At a Blogging Crossroads

I haven't blogged much recently. Part of that is because my energy levels and mental liveliness have been so low lately. I have come to the blog numerous times only to open a new post, stare blankly at the screen wondering what to write about, and then decide I'm too tired and give up.

Another part has been that it often seems redundant. I have a Facebook account now, and post status updates and links fairly frequently.

But I miss the blog. I have spent quite a bit of time recently going back and re-reading old blog posts, often laughing at my kids' antics or shaking my head at the craziness of life. I like having those moments chronicled here, where I can go back and read them easily.

It's very interesting to see the change and growth that has taken place since I first started blogging.

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I first started keeping a blog on Xanga in July 2004, almost exactly 7 years ago.

It started out as very much a personal journal, read by only a few family and friends.

Then, especially when I was having to take it easy and spend time on bedrest during my pregnancy with Ebee, I became very interested and active in political and social issues, especially Terri Schiavo. For a long time, my blog was basically about that. I gained some regular readers who were also highly involved in discussing and researching that and similar topics.

When I switched to Blogger in May 2005, I was pregnant with Ebee, and my posts became more eclectic again.

I actually started getting involved in the blogosphere, on blogs that were more personal blogs and not geared toward discussion and debate of specific issues. I had some trial and error learning blogging etiquette, and committed some rather huge social faux pas such as posting links to my own blog in comments on someone else's blog, and posting comments vehemently disagreeing with a post the author hadn't intended as an opening to a discussion or debate. :) I've learned a lot over the years, I hope.

My blog became mostly a chronicle of our daily life--cute things the kids said, our struggles with life, kids and health issues, and just random stuff.

While Ebee was young, I wrote most of my posts while she was nursing. Once she was weaned and I no longer had that excuse to sit at the computer so often, and especially after we added the rabbits and some other new activities to our lives, my blogging dropped off significantly.

I did start a food blog called Restricted Gourmet to stash all my recipes on. That's been fun. And, there are a couple of other blogs I've contributed to occasionally as one of multiple authors.

Here on the Purple Puzzle Place, I've written a bit about parenting, a bit about political issues, a few posts that were book or product reviews, and a few updates on daily life. There hasn't really been any consistent theme or consistent anything, really. :)

In the past year or more, I've posted very little. I'd like to get back to writing more. I feel I've gotten rusty, and I miss it. But I'm not sure what to write about, and finding the time and energy is always a challenge. I'm a little afraid I've lost my mental edge, my way with words, and my sense of humor. :)

I'm also not sure what to write about. It seems most of my writing energy gets used up by posting on Facebook and online communities I participate in, and then anything I think to write about is redundant because I've already posted about it elsewhere. Facebook updates are perfect for chronicling those cute and funny things the kids say. But they are much harder to go back to and read again later.

I've thought about dropping the blog completely, but I'm not sure I'm ready to do that. I think maybe I'd like to start up with it again; give it another try. Maybe if I start blogging regularly, I'll find my groove and the creative juices will get flowing again.

I think there are about 3 or 4 faithful readers who still actually have me in their newsfeed; I'm grateful for the undeserved loyalty from these precious people.

I'm curious: If I were to start blogging regularly again, what sorts of things would you particularly enjoy reading about? Do you have any favorite posts or types of posts from the past that come to mind, that you'd enjoy reading more of?

PSA: Blog Browser-Crashing Issues

Is your blog shutting down your browser? If you're getting a page won't load--abort error message on your blog, it seems to be an issue with SiteMeter and Internet Explorer.

If you remove the SiteMeter counter script, then it works fine. Apparently using Firefox also helps, but it doesn't help everyone else who is still running IE.

Or you can try some of the other fixes in the comments on this post. There are instructions for fixing the IE7 bug, and also for moving the SiteMeter script to a different part of your template so it won't cause problems.

May I just say

That I really, really like having the housecleaners come. Now that I've gotten over the embarrassment and am getting into the swing of getting ready, it's a wonderful thing. They are here for 3-4 hours and when they leave every surface in the house is shining. They even take apart the stovetop to clean the drip pans and burner rings.

With my lower energy levels and higher pain levels the last several weeks, the timing of having them come couldn't be better.

Best. Birthday gift. Ever. Thank you, DH.

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OH, also, Baby E wanted me to know this evening (again) that she is definitely A "big dwown-up, not a widdow dwon-up. A big dwown-up who dwinks miwk fwom hew mommy."

I think I'm going to start calling her E-bee. We still call her something similar to that as a nickname, because she's such a busy little bee. Do you think that will work as a good bloggy name for her?

26 SPAM comments in one day . . .

I've turned word verification back on, and am reporting the offending usernames to Blogger.

Which Avatar?

I'm thinking of changing my avatar, but I'm not sure. What do you think? Should I keep my cute little purple kangaroo logo?



Or should I make it something like a photo of me instead? I was thinking about something like this:



Of course, in avatar size it would look more like this:



Would it be too confusing to change my avatar so drastically, do you think? I kind of like the anonymity and name recognition of the kangaroo, but the idea of something a little more personal has some appeal as well.