Hey, folks! WordPress informs me that I have an anniversary. As of yesterday, I have been blogging for fourteen years.
Truth be told—and as many of you know—I don’t blog as often as I used to, but I’ll try to keep posting for a few years yet. And maybe Gord and Lou Purry can do more guest posts to help out!
I have also reached my 2025 Reading Challenge as of yesterday, with fifty books read, all accounted for on Goodreads.
Have you taken a Reading Challenge this year? And bloggers: how long have you been blogging?
I honestly can’t believe how fast this year flew by. 2023 was quite eventful, what with signing a new publishing contract—YAY!—as well as reaching a couple of personal milestones. More on those in a bit.
Not everything was rosy, however.
As many of you know, we had to say goodbye to our Vivian in November. Eight weeks later, the grief is still so raw, so fresh. I think the only way to ease the loss is to rescue another cat, or two, come spring.
Now for the milestones. In 2023, our house here on Perry’s Point turned one hundred years old!
We’ve lived here since we left the city in 2010, with very few regrets. Paul and I love it here next to the ocean and away from the hustle and bustle of urban life.
If you haven’t already, check out my post from 2020, Ten Years in This Old House, to see how we spruced it up before we moved in.
Milestone Number 2: On August 15th, Paul and I celebrated our silver wedding anniversary.
25 years married to my best friend. Of course Paul always reminds me we were together four years before our wedding day. 💕
I am deeply thankful on this New Year’s Eve for many things, and one of them is having you, my blogger friends, in my life. Each of you have made blogging much more meaningful than I ever thought possible when I started this journey. Which just so happened to be on New Year’s Eve, 2011.
Jennifer’s Journal all started with a little procrastination on my part because I couldn’t pull myself away from my best-loved musical / fantasy / children’s movie, The Wizard of Oz. Check it out!
Follow the Yellow Brick Road…
PUBLISHED ON
Hello, and welcome to my Journal! This is my first foray into the world of blogging, so being a total newbie at this, I am not even sure where my words will take us. The one thing I can tell you, Dear Reader, is that Jennifer’s Journal will be a sharing of my thoughts in the forms of prose, poetry and musings. As well, I plan to include selections of photography that I think you will like.
New Year’s Eve 2011 is upon us, and 2012 beckons with promise. I should be getting gussied up for the Ball at the Barbour site here in Newtown in a few hours, the first one in several years for us. I should be primping and preening, painting my nails, curling my locks and donning a frock to ring in the new year in style with the local revelers. Instead, I’ve happened upon The (wonderful) Wizard of Oz, a movie that has hijacked my attention for the hundredth time.
And once again, I ask myself, What is it about the Scarecrow (always my favorite), that makes my silly heart melt? Is it the way he falls about in his straw-filled pants, like he hasn’t a bone in his body, or is it the way he talks so kindly to Dorothy, making me wish I was her? Yes, I smile at the Tin Man, and I laugh at the Cowardly Lion, but it is the Scarecrow that makes me PVR the rest of the movie before I am reluctantly pulled away.
And I know it is the last day of the year, but I didn’t want to wait for January One, which would have been the expected start date of a blog. I had to ask that very important question today.
I’m throwing out a bouquet today to all who consistently like and comment on my articles, updates and photos throughout the year, but particularly I wish to thank the six most frequent commenters of late.
I hope you know how much I value your visits and our conversations. These visits bring the reward of connection with other like-minded people from all over, as well as with those who walk an entirely different path.
Have a look. You just might hit the follow button and join our blogging community.
Book Club Mom, a.k.a. Barbara Vitelli, hails from the U.S. and is my most frequent commenter. She is a book reviewer and bloggerhere on WordPress, where she shares author interviews, indie author profiles and blogging advice. Barbara is also a librarian, a book-clubber, and an avid reviewer on Net Galley and GoodReads.
Jacqui Murray of WordDreams is an author, freelance journalist, teacher, Amazon Vine Voice, and the bearer of a wealth of helpful advice for all things wordy. I have learned a lot from her posts which she fills with hints, lists, how-tos, and book reviews. Jacqui lives in California.
Jill Weatherholt is a writer of contemporary stories about love, faith, friendship and forgiveness. Her sweet novels always end with a “happily ever after.” She started her blog as a way to share her journey and to create a community for other new writers, artists and fellow bloggers. Jill lives in North Carolina.
Clanmother, a.k.a. Rebecca Budd, is a fellow Canadian living in British Columbia. She hosts several blogs, sharing her talents as a visual storyteller, photographer, podcaster, traveler and life-long learner.
Andrea Stephenson of Harvesting Hecate is a gifted writer as well as a painter. She hails from the United Kingdom, where she draws inspiration from nature, the coastline and the turn of the seasons. She has written two magical realism novels for adults.
Joanne Meadows of joannerambling is a blogger from Australia. She loves to blog about family, write letters to pen pals, and she’s always eager to share my posts on Twitter.
Honorable mention goes out to each and every commenter and visitor.
You all rock!
It’s been quite a while since I tossed a blogger bouquet, but hey, today is the perfect time to share a little love.
In her own words, Evelyn Krieger – Inspiration for the Creative Soul – is a “word weaver, radical educator, dancer, and homeschooling pro.”
Her debut middle-grade novel, One is Not a Lonely Number, was a 2011 Sydney Taylor Honor Book from the Association of Jewish Libraries, a 2011 Next Generation Indie Finalist, and a PJ Library Our Way pick.
From her Welcome page:
“I grew up in Michigan. Today my home is Massachusetts, though I hope to move somewhere tropical one day. Sunlight makes me joyful. I’m allergic to snow. My blog explores creativity, grief, resilience, and all things related to the writing life. I love connecting with my readers and making new friends. Please stop by and say hello.”
Check out Evelyn’s enjoyable post below, where she poses the popular writerly question: Does the change of season affect your creativity?
Carol Balawyder is an author, blogger and dog owner that I’ve only recently started following.
From her Welcome page:
“Welcome to my website and blog. I write about justice, mid-life dating, grief, blogs that inspire me both as a writer and a person, awesome writing workshops and my dog, Bau.
I have series on: How I Got Published, The Femme Fatale, Nobel Prize Laureates, Writers’ Desks, Ten Great First Dates.
One of my goals is to make online friends with bloggers around the world of different and alike views.”
Carol’s dog Bau has now been made the mascot for the Reading Program at Carol’s library. Check out this cute dog with a job in the post below:
Dear WordPress bloggers, fellow writers, followers and friends,
December 31, 2018 marked my seven-year blogging anniversary.
Yikes! I’m into the eighth year! Who knew that when I published my first post, Follow the Yellow Brick Road on New Year’s Eve of 2011, my blog would still be active in 2019? I genuinely hope I’m not wearing out my welcome here and that you continue to let me into your in-boxes, your readers, and your lives for my brief visits once or twice a week. 🙂
pinterest.com
I’m not one to get hung up on blog statistics, as I value quality of interaction over quantity any day, but I’d like to share a few highlights from my 70 posts of 2018.
I’ve set aside statistics on my About Me and Author Page to concentrate on regular posts.
The three most-liked posts of last year:
Beach Love
When your address is Sandy Beach Avenue and you live near one of the longest beaches in the province, posts like these are bound to show up regularly. These photos taken at Lumsden North Beach grabbed the most likes of 2018.
Winter Morning Haiku
Summery beaches didn’t get all the love.
A haiku poem with one of my best-loved winter photos,
taken from my back yard.
Imagination
Kids with coffee filters.
How could one possibly resist a click?
Morning Coffee
(Again with coffee?)
No surprise – this beverage is a vital part of the day for many of us.
Even some of you who prefer tea were moved to give your two cents worth!
Blog Hop: Born in a Treacherous Time by Jacqui Murray
Once again, I’m delighted to share news from my author colleagues.
I loved this book of the prehistoric fiction genre.
So much so, it got me reading the Earth’s Children series by Jean M. Auel.
I look forward to Murray’s next novel in her Man vs. Nature saga.
***
2018 was a special year all around, but it didn’t exceed previous records set by my blog.
January 18, 2016 still holds the favored position as the day that generated the most views thus far, when I introduced the ever-popular Newfoundland and Labrador page…
…and the individual post that has scored the most views to date under that Newfoundland banner is Berg Watching, originally shared on June 2, 2015.
Springtime in Iceberg Alley at its beautiful best.
The Sunday Snap series has gained in popularity since its inception in August 2017, and my new addition for 2018, Friday Fiction, has met with positive reviews as well.
Many thanks to everyone who visits my blog. However long I continue, I appreciate all the follows, likes, comments, and shares. Love to you all, and blog on!
Sincerely yours,
Jennifer
P.S. to bloggers: Have a favourite post from your own blog I may have missed or you’d like to highlight? Don’t be shy – share a link with me in the comments below. 🙂
Marie Zhuikov of Marie’s Meanderings is a novelist, science writer, poet and editor that I have followed for quite some time.
From her About page:
“The meanderings of Marie’s mind blog explores life in northern Minnesota, northern Wisconsin and anywhere else Marie Zhuikov’s travels may span. There are bound to be thoughts about her passions, which include nature, environmental issues, the arts, music, children, dogs, books, relationships, cooking, water, wine and the like.”
In Marie’s previous novels she has focused on endangered animals, and her next one is no exception. Check out Marie’s recent post on the pine marten, also known as the American marten. She has even written two magazine articles about the marten that are on newsstands now.
Jacqui Murray of 
Andrea Stephenson of 
Joanne Meadows of
Jennifer's Journal 