ShowOff ShowCase: The One That Did Do Better (But I Wasn't Expecting It)

by 16 Comments

Regulars to my blog, and to this ShowCase will know that once a month I have the theme of: The One That Should Have Done Better providing another opportunity for those unloved posts to have a little more attention and possibly widen the readership.

After the last SOSC, I was asked by @The_Moiderer if I could do the opposite theme at the next opportunity; not 'The Most Popular Post' but an opportunity to highlight a blog-post which is consistently read or soared on the stats chart but was never intended to be a ratings winner. And because she's one of my favourite bloggers, and one of the first people I started following on twitter (60,000 tweets ago) I am unable to refuse her!

Finding a post for this link-up has proven difficult. People have different reasons for blogging: while some use it purely as a resource and a diary for themselves, others use it to communicate with the wider world. I'm one of those who thinks that the minute you press publish then you are sharing it with anyone and everyone to see, and therefore it is done with the intent of being read. However, there are some posts that I accept might not have as many readers as other posts: my 365 photo-journal hardly gets any attention for example.

I've got one post which sits head and shoulders above the rest. Unfortunately it's a competition and I don't allow competitions to be linked up. I will tell you though that it was a review and competition of NIP+FAB Frown Fix and has had 1000 more views than any other post on my blog, and has at least one hit a day. Sometimes if it's in the news I get a spike of 100 views that day. Bizarre.

The post I'm linking up is a mixed-bag. Yes, the initial purpose of it was as a sponsored post for NetMums and it was to write about the Family Friendly Football Festival. However, it was a big family day out for us and we had a really positive experience. In the month since I published it, I've had 200+ views on it. Reviews tend to get a quarter of that over the course of several months. Further to that, because it was a positive review, I am now being followed on twitter by The Football League and my review was retweeted by them to its 45,000 followers!

So which is the one that you weren't expecting? Which is the one that was actually written just as a rambling aside to yourself but everyone was fascinated in? Link it up below and see if you can get an insight into the workings of your readers minds.

ShowOff ShowCase is only successful when people read and comment on each others' blogs. Please take five minutes to show some love for the link-ups.

Please add the badge to the end of your post so people can easily return here to read the others.

ShowOff ShowCase

Websites I Visit The Most

by 7 Comments

The jovial Jenny from Mummy Mishaps has tagged me in a meme started by excellent Emma from Mummy Musings showing the websites that I can't live without.

It's quite apt for me because the second that the laptop has finished firing up, the second Firefox has loaded I'm opening up new tabs; one for each of the following and in this order:

  • Gmail

The e-mails at the moment are bananas. Obviously I run a fair amount of competitions and so I get a lot of e-mails from entries, alongside the lovely comments on my original content posts. In addition to the notifications for blogs that I read, are the review requests. And at the moment there's a fair amount. I am inordinately fortunate to be receiving them but reading through take a little time.

  • Twitter

At the time of writing this, 58,999 tweets show that I'm an addict. Nearly 60,000 tweets in a year. God, I talk a lot of crap. Now, is the time to disagree with me and say that every one of my 140 character statements are profound and worthwhile. Come on, 1,807 of you follow me so it can't all be crap?

Can it?

  • TheBoyandMe

Of course, it should probably be first but hey-ho! Approving comments and writing posts. Do I need to explain anything else about it?

  • Facebook

Why? Why do I still bother with it? It's a pile of pants nowadays, but I'm a bit rubbish at letting things go. Besides, the TRU discussion group is a fab little community and I'm addicted to playing Words With Friends with Carole and Kate.

  • Picnik

It is, without a shadow of a doubt, the best photo editing facility that I've come across. I've subscribed to the premium functions and I use it daily. Love it!

And so I tag:

My Empire

by 16 Comments

I have been tagged by both the marvellous MummyMummyMum and the wonderful Would Like To Be a Yummy Mummy in a little meme which asks us to reveal our blogging haven; where we sit and converse with the world through our 14inch screens.

It's not saintly at all, it's a complete and utter comfort zone of blogging ease. This is my seat in the living room, woe betide anyone who sits here. Several reasons that it's mine; table for my constant glass of water and access to the power-leads for the laptop and external HDD. You'll also notice the USB lead for my camera, the Ultra Flip-Cam HD on the table and the remote control. I've noticed that I need to wash the sofa covers.

So there you go, I'm a slob and will pretend to be nothing else.

And I like the colour blue!

I tag:

ShowOff ShowCase: The One That Should Have Done Better

by 7 Comments

There's always one post that we've written that we were proud of, that we put the final punctuation mark to and thought "yep, that's a good one! They're going to love it!"

And then either no bugger read it, or, like I've had before, about 50 people read it but no-one commented!

I used to think it was the stats that counted, but it's not; it's the comments. They confirm that your writing is decent and that your readers find your ramblings enjoyable.

Hence this linky to help other ShowOff the posts that were underappreciated. This weekend, I'd like you to help those posts to hold their heads up high! Brush them off, stick my badge at the bottom of the post and show them off for everyone to see. Don't be ashamed of them, help them shout at everyone:

I SHOULD HAVE DONE BETTER!

ShowOff ShowCase

I've added two; one was a competition post but I love the video and I wanted to share it again. Comments on it are closed so if you want to comment on the Oreo video, please can you do so below? Thanks!

Ten Questions

by 30 Comments

I have been tagged by The Crazy Kitchen in Ten Questions, another bleeding meme! However, as I am not one to walk away from a tossed gauntlet, here goes:

1: Describe yourself in seven words:

I am a stroppy, sensitive, tired bugger blogger.

2: What keeps you awake at night?

Not much, when I've gone, I've gone. However, floating off on that cloud can often be disturbed by husband's snoring. If he falls asleep before me then I've had it, and so has he because I elbow or belt him one to make him stop. I once held his nose for a few seconds; it worked, he didn't breathe for thirty seconds and I was worried I'd killed him.

3: If you could be anyone for a day who would you be and why?

Me, but a less tired version with an infinite amount of money. Just one day, that's all I need.

4:  What are you wearing now?

Black top, underwear, vest-top and cropped trousers. My full-length ones need ironing and I can't be arsed at the moment. I'll do it before we go out to the fireworks!

5:  What scares you?

Death. Or rather not being here anymore with my loved ones, and them not with me. I'm absolutely petrified of general anaesthetics because of that, to the point where I have a panic attack and cry.

6:  What is the best and the worst thing about blogging?

The opportunities I've had, both with events or products, but mostly the opportunity to make new friends who I click with. There are now three bloggers (and one tweeter) that I've met that I consider real-life friends, and a few more that I can't wait to meet because I'm pretty sure I'd feel the same.
The worst thing is the arrogance of some bloggers who think they are better than everyone else. They don't bother to talk to the little people (forgetting that they themselves were once there) and they harrass people who don't blog the way that they think every blogger should. They criticise people who review calling them blaggers, but would themselves turn up to the opening of an envelope. I think that envelope should contain the word 'humility' written on it.
7:  What was the last website you looked at?  

Twitter, unsurprisingly. Other than that this morning I've been on Facebook to post a Toyologist review, Amazon to copy it across (it wasn't a good one), The Crazy Kitchen, Mummy Mishaps and Gmail. Was that interesting?

8:  If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be?Physically: in general it would be how hefty I've become, although specifically it would be to have slender upper arms; I struggle in the Summer months.

Personality: my low levels of self-esteem.

9:  Slankets Yes or No!?

What the hell is a slanket? <goes to look it up>

Um no, I'm 34 not 84.

10: Tell us something about the person who tagged you?

Helen is kind, caring, funny, down-to-Earth and a good friend. She's also a sh*t-hot cook.

Now I tag Mummy Central, MammyWoo (she won't do it though), SAHDandProud and MotherVenting (I want to see what she says about slankets).

The rules of the game are:

1) Answer the 10 questions
2) Tag someone to do the same
3) Come back to the original blog post by Super Amazing Mum and comment that you have done so in order for us to find out who has been tagged and therefore find out more about our fellow bloggers!

My Inbox Delights

by 12 Comments

"Share with us your 5 favourite blogs and tell us why you love them"

The prompt from BritMums reminded me of my Inbox Delights meme that I did a few months ago, but sadly died a death on the second stage (sob, no-one loves me!). I can most certainly tell you my five favourite blogs and why, absolutely no problem. They really won't have changed that much since the last time I wrote it, or since I nominated a few of them for the MADS. The only thing that has changed is that I've met two of them who have become real-life friends.

These are the five that arrive in my inbox daily and that I always comment on (ok, 98% of the time!)

  1. MammyWoo: There is a reason why she was nominated by me and everyone else in the MADS for best new blog. And there's an even bigger reason why she won; because she rocks big time. She has become one of my real-life best mates and it's not a good day without a text from LexyWoo! Hearing her journey to overcome PND makes me so unbelievably proud of her, but she is so much more than just that. See here, here and here for typical Lexy-Life!
  2. GhostWriterMummy: Although I haven't met this amazing blogger, I know that we would get on like a house on fire. She is a fantastic mother and teacher, but a complete and utter inspiration to me also. She has helped me to deal with issues that I have surrounding The Boy's birth, and has done the same for countless other mothers, co-founding Maternity Matters. Throughout all of this, she has also come to terms with her own birth trauma successfully and is currently expecting her third child. Warning, this post may make you cry; it did me.
  3. The Crazy Kitchen: I love this family-orientated blog and Helen has become a good real-life friend that I have made a number of times, always feeling like I was catching up with an old friend. If you want to see the cooking capabilities of a two year old, this is where you'll see his finesse at cracking eggs. If you want to find out how to make the most amazing house out of tiny cardboard boxes, look no further. And you have to try these.
  4. The Moiderer: This was one of the first blogs that I came across, and she is one of the first people that I started following on twitter. The Moiderer is not, as I honestly thought, someone who enforces the deceasement of others but said in a heavy Scottish accent (a la Taggert), but someone who chats a lot. And she chats a lot of brilliant and enthralling tales about family life with the Little One, her Thinking Slimmer journey (which is incredible) and turmoils in her life. Heart-wrenching and heart-warming, I adore her blog, and I adore her.
  5. Reluctant Housedad: He may be a reluctant SAHD but he loves it really. This is the man who can iron a shirt in 27 seconds, that's yoke an' all! Having adjusted from quite a high-flying position to that of keeper of the house, I love hearing his tales of discovery with his three children, the missus and reading his new and ingenious recipes.

Sod it, who am I to stop at 5?

My other favourites are these four.