HAPPY ANNIVERSARY…

to me!  One year ago today I started this blog with my first post called, Happy Mall Walkers.  When I started this thing I really didn’t know what to expect.  I didn’t really follow blogs at the time and didn’t know what to do.  I just knew I needed a creative outlet of some sort and posting a story in one place seemed easier than e-mailing my friends.  So I started this blog.  But I needed a name.

One evening Aya and I were brainstorming a bunch of names, but the one that stuck was The Good the Bad and the Baby.  Unfortunately, it was already taken when I went to sign up for my blogspot account.  So I switched it to The Good the Dad and the Baby.  Cool, now with a name and a blogspot site, I just needed to start writing.

I wanted to set some guidelines to keep myself motivated to stick with it.  I needed something positive to focus my energy on and didn’t want to quit before I even really tried.  So I established a goal to post three times a week, plus one Kokomi’s Korner each week.  For the most part, I’ve been pretty close to that.  A year later I’ve had 156 blog posts, 122 recipes in the What’s Cookin’ section, 56 Kokomi’s Korner posts, 15 Domestic Specialist posts, and 5 Ice Cream review posts on the Patch.  So I guess I found my outlet.

I have to thank everyone for reading!  My friends and family who’ve been reading and encouraging me from the beginning, and to the new readers who’ve just started and everybody in between.  Thank you!  I just like sharing my silly stories, and to know people enjoy reading them makes it that much more rewarding.  I hope you continue to enjoy them as I start my second year.

To celebrate my one year blogiversary, I’m taking the week off!  No posts, no photos, and no recipes.  I’ll still do my articles for the Patch, but that’s all!  But before I sign off for the week, I wanted to list a few of my favorite posts and say why they are special to me.

I’M A SURVIVOR
This was my third post and wasn’t about babies at all.  I had big plans for a productive baby-free day, but some unexpected events put a small damper on it.  I remember complaining to Aya on the phone and her telling me to write about it.  “That’s what your blog is for, right? It’s your outlet.”  So I did.  It really made me realize I can take a different spin on bad days instead of sitting around getting cranky. (I still do my fair share of that though, too)

EYE OF THE TIGER, PARTY ALL THE TIME, and PARTY ALL THE TIME: THE SEQUEL
These are three separate posts, but they all go together.  I remember this time period all too well of not sleeping.  Ellie not sleeping, and me not sleeping.  The bedtime battles and the middle of the night party sessions.  The events in these posts weren’t a one-time thing, they were a regular occurrence.  For me to re-read them makes me happy to see how far we’ve come, but in a weird way I miss those times too.

CREEPY CRAFTY
This is about my trip to Jo-Ann Fabrics to buy supplies for Ellie’sHalloween costume just a few days before Halloween.  I was so excited for my idea and couldn’t wait to share it, and the shenanigans that happened at the store.  It’s just too bad I didn’t have enough time to make a matching costume for myself.

IS THAT A BABYRUTH?
We were in the middle of that never ending winter we had.  I was feeling cooped up and caged in.  Most of my posts were getting to be pretty whiney and I kind of felt like I lost my edge.  But after I posted this story, Aya said, “I think you got it back.”  Plus, everybody loves a good poop story.  I remember I went to four different stores before I found a Babyruth candy bar for the photo.

SOMETIMES AND ALWAYS
I had no intention of writing this.  I sat down to write about Ellie’s poop or something light and this just came out.  It sounds like I’m doubting myself, but I think it was more about venting.  I didn’t even plan on posting it, but Aya really encouraged me to do it.  I’m glad that I did.