Life Update: April 2019
Welcome back to the blog! This week both flew by while dragging on at the same time, and I’m excited to be sitting down to catch up with you guys. Keep reading for an update on life lately, including my current blogging mindset, summer plans and our thoughts on *maybe* getting a dog.
Yup, Justin and I are tossing around the idea of getting a dog! We had always talked about waiting to get one when we had a house and yard, so it’s kind of exciting that’s now possible for us. We agree that the best time to do so would probably be summer (even though Justin is going to be working now, which I’ll get into in a second), but we haven’t decided if it’s something we want to follow through with yet. One important thing for us to consider is that we were brought up completely differently with dogs. Justin’s family dogs were always indoors and mine were always outside (they’d hang out in the garage and sleep in there at night, but always outside otherwise), so we’re unsure how we’d want to approach that in our own house. I definitely don’t like the idea of a dog destroying our new house, but dogs inside on the furniture is all Justin knows. I would be more comfortable having a dog inside if I knew they didn’t shed, but I’d also prefer to adopt from a shelter, which is pretty much guaranteed to be a mutt that sheds (which I love!). What are your thoughts on this?
In other news, Justin accepted a summer job (he’s a high school teacher if you didn’t know), so he’ll be staying busy during his “off” months this June & July. He doesn’t have to work summers whatsoever and I always leave it up to him, but he likes having something to do. It’s actually a construction job where he will likely be working on houses, which will be nice skills for him to learn to utilize in our own place. It’s also a great way for him to be physically active, which he’s building up bit by bit since his two hernia surgeries last year. I want to get more active too and I’m planning on trying Pure Barre with my mom soon, which I’m excited about! I’ve been meaning to try it for the last year or so.
If I’m being honest here, I’ve had a really weird couple of weeks. With the family health scare and stuff, things have felt off in my life. I’ve been in an especially weird headspace with blogging lately too, probably the lowest I’ve felt in my entire career thus far. I’m going to deep-dive into this for a sec, and I’m very much aware that this sounds superficial and silly — but think of it from a business perspective.
My Instagram stats are LOW and I’m getting frustrated with myself for feeling so stagnant. I get so excited to share something and instantly get knocked down a peg when it doesn’t perform as I’d hoped. I’ve had a lot of “why bother?” days, and that’s so sad since blogging is my biggest passion. I’m honestly embarrassed by my Instagram stats considering I’ve been blogging for 3.5 years, and that too is embarrassing for me to admit. How am I not growing when I’ve been so consistent and focused on creating high-quality content for so long? I stay up late and get up extra early when needed to make sure I post on my blog three times a week and on Instagram every single day that I can, but I’m definitely not seeing results on Insta. It’s as if I’m doing nothing at all, and that’s so disheartening.
I feel like I’m playing a losing game of catch-up. I’ve been in the industry as long as (if not longer) than a lot of successful girls I follow, and though I’m incredibly happy for them, I can’t help but think “what are they doing that I’m not?” aside from dedicating themselves to their blog full-time. There isn’t even a destination I’m trying to reach, all I want to be is going up, even if it’s steady and little-by-little, but I’m not even getting that right now. I try to remind myself that there are others that may admire me and where I’m currently at, so I know it’s important to be grateful and acknowledge that I did build what I have from the ground up, and that’s something to be proud of. This may not make sense to you, especially if you’re not in the blogging industry, but I do think these feelings spread across multiple fields. I just wanted to let you guys know where my head is at and that you’re certainly not alone in feeling this way!
I also don’t really have friends in the blogging community, and I think that’s part of the reason why my fire has dimmed. I don’t really have someone to talk to about these things who gets it and is going through the same thing. I don’t even know if I have friends and family that like all of my pictures and read all of my posts, and those are people that know me, so how can I get people that don’t know me to be interested in what I have to say, you know? I kind of feel like I’m doing this alone and not well, at that. I always have to drag Justin along (which I love, but I’m not so sure he does 😉🤣) for photoshoots and events, and it would be nice to have a friend to do those things with. I also feel like I don’t like people, so that doesn’t help (lol).
On a more positive note, we’re still absolutely loving our house and I think about how grateful I am for it every single day. You guys know how much of a struggle it was for us to get here, and I’m so glad we pushed through. I think we always end up where we’re supposed to be in life, and I’m happy the road led us here. Our house is a form of comfort and inspiration for me, and in a lot of ways, it’s everything I didn’t know I needed. It’s so nice having a space we love that’s ours to come home to, especially on the tough days.
I’ll stop my little update and vent session here. Thank you for listening, and I really mean that. I’m not sure who all reads my posts since you appear as a number on my end, but no matter who you are, I appreciate you and I’m grateful that you keep coming back. Seriously, it means so much to me! Don’t be a stranger — even if we’ve never spoken, I’d be happy to hear from you. Anyway, I wanted to leave you with a quote that I’ve been really embracing. It’s been my lock screen on my phone for weeks, so here it is if you want to save it as yours too!
“Energy is the currency of the universe. When you “pay” attention to something, you buy that experience. So when you allow your consciousness to focus on someone or something that annoys you, you feed it your energy, and it reciprocates with the experience of being annoyed.”
I’m doing my best to keep this in mind, especially during this rut I’m in. Have a great weekend, everyone!
I can totally relate on the instagram / full-time blogging front. It can be super frustrating to watch newer bloggers get big fast and be able to turn it into their full-time gig while I’ve been plugging away at blogging for quite a few years. I just keep reminding myself why I do what I do, and I also remind myself that people ARE reading and interacting with my content. Even if instagram stats don’t always make me feel like it.
As far as having people in your life interested in the content you create, I think it’s important to focus on the people in your target audience rather than trying to get those other people interested. My boyfriend never reads my blog and isn’t a big instagram person but I don’t care because it’s not like he’s my target audience or the kind of person I’m trying to attract with the content I create. Some of my friends are not necessarily interested in the things I talk about so I don’t expect them to like or comment on every blog post or instagram.
For me connecting with other bloggers / instagrammers has helped a lot. It’s the people that “get” it and are also building their brand. I don’t know what your local blogging scene is like but maybe try to connect with some people in your area, even if they aren’t in your exact niche just to have people to talk about this stuff with and share insight and info.
Apologies for the long comment, but just know I love your content and can definitely relate to the frustrations of instagram + trying to grow your blog when you feel like you’ve been plugging away at it forever.
Kayla, THANK YOU SO MUCH for this message!
I agree on all fronts. It definitely feels like it’s necessary to do things I don’t want to do in order to grow, like loop giveaways, hanging out with other bloggers just to post pics with each other to gain followers, etc. It’s so much harder to get bigger without doing these things and I hate that!
I’ve been really trying to keep the target audience thing in mind more since I read your comment — thank you for that, seriously! I know this in the back of my mind, but it’s hard to remember on the tough blogging days. None of my friends or family are really into social media, fashion or pretty much anything I blog about like I am, so I can’t really fault anyone in that position for not engaging in my content. I definitely think that as bloggers, we have a much better understanding of how much a simple like, comment and share can do for someone’s business/growth, so it falsely seems unfair when people we love don’t see that.
The Indy blogger scene is packed and I’ve met lots of them, but I haven’t really clicked with any in person. I’m not bubbly and way more self-deprecating 🤣 Again, thank you so much for taking the time to send this message my way! I really appreciate it & wish you all the best on your blogging journey too! We can do this! 😉💕
Oh my gosh Abby, it’s like you read my mind with this post! Blogging can be such an emotional roller coaster! One day I’m so inspired and excited and hopeful and the next I’m flooded with self doubt, feel totally deflated and like I’m just wasting my time. I can also relate to not having people in my immediate circle that “get it”, which can be really isolating.
Thank you for articulating what is clearly a common (but rarely discussed) experience. And I just have to say that you are definitely a blogger I admire. I’m blown away by your constant creativity and consistency. I encourage you to keep at it as long as you remain passionate about it because you ARE reaching people! 🙂
WOW, thank you soooo much, Sarah! 😭💕 It’s comforting to hear I’m not alone in this and I wish more people talked about it. It definitely comes in waves for me too, but those low points can be tough to bounce back from sometimes. It sucks when an outlet that normally brings me so much happiness can get me down every now and then, but it sounds like that is pretty common — definitely more good days than bad I suppose. Thanks so much for sharing your side of it too, I appreciate it more than you know!