Aren't they pretty???
I apologize for the radio silence. March is a tough month and busy too. My twins have a birthday and my Dad's is two days later. With every birthday comes the reminder that he is not with us and it causes me, my sisters and my mother great sadness. Therefore much of March was spent distracting my Mom and myself. The other part of March was spent planning and executing a Birthday party for the twins and also getting ready for Easter.
As I have mentioned before, I have been contemplating quitting. At this time, I have decided not to. I have decided that some changes are needed though.
First, as I have mentioned before, I have a problem with accepting too many reviews and being frustrated. I am going to try to start scheduling more interviews, guest posts, and such instead of mostly all reviews.
Second, when June and July comes, I am going to really scale back and more or less take a vacation. There will be some prescheduled posts but mostly the posts will be random and sparse. I want to spend more time with my kids and being active. Also, and possibly the biggest reason for wanting this break, I have many books that I've purchased and they are just sitting on the shelf. I have no time to read them because of all the reviews that I agree to. This way I can actually take my time and enjoy reading what I want. I will still post reviews but I will have no time schedule to worry about. :-)
Third, I have decided that I will still offer the CIG but will no longer take the time to enter the info into the Rafflecopter. I will just take every comment into account and at the end of the month they will each be entered and a winner will be picked. I will still give credit for shares as well! This will save me time too. There are usually only a few of you that actually take part so this should be no big deal.
I have not been myself lately and I am working at fixing things. I think these changes will help me. I hope that they do not trouble you.
What do you think????
I really would like to know. :-)
Do you have any spring plans?
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I know march isn't the easiest month for you so i tried not to worry about your silent ( after all you did answer some comments so i knew you were there) but you haven't sent me your new email yet so i did not dare to send a long letter however you did not leave my thoughts.
ReplyDeletei'm glad you are not giving up and taking time for yourself. You are important more than the blog ( after all it would not be there without you) so i do think you got a good plan . We can live with less reviews and we want you to enjoy what you read and that's means also reading for pleasure ;)
You can count on me!i won't leave you ( i will probably comment later than usual this week as my mother has been hospitalised ( not to worryand i need to run everywhere but i will be there too )
only detail;) perhaps avariation or another color than teh yellow because this one isn't the most visible but all teh rest nothing to say ;)
Enjoy your children and your reads!
I see what you mean about the yellow! :-( Sorry!
DeleteI appreciate your understanding, your loyalty and friendship. It means more to me than words can convey.
I wish your mother well and I hope that you have peace while dealing with your extra demands. Perhaps some good news is in order? You won March's CIG! Let me know what book you would like to have.
I am sorry about the email debacle. I am still using my old one. My new email provider is unreliable and gives me spotty service. I am obligated to keep them for one year so I am paying for theirs and for my old one too because it is reliable and I need to have internet that I can count on.
thank you a lot, old email noted and i will let you know as soon as i have a few minute to check. really thank you
Deleteand don't hesitate to send me an email if you need something i'm still there.
We do love our mothers a lot and me too i have been closer to her since my father illness and after his death so having her like that it's terrifying ( we planned some shopping since the return of teh sun) but it will get better and we will do the holidays we speak about for nearly 7 years if no more^^
I am glad that you are not stopping completely as I enjoy your blog. I can understand over booking and not being able to really enjoy what you are reading because of a deadline. Enjoy your children while they are still young. But most of all enjoy your mother because when she is gone nothing will ever be the same again. I lost mine 25 years ago and still miss her. Good luck on all your new journey.
ReplyDeleteThank you. I live across the street from my mom and I am the youngest of her children. She and I have always had a special bond and it has only grown since my father died. I take her dinner many nights, take her shopping with me when I go for groceries, and we do lunch at least once a week. I talk to her almost every day and when we go camping, we take her every chance we get.
DeleteI want to spend more time with everyone and as you said, reading in a rush does not let me enjoy it as much.
I am very glad that you understand. i am sorry for your loss as well.
I'm glad your not giving up blogging hun! I would miss u too much!
ReplyDeleteSorry I haven't been around much either. My mom fell and got hurt. The doc is pretty sure she tore her hamstring so now were just waiting on insurance to approve the tests and stuff. That and I was dog sitting for a friend so I was back and forth between 2 houses.
I'm with you on taking some time for ourselves and just catching up on reading. I've also been trying to cut back on reviews. They can get really stressful. I love reading but sometimes real life gets in the way then knowing I have to have stuff done on a deadline can be a pain. So I understand completely.
Just know I'm here for you and you can shoot me an email anytime. :)
Thanks Amber! I would miss you guys as well. Deadlines aren't my problem as much as over scheduling. I typically have a review scheduled per day and that doesn't leave much time for enjoyment. I really have a problem limiting myself.
DeleteI hope that the insurance gets settled soon and that your mom has a speedy recovery!
I have such a hard time saying no!! specially for a free book to read but I've really had to try lately. I've been so behind on reading and just too tired. Im always getting them done last minute. :(
DeleteThanks! I'm hoping that we can get everything moving fast soon. She's having a real hard time getting around and is in a lot of pain and meds aren't working. I was looking for a job too but now I cant because she needs me. My dads on the road 2 weeks at a time and then only home on weekends so its basically just me helping her. (sorry venting) So just very tired. I'm so sorry that I haven't been on too much for you! I miss visiting everyday so I'm hoping to get back to normal soon!
don't worry amber, friends are for the good and the bad so we don't mind some venting ;)
Deletetake you time, take care of you and your mom we are ghere and won't leave
and as strangely as it sound this could be told to you exactly in teh same way Brenda so
* hugs* to both of you!
Same to you sweetie! I hope your mom is doing better!
DeleteI am so glad to hear that you decided to continue blogging. You do a great job with your posts. It is really not necessary to post daily reviews. I hope your planned changes make everything a little easier for you. Family time is so very important and we should enjoy it while we can.
ReplyDelete