9 Year Blogiversary

November 30, 2018 by

Nine years ago, I started a blog. I had never done anything like this before, but my friend had just started one and convinced me to do it. I had just gotten into distance running and was training for my first half marathon. I had a theory, that if I blogged about my training, it would be a great way to hold me accountable. If I said I was running 4 times that week, I had to do it, because you know, my four readers were counting on me. (heh.)

Fast forward a few years and I rebranded from Running with Sass to Through Heather’s Looking Glass.  nine years, and wow. Just…wow. Not only did I not have any idea I would still even BE blogging right now, but I had no idea it would change the entire course of my life. I now help support my family because of my blog. I have made lifelong friends, gotten to go to amazing places, run awesome races, and try fun products. I literally cannot picture my life without it, and it’s funny to think about how different things would be now if I had never taken that leap all those years ago.

If you search the word “blogiversay” on my blog, you can check out several other posts over the years on the topic, so I don’t really feel the need to rehash everything, so I just want to say this:

Life is complicated. Things almost never turn out the way we plan, and we all go through valleys and mountaintops. I have loved sharing mine with you, and hope to get to continue to do so in the future. I hope that in some small way, my blog has touched your life. Whether it be something as simple as a good laugh at my expense, or perhaps something more profound like motivation to become a runner or to start a business of your own. While my blog is for me, it’s also for you. A way for me to give back, to help, and to hopefully inspire.

I pray that I can be a little bit of a light in this sometimes sad and crazy world, and please know I am always here to be your cheerleader, and I love hearing from you.

Next year is the big 1-0, and I know it’s going to be epic. <3

If you DO want to start your own blog, check out my free email course that will get you started. STOP waiting. In 9 years, this could be you looking back over all your years. Let’s do this!

Filed Under: blogging, fitness, motivation, running Tagged: , , , ,

6 Year Blogiversary

November 17, 2015 by

Oh friends. I did it again. Every year it seems that this sneaks up on me. As of Sunday, I have been blogging for SIX year! Every year I go back and read that first post. I want to edit it SO badly but I leave it alone on purpose just to show how far I have come.

If you have been reading for awhile, you know that originally this blog started as an accountability journal as I prepared for my very first half marathon. Back then I knew nothing about the blogging world, particularly because there just weren’t that many health and fitness blogs back then to go off of. Things have changed a lot in that department for sure!

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As I think back on my blogging journey, I am reminded of all the wonderful opportunities I have had, the amazing people I have met, and friends I have made. (Yes I say that every year I think, but it’s so true!) Blogging has had a lot to do with how I have been shaped as a person over the past few years. I have learned about about the world, about myself, and about being true to myself.

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I have changed names, changed headers, changed focus. There have been ebbs and flows, highs and lows, and lessons learned. Putting yourself out there on a daily basis can be tough at times, but it has also been very rewarding. Other than sharing my heart with whoever is willing to listen, my other goal has always been to encourage and inspire others. I hope over the years I have encouraged you all in one way or another, because that is truly what makes me happy. There are SO many more things that I want to do and accomplish, and I am sure my blog will continue to evolve and change as I do the same. It’s a scary but exciting prospect, and I hope you will stick with me and follow along!

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As always, a huge thanks to my wonderful readers. You guys make it all worth it! You emails, comments, shares, questions, advice, and inspiration keep me going. I love the conversations we have had, and laughs we have shared (mostly at my expense!) Thank you for giving me grace, and remembering that I make mistakes and am always learning, too. God has blessed me with some amazing encouraging folks through this blog, and I am so grateful.

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I hope to have the opportunity to meet more of you this year, laugh with you, learn with you, and grow with you. THANK YOU for making THLG a great place, and for hanging out with me over the years, you rock. Let’s keep going, I have so much left I want to do!

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<3 Heather

Filed Under: blogging, Faith, family, running Tagged: , , , , , ,

5 Years of Blogging

November 28, 2014 by

Well, my 5 year blogiversary snuck up on me! That’s right, I have been doing this gig since November of 2009.  What makes me laugh, is in that first post I mention at the top that I am not very good at this blogging thing and that I didn’t think anyone was reading it. Oh my, if only I had known!

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The half marathon that started it all.

Remember, this blog started out in 2009 as Running With Sass. I knew nothing about WordPress, blogging etiquette, or even photo editing. I learn new tricks every day, and it is fun to look back and see how far I have come.

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Once I really started blogging regularly in 2010, I blogged seven days a week for many years. Once I got pregnant, I cut down to five days a week and stopped blogging on the weekends. Those were my lowest stat days anyway, and I wanted to spend more time with Bobby before the baby came. Well, then the baby came…and I dropped down to three days a week. I have every intention of going back to blogging at least four if not five days a week (hopefully soon), but until I get little miss thing on a schedule, I just do what I can. I would rather have quality posts than a post every day.

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I’m sure I have said this before, but if you would have told be five years ago that not only would I have run three full marathons and over twenty half marathons, including Goofy and Dopey challenges, but that my blog would still be going strong and I would be getting paid to write it, I don’t think I would have believed you. Some days I have to remind myself that this started as a hobby, a journal as I trained for my first half marathon. It still really blows my mind.

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I have been given so many amazing opportunities through blogging, and I have met some wonderful people and made lifelong friends. I love how the internet/social media has the power to bring people together, no matter how far apart you live from your friends. I am so blessed to be able to stay home and work and take care of my baby girl. This was my goal five years ago when I quit teaching to work from home, and there have been some definite bumps in the road, but we are figuring things out as we go.

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To my amazing readers, thank you so much. Without you, THLG wouldn’t even exist. I think of you when I am coming up with story ideas, planning my race calendar, and accepting and declining job offers. I have been touched by your sweet encouraging emails, and made a better person and write thanks to your ideas and advice.

My one hope is that through this blog you will find encouragement, hope, and learn a thing or two from my blog. I share my personal experiences- the ups and the downs, so that others can feel like they aren’t alone, and see that there are people, real people out there that struggle just like you. I don’t live a glamorous life, and there are a lot of days I don’t feel like writing, and a lot of things I would rather not share. But, if my sharing helps just one person, in a big or small way, then it’s worth it.

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Team runDisney, some of my many friends I have made!

I pray that the next half decade will be just as much fun on the interwebs as the last one, and I hope that you will follow along with me on this journey. Thanks for sticking with me through thick and thin, changes and trends, heartache and loss, love and laughter. I hope to meet more of you in the coming years, and form even more connections and friendships. So, cheers to you, and cheers to another year of blogging, living, and sharing.

<3 Heather

Filed Under: blogging, family, fitness, running Tagged: , , ,

Four Year Blogiversary

November 18, 2013 by

WOW! On November 15th 2009, I wrote my first blog post. Back then, I was still Running With Sass, and not only starting out on my blogging journey, but also on my running journey.

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January 2010, my first race expo!

I say this a lot, but if you had told me four years ago I would blog nearly every day for the next four years, or that I would run over twenty half marathons, 2 full marathons, and a multitude of other race distances….I don’t know if I would have believed you!

I am so thankful for my blog and the opportunities it has given me off and online. I have met some amazing people I now consider close friends, and have gotten to see so many new places and do new and exciting things.

I have grown up in so many ways, and have also made plenty of mistakes and learned things the hard way. I love having a recording of my life, I can’t tell you how many times I forgot when or how something happened and I just go back and check my archives for the answer! it’s also great to have people hold me accountable and keep me in check. It is so therapeutic for me to write down my thoughts, frustrations, and realizations, and I do hope along the way something I have said has helped at least one person.

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November 2013, my most recent race expo

I am grateful not only for the blog itself, but to my amazing readers. I love getting comments and emails from you, it brightens my day and makes me want to be a better blogger. So, I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart, whether you have been on this journey with me for four weeks, or four years from the very beginning…you are all amazing! You inspire me daily, and I wish I could hug you all and thank you! I hope you continue to journey with me for years to come, I can’t wait to see what happens next, and am hoping this next year is a big one!

QOTD: How long have you been a reader of my blog? What would you like to see in my next year of blogging?

Filed Under: blogging, fitness, running Tagged: , , , ,

Three Year Blogiversary

November 15, 2012 by

 

WOW. I can’t believe I have been blogging for three years. It’s so funny how something can not be a part of your life at all, and then in a blink of an eye it becomes so important and special to you, that you can’t imagine NOT doing it!

Check out my one and two year blogiversary posts, too!

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photo from my first half marathon, don’t I look thrilled?

This my friends, was my very first blog post. It cracks me up to go back and read it now. When I first started I was in my first year of teaching and did not blog steadily/every day like I do now, but it was a start, and my oh my the places it has taken me! I am so grateful for a good friend of mine who said she was starting a blog and encouraged me to start one too. I wonder what I would be doing today if I hadn’t started RWS? So odd to think about.

I am going to get all sappy for a moment so stay with me. Reading back on my two anniversary posts and thinking about where I was then and where I am now…it just blows my mind in so many different ways. So many things have changed, some for the better and some for worse unfortunately, but I can see how much I have grown up in my writing and as a person thanks to my little blog.

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Gulf coast half October 2012

I have made some amazing friends, had awesome fun times with other bloggers, grown some thick skin, and branched out in ways I never could have imagined. However, I take no credit for the places my blog has brought me. Everything I have and am blessed with is all because of God’s awesome grace and love. It hasn’t always been an easy road, but we learn the most when it gets bumpy don’t we?

I have so many ideas, so many things I want to do and accomplish and I am so so very blessed to have this platform from which I can share my heart with you guys. Some of you have been with me from the beginning and I am forever grateful. I have learned that that some tasks may really seem impossible, and sometimes its discouraging and you feel like you aren’t making a difference. But all it takes is a good attitude and a willing heart and you can be used in so many ways.

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Friends, God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called. YOU can do anything you set your mind to, don’t ever think you are too small or insignificant to be great, to be used, to be a rock star.  Some are great writers or speakers, or athletes, and some are great friends and listeners. We all play a part, and don’t ever shy away from a dream or a goal because you think it’s impossible, because it’s not!!! Take risks, follow your heart, and be kind.

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I can’t wait to see what this next year of blogging brings, so I hope you will stick around RWS and stop in for a visit from time to time. I have the best readers ever, and I am so thankful for you all….you brighten my day with your sweet encouraging words and I appreciate you so much, even when I don’t have time to reply to every comment, know that I read them all!

So, Happy Birthday Running With Sass, may you celebrate many, many more.

QOTD: Bloggers, what is something you learned about bloggers this year? Non bloggers, what is something you love seeing on blogs you read?

Filed Under: blogging, fitness, running Tagged: , ,

Blogiversary Number 2

November 15, 2011 by

 

Two years ago today, I posted my first every blog post. A year ago, I celebrated my one year blogiversary. I cannot believe it has been two whole years since I first opened my life up for the world to read. What started as an accountability journal has blossomed into what I never thought or imagined.

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My first half, 2010

My blog has been the starting point for so many things over the past two years. It is what ultimately helped me get my job at Running Skirts, and it has also allowed me to get to meet and network with some amazing people! I am so thankful and blessed when it comes to my little baby! (yes I treat an inanimate object like my child.)

I know I said this last year, but I have learned so much in the past two years. It is so much fun to go back and see what I was doing TWO years ago. I love having an account for my comings and goings, it’s like a grown up dear diary, but with lots of friends, encouragement, and love.

Thank you readers, for all the love and support you have shown me over the past two years. I love your comments and feedback, and your inspiration. You have helped me to become a better person, and I am so grateful I get to share my little corner of the internet with you. It has been a wild ride with many ups and downs, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

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still racing in 2011!

Are there things I wish had gone differently in the past two years? Of course. But I know God works in mysterious ways and has a reason for doing things the way He does. I am forever changing and growing, hopefully becoming a better writer, a better athlete, a better person. Thank you for being patient with me and for being an encouragement. I hope you stick around RWS this year and grow with me. I can’t wait to see what year three brings!

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QOTD: Do you have a blog? if so, what would you like to accomplish with it this year? Post a certain number of times a week, take more pictures, get more readers, etc?

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