One Year’s Eve

Well guys, it’s here.  It’s someone’s birthday.  Nope, not mine, not the husband’s (actually, it really is the husband’s), but it’s this little blog of mine’s.  Yup, it’s the big O-N-E for the blog tomorrow!

I can’t believe it’s been one year, like at all, but dang what an amazing year it has been!  I had no idea what this blogging world was really going to be like when I signed myself up for that little generic Blogger blog and hit publish on a simple post full of crappy iPhone pics.  I had read tons of tutorials but still felt completely lost and didn’t really know what I was doing.  I went with it anyway.  I didn’t know I’d have to learn some code, that I’d have to get some hosting, that I’d have to edit pictures, that I’d have to design things, that I’d have to always share my posts, or that I’d need to be on any social media other than the Pinterest I already had.  But I did learn all of that to make this the kind of blog I wanted and make the connections I wanted to, all of those were things I had to delve into.  Delve I did, and each little task I figured out was super exciting.  Things got a little more for-reals and I started to hear from people who love to “make” just as much as I do, and it blew me away.  I was done, hooked, sold.  I completely fell in love with everything blog and the connections that it brought.  I’m in no way an extrovert but blogging teaches me to put myself out there, to try things I have no clue about, and in doing so I’ve met some amazing people.  People that I feel I’ve known forever and can turn to for advice and encouragement and who are always around here checking in with sweet comments and shares.  And who totally get my one-off sense of humor comments I leave everywhere.

This blog challenges me to keep up with my creative side and attempt new ideas, which isn’t always easy…or wanted.  But there is constant inspiration in my inbox and on my feeds from the crazy talented bloggers I’ve found that keep pushing me along.  Almost all of us started from ground zero, had no idea what we were doing sometimes (projects and/or a blog), but stuck with it, figured it out, and have finished products we are unbelievably proud of.  And that’s what keeps us going.  The constant encouragement and camaraderie (man, that word is spelled weird) from you guys is so powerful.  The common denominator in all of this blogging jazz is that we want to show and encourage others that they, too, can make and figure out whatever they desire, no matter how daunting, and find people who have the same desire and need to create as we do.  If I’ve even inspired one person to try something new, I’ve succeeded my book and these other positives are just icing on the cake.

2015 is looking like it’ll be a pretty stellar year for T&H.  There’s new partnerships and ideas, new projects, and a handful of guest posts that I absolutely can’t wait to share with y’all, along with attending my first blogging conference, Haven, in July.  It couldn’t have gotten here without you guys and I hope you’ll be here for all that is yet to come.  THANK YOU!

So, that’s enough sappiness for your Sunday, sorry ;)
I figured this milestone would be a great time to check in with all of you and pick your brains about this little space.  So I put together ten questions in the Google Form below so that I can see how and why you all are here, and what I can do on my end to keep you loving it here for much longer.  (and yay! for my first Google Form, see….always learning new things).

Thanks so much for the feedback!
Now, since I’ve spewed all kinds of info to you guys today, to get to know y’all and bring a little fun to this post, we’re gonna play a little get-to-know-you game I learned from my friends Kyla and Bre along with some questions I got from my friend Jen’s Leibster nomination.  There’s five questions here, I’ll answer them myself, then you guys chime in down in the comments with your answers!

ONE – Are you a team DIYer, a DIY DIYer, or a no DIYer?  
I think that alot of folks work as a husband-wife team when it comes to DIY projects, but in our house it’s 98% me.  I’m a DIY DIYer.  The husband will assist if I need him to, usually just holding things while I cut, albeit that he has absolutely nothing else happening right that moment. When it comes to projects in the yard or garage, we are team DIYers though, he does like those sort of things, like the pergola.  But the house is all mine, like the bathrooms and master bedroom wainscoting.  There’s still larger projects that we are no-DIYers for, like paving our front little yard or replacing our side gate, stuff like that gets hired out.  There are many times I wish I didn’t have to be a DIY DIYer ;)

TWO – What’s the best concert you’ve ever been to?
This one is hard, and is two-fold.  I officially met my husband for the first time at a Cory Morrow concert, one of our favorite Texas Country artists, so that one still takes the cake.  But general, music-wise, it’s a three-way tie between Beck at ACL 2008 or Eminem or Outkast at ACL 2014.  Seriously, so.much.fun. I am dying to see the Black Keys in concert so they make the top of the list if that ever happens.

THREE – Name one thing on your bucket list.
Catch a black marlin.

FOUR – If you could get back one toy from your childhood, what would it be?
Not sure if this qualifies as a toy or not, but I had this tent thing that fit over my bed like a fitted sheet and it was amazeballs.  I was a big fan of tents, hideouts, and forts…basically sequestering myself in any weird, small, hidden places and that tent was the perfect fort.  I would totally put it on my bed now if I had one.

FIVE – What is the background on your phone right now?
A picture of the beach from when my cousin and her husband were down visiting last August. It’s actually the first picture in this post :)

Ok guys, your turn!!  Go!  Spill it!
And make sure come back over starting tomorrow for the first of SIX giveaways I’m bringing to all of you lovelies to celebrate T&H’s birthday!! You won’t want to miss them!  And hint: if you follow me on the social media links up in the sidebar, you’ll already have alot of the entries ;)

THANK YOU for being here!  I heart each and every one of you…like…alot.
See you tomorrow, I should probably go celebrate that husband’s birthday now…