Blogger's Nightmare

Hi there. It's me, Kate.

I know, I know I haven't been around for a while. Why you ask? Well, It was a total blogger's nightmare!



Each year I pay fees associated with keeping my blog running. It was closing in on time to renew everything and I decided to shop around to see if I could get a better price. I wasn't dissatisfied with my current service but I figured why not shop around.

After asking some blog friends I checked out a company that would save me about $15 per year. I know, it's not much, but it all adds up right? And the transition seemed easy enough so why not?

I paid the new fees, provided the company with user names and passwords so they could do the transfer and I was set. And after about a week and a half everything was still good. Service was cancelled with the original company and all was good. But then it was time to get working on my next blog post, which happened to be a sponsored post. I went to log into my blog and it wasn't there. 

I'm sure you can imagine my panic. Or maybe you can't. I mean, after all, it was 7 years of blogging about my life that was no where to be found.

I contacted the new company who told me I missed something, I checked, I hadn't missed anything, one thing after another of being told the issue was on my end, I had to upload files, didn't upload them correctly, etc, it was a TOTAL joke! I was getting no where. They would say, "All you have to do is 'such and such' and it'll take 24-48 hours to update then your site will work." So I would, and it wouldn't.... I would go back and they'd say, "oh because you are still missing 'such and such'. Do that and it'll update within 24 hours and then will work." But then it wouldn't.... You see a pattern happening here?

I contacted the original company to see if they could help and they walked me through everything they could. But unfortunately at this point my "files" aka my entire 7 years worth of blogging had been archived and to get it transferred I had to pay a fee to restore it. I had a big decision to make. Pay the $150 restoration fee or bag my blog. I thought hard about it and decided I just couldn't drop the past sever years of blogging and I paid for it.



After a few more days I decided that this was too insane to deal with any more. I contacted the original company, spent the money and switched back to them. Insane, right? But I knew that things were not going to get resolved any other way. So after making the switch back, my little piece of the internet was back up and running within just a few days. And working correctly.



So the moral of this story? Really check into things before you switch. I wanted to switch to save $15 per year but after all was said and done I have put over $400 into switching companies and switching back to right where I began. Yeah, I am over here sobbing in my pillow....

Mark your calendars!

A bloglovin' hop is coming on Monday!

Come link up your Bloglovin' here!


Also.... If you have kids I have a giveaway coming this afternoon that you are not wanting to miss!

Hello Bloglovin'

I know this is flying around the blogosphere right now, so I'm jumping on the bandwagon!
With Google getting rid of reader, and therefore, GFC, I'm making the jump to Bloglovin.
Right now I follow only a handful of people there, so I guess I better get my blogs switched over so I don't miss any of my favorites!

To keep following me check out Bloglovin'

Struggling

Lately, I feel like I can't sit down and write out a post for the life of me. 

I have 23 drafts and can't seem to finish one of them. Not that I'm not trying. I feel like I have so much to say, but can't seem to spit it out! I know that a lot of bloggers go through this at some point or another, and I guess it's my turn. 

I'm lacking motivation for multiple reasons. 

First off, my family. Being a mom of three keeps me BUSY! Zach has school activities that he's always involved in, and home work and fun projects around the house that keep him and me always going. Tyler is just a busy kid! He is into everything and of course needs help doing it. We are in full swing potty training and that keeps a parent busy all the time! And Summer is rolling around the house, she is teething and separation anxiety seems to be kicking in. She loves to be held, especially by Mama. Throw in cleaning, making dinner and trying to have a few seconds with my husband and that's my day! 

Second, probably 3/4 of my drafts, as they've sat in the folder, have came across my screen written by someone else! How many times do you want to read about "no reply bloggers"? Well, it'll probably still happen, so I hope you'll want to read one more. 

And last, my stats. I have a problem with watching my stats. Really, I should just not pay attention to them, and I should write. But watching my followers sit at the same number for weeks is a little disappointing. More disappointing is watching it go up one, down 3. Up one, down two. Up two, down two, etc. I get more comments from spammers than anything else.  

Do you ever get discouraged? Lose your motivation? What gets you going again?

2013 goals

Last December I made this list of goals for 2012,
and I actually got a bit of them done
considering the busy year we had! 

I got several of my scrapbooks updated and/or finished.
And that is a big relief. But I have a lot more to do in that area.
In January I plan to tell you more about the changes I am making, and my goals for
scrapbooking... that's a whole other post! 

I tried so many new recipes, and you can find them up above in the Recipes tab!
Go check them out.

I got my sewing machine out, and threaded but it never went any further!

For 2013 I have the biggest goal I've ever created for myself.
If I want to stick around long enough to raise my kids,
and see my kids' kids. And their kids-
I have to start with taking care of myself.

In October I shared this post with you. 
The one where it got real and I shared everything!
I am making big changes in my life to make this happen
and in 2013 you will hear a lot more about it!

Also in the next year I plan to actually use my sewing machine.
I've always wanted to sew things for the boys, but
Now that I have a little girl I have to learn to sew.
I need to be able to make matching dresses for her and her baby dolls,
and all the other adorable clothes I find on Pinterest!

Since I am talking about Pinterest,
there are so many things I find on that site that I have to make.
Believe me, I have a big ol' board full of DIY projects titled "to make now!"
And I plan on sharing those through out the year. 

I also have more recipes than I can count that I can't wait to try.
And you'll be able to find those on Foodie Fridays.
So stay tuned!

And last but not least,
I am excited to see where my blog will go this year.
2012 was great for 'Life as I know it' and I made multiple new friends,
and gained a lot of new followers.
I can't wait to meet more fellow bloggers!

I really have so many things I want to accomplish this year.
And it really doesn't stop here, at this list.

I hope you'll follow along with me
and share your goals as well. 

What I've learned about blogging

When I started blogging, I think I was like a lot of people. Just looking for a place to write, say what I want to say, document my family growth, etc. After a year and a half of blogging I started thinking about "expanding" and looking to reach out to others, maybe do a review here or there, share things I'm making.

Along the way I have learned a lot from other bloggers. Especially in the last 6 months. But I am still learning and will continue to learn for as long as I blog.

Here are some of the things I've learned (Keep in mind, this is only my opinion!)

-Turn off Captcha Verification!
Have you ever commented on a page then gotten to captcha and just about walked away without publishing your comment? I feel like this every time! I will admit, when I first started blogging I used captcha.... until I started regularly commenting on other bloggers pages, and realized how annoying it was! I turned it off immediately. I didn't want spam getting on my page, so I instead have the comment moderator on so that I have to read the comment before it shows up on my page. I get so few spam comments anyway and I like to know when a new comment in posted so I can reply. Which leads me to my next topic....

-noreply-comment 
For a while I would try to keep up with my comments on the page where the comment took place- until I started having my comments emailed to me! Now I love being able to respond to people via email! Mainly because how often do you go back to the page to check if the blogger responded to you? I try, but usually fail at going back to look!  But sometimes bloggers don't have their email set up and you are not able to reply. Plug in your email so that I can email you back when you comment on my page.

-Music
Just.Don't. But if you insist on having music on your page, at least make it so that it doesn't auto play. Nothing drives me more crazy than when I go to a blog and music starts blaring because I forgot to turn the speaker off after I've watched a clip of something else. If I go to your page and music starts blaring, I will typically just close out.

-Page views counters
I think page views are great for our own viewing, but I'm over showing them off. I sort of feel it's like withdrawing your paycheck and saying, "Look how much I've got!"

-Ads/giveaways/reviews/sponsor begs
I think all of these are great as long as they are not overdone! I love reviews because they can be really helpful, and I am excited to be getting to do some reviews of my own. But if you constantly do reviews, and your niche is a "mom blog", I might start to skip over them. And if you are constantly asking for sponsors, I will keep on going.
I also try to steer clear of bloggers who say, "follow me and I'll follow you". Again, I have said this in the past, but now that I am more into blogging, I'd rather have readers who actually read my blog, instead of just adding to my follower count.

-Too busy blogs
If you have so many ads, sponsors, clutter, etc. on your page that I can't even find your post- then it's a problem!

-Unreadable fonts
I've debated over my own font since I changed my page almost a year and a half ago. I love this font but the exclamation point looks like an "l" or "1"... {{{ See !!! }}}  Just because you can read it, doesn't mean that everyone else can!

Well.... That's that! Like I said, these are just my views and thoughts about what I've seen since I started blogging.

So what do you think? What drives you crazy when it comes to blogging?

West Coast Blog Hop

Are you a West Coasty like me?

Then head over to where the fun is! 

The Dreamy Meadow is hosting this blog hop

where you can find lots of great blogs and make new friends along the way!

So go! Go check it out right now!

I won a Liebster Award!

 On Friday, I checked Jessica's blog, Young At Heart Mommy, like I do every single day! 

But this time I see that she nominated me, along with four others for the Liebster Award!

Thank you Jessica! It really means a lot that you are enjoying my blog enough to share it with others! It sure was a great surprise! :) Go check out her blog because she does

some really great posts that I think you will enjoy! 

      If you are not familiar with the Liebster Award it is given to fairly new blogs with 

 200 or less followers. This is a way of giving recognition to bloggers for a job well done. 

It brings undiscovered blogs to the light and helps them gain exposure to attract more followers. If you receive a Liebster the person giving it to you is basically saying, 

        "Hey, YOU ROCK!"

Being nominated for a Liebster comes with a few guidelines...

1. Thank your Liebster Blog Award presenter on your blog

2. You must link back to the blogger who presented the award to you

3. Copy and paste the blog award on your blog

4. Present the Liebster Blog Award to 5 blogs you thing deserve some recognition.  Remember they have to have 200 followers or less when presented with a Liebster!

5. Make sure you let the bloggers you nominated know they have a Liebster! Leave a comment on their blog, DM on twitter, Facebook post--however you normally get in contact with them!

Here are my five nominations and who I think deserves a Liebster Award of their own!  They are in no particular order. These are all blogs I feel deserve a little extra attention and I enjoy reading each day. Please follow them and show your support. 

 1. Erikka from  Lil' babe henretta

2. Shantel from Our funny little family!

3. Jessica from the road to and after laken

4. Kelly from The Houtz House Party

5. Nicole from Every Day a Memory

Top Mommy Blogs!

Look at this!

Super excited to be a part of Top Mommy blogs 

and get my name out there! 

You can click on the banner daily to vote for me 

and help get my blog seen! 

Please feel free to share this if you know someone who might be interested!

Facebook Love

Did you see?

I have new little buttons right over there  ----->

Now you can "like" my Facebook page and get updates

on what's happening on my blog!

You can also get to my Pinterest from right over there too!
Or you can send me an email message! 

The one thing with Facebook is that if you like my page, 

I still can't see your page if it's private.

I don't see the feeds like a normal "personal" page.

(At least I haven't found a way around this)

It makes me a little sad. 

I got rid of my personal fb because I just spent too much time

on it, and I wanted to spend more time on here. 

But that doesn't mean I don't want any updates on whats going

on with my friends. So if you know a way around that,

Please, let me know! :) 

In the mean time, go like my Facebook page, 

and follow me on Pinterest if you are not already!

I did it!

I got my new blog name and URL up and running! Hopefully their are no bugs and everything will run smoothly!

Please, if you have me book marked, take note because my url has changed!

Here is my actual link: http://travisandkategreer.blogspot.com/

Thanks for following me and checking back to see our family and watch the kiddos grow! :)

What's in a name?

After a lot of thought I have decided to change the name of my blog. Not only that, but I will be changing my URL. What does this mean for you? I am not exactly sure.

I know that I have to change my link where ever I have posted it. But if you have it book marked, or follow me then you might not see me anymore. (I really am not sure on this!) 

So what I am asking is that if you ever check my blog and would like to continue reading it in the future, keep checking back. Check back to my Facebook, or to where ever you found my link. 

When I picked the name And baby makes four, it worked well at the time, as I was pregnant with baby number 2. But as my family will continue to grow, it doesn't seem as fitting. And while I am changing to a name that may not be very original, it will work for out family and my blogging. 

More to come!

Changing name...

I am thinking about changing the name of my blog. 

I feel like I was not very creative the first time around and want to find 

something else as this name will not always fit. 

No, we are not increasing our family size right now, but at some point we hope to add a 

3rd baby to our family and ...And baby makes 4 will no longer work.

Any ideas you want to throw out there for me?

I have thought of a couple, but could always use suggestions. :)

1000 views!

Holy Cow! I can't believe that in less than a year people have viewed this blog 1000 times! Especially since I just ramble most of the time. Thank you though for checking back to see my updates!

I know I keep promising pictures, but they are going to have to wait a little longer. I tried to upload them to my computer from my camera on Sunday night and it's telling me that it does not recognize my USB device. So I guess I am going to have to play with it some more and figure out what the heck happened. It will have to happen soon because I am running out of space on my camera and I am not interested in slowing down on the picture taking. :)

I still have not gotten any layouts done this month... Which is a great way to start. But on a day like today, when it's 2:34 pm and Tyler has just fallen asleep right after I started typing, it's hard to get things done. I guess I just need to accept that and figure a way to work around it.

I am heading to grab Zachary shortly from school. Yesterday Tyler and I walked to pick him up, and will do the same today. It's so nice out. Now as long as the temp keeps going up I will be a happy mama! It's 59 degrees at my house right now and I am pretty happy with that. But come summer... I am looking forward to hangin out in my new backyard with my two boys and Mr. Sunshine!

I guess when I get the pictures up is when you will see them. Like I said, hopefully sooner than later! :)

First Blog

Writing my first blog I am wondering if people will actually even read this. Who knows? But I thought this would be a great way to keep in touch with my family and friends and keep you all posted on what is going to be the busiest year of my life! (up until now!)
Travis, Zachary and myself are so very excited for Tyler to get here this fall. Right now I am scheduled to have a C-Section on October 22nd. I am currently 22 weeks pregnant and feeling great! I am feeling a lot of movement even though Travis and Zach haven't felt him move quite yet- It should be soon!

I have been off work since the beginning of June and enjoying it! Now that Zach is out of school for the year I am busier with him too. Not to mention I have plenty to do around the house to get ready for Tyler. I am really hoping to get caught up on my scrapbooks so that once Tyler is here I am not backed up with that project too! Currently I am working on finishing my 2009, The wedding, RF, Twilight and Disneyland and need to start 2010! I have a lot ahead to work on!
Luckily Zachary keeps himself pretty entertained and I am able to get things done!

Please feel free to check back and I will keep you updated on all that is going on in the Greer house!