays

Today's Guest Blogger is Maria, author of the blog Tough Cookie Mommy. A native New Yorker who shares her stories, reflections, triumphs and so much more. Stop by her blog to gain some insight into who she is and maybe, make you reflect upon who you are.  You might be a tougher cookie than you think...


BITTER SWEET HOLIDAYS

The holidays have a wonderful way of bringing out the best and the worst in people. More often than not, we hear holiday stories where everyone had an amazing time as much as we hear stories of family gatherings gone wrong. It is a unique time of the year where everyone's emotions are running high and a lot of stress and preparation goes into getting ready for a few days of festivities. As a result of this, there are many things that we all love about the holidays and, unfortunately, there are also many things that we all dread about the holidays. I guess you can't have a complete holiday season without experiencing both. Being that I happen to be somewhat of an expert on the "good, bad, and the ugly" of the holiday season, I thought I would enlighten you with a list of the 5 best things about the holidays and the 5 most dreaded things about the holidays:

5 Things That We All Love About The Holidays:

1) Buying presents for all our loved ones.

2) The looks on children's faces as they open their presents.

3) Eating all of the wonderful food that we prepare around the holidays.

4) Spending time with those who matter the most to us.

5) Singing along to holiday music.


5 Things We All Dread About The Holidays:

1) Seeing those family members that we work so hard all year long to avoid seeing.

2) Looking at our bank accounts after the holidays.

3) The morning after New Year's Eve...

4) Going crazy trying to buy that "must have" toy for your child that is sold out everywhere.

5) Having to clean up after all of your guests go home.

*HONORABLE MENTION* Your Mother In Law!

Luckily for most of us, the holidays are such a magical time that we very often think that the good experiences outweigh the bad ones. It is really important that you don't lose sight of the things that truly matter during the holidays such as family, friends, and unity. This is the time of the year where we slow down from our daily grind and focus on our loved ones and what they mean to us in our lives. This year, I am especially grateful for my two sons and the fact that they are healthy and happy. At the end of the day, that is what celebrating the holidays is really about, celebrating life and all of its many blessings. I would like to take this opportunity to wish you and your family a very healthy and happy holiday season and New Year.