One month of daily blogging: completed!

I have toyed with the idea of blogging from the minute I heard it defined in the 1990’s. A friend who values my judgement (and addiction to comparison shopping) has been prodding me to start one for reviewing products for years.

Sometime last spring, the idea came to me to call “my imaginary future blog” Really Wonderful Things. At last, I’d figured out what tied together all the stuff I wanted to write about: being wonder-full.

Really Wonderful Things are ideas and objects, passions and people—anything that strikes me as a force for good, or a source for a good wonder. I wonder about lots of things. I find human accomplishments incredibly wonderful. The world is full of wonders to explore.

My husband reserved the domain name for me last year as a mother’s day gift. And then it sat while I focused on other things. This year, just before the renewal notification for the domain registration arrived, I was working on an organization project for our camping equipment. I thought, “Someone else might find these ideas helpful.”

And—it’s about flipping time!—I took action. My first post was Organizing the chuck box & storing camp kitchen gear

On March 30, 2017, reallywonderfulthings.me was born.

Inspirations

Aside from the support of my ever- occasionally-patient family, and the prodding of one friend who really wants to know how I find and rate the myriad useful objects in my life, two other people sparked life into this blog.

Crazy Russian Dad

I am friends with a guy who’s a busy, successful professional, a loving family man, and, in his spare time, an entertaining YouTube innovator with thousands of followers: Crazy Russian Dad. He decided to make daily videos for his YouTube channel for one year, and he did it (and then some!)

When I started my blog, I wanted to follow his example. Concrete goals help me stay on track. Posting on a schedule gives your followers a reason to trust you: if you show up, I’ll be here to continue the conversation.

I committed myself to one month of daily posts, and here I am.

“Just” another mom stepping back into the professional world

And then there’s a friend—a full time parent, like me—who’s been accepted into a graduate degree program. Her kids are younger than mine. She’s been out of the job market as long as I have.

We’ve commiserated many times about the creeping anxieties of the stay-at-home parent:

• Can I step back into the world of work when I’m ready?
• Am I relevant?
• Is my contribution going to be valued?

She’s nervous about becoming a student again, and in a field outside of her undergraduate degree, but she’s facing those feelings down in pursuit of a dream.

I want to act as courageously as my friend!

She was another inspiration to create the content for which I saw a need. Her courage—though she doesn’t see it as such—helped nudge me into action. She helped me remember my voice, and gave me the courage to speak up.

I have something to say, and there are people out there who want to hear me say it.

Thank you!

Thank you so much to every follower and casual reader. Your attention has been very much appreciated. Let’s keep the conversation going!