1,500 POSTS!!!!

That's a lot of words!  That's a lot of posts!

October 18, 2004 was my first post on this blog.  More than seven years of writing and still going!
Largest number of posts in a year: 2005 with 266 posts.  (2011 had 184)

The post with the largest number of views, well over 10,000 views, is Murphy's Village.
I don't believe that is representative of my best blog post, but I have learned that key words will draw an audience pretty quickly.  Writing about gypsies is one of those key words.  That is also the only post that I had to shut down comments.  For months after writing the post I would get comments either VERY against the Travelers or VERY supportive.  This blog isn't meant to be a sounding board for those arguments, so I had to shut down the comments.

Another key word that quickly gets attention is NAKED.  My post last month about Santa is Naked quickly got over 100 views.  Considering my average post in the past few years doesn't get more than 12 views, it appears that a lot of people are searching Google for a Naked Santa.  Sick.

It's a good thing I don't write this blog hoping for a huge audience.  Fact is, there aren't many of you reading this. My motivation to keep going is partly for my joy of sitting down and writing and partly me keeping a (public) journal of my life.  Besides family, readers have come and gone over the years.  Three come to mind that have stuck around longer than most.

Farm Girl - who I happened upon years ago by reading blogs and following links to other blogs.  She's got some great photography and enjoyable writing.
Melba - she hasn't updated this blog in a few months, but she has others.  Melba was an email pen-pal before you even knew what email was.
Random Connections - a local (to me) blogger that shares a lot of the same interests as myself. Also a great writer with a lot of wisdom.

As my kids get older and I get busier driving them around town, I feel like I have less time than I used to.  I'm sure there are the same number of hours in a day as there were seven years ago, but it doesn't always feel like it.  As a result, I find it harder to stop and read blogs like I used to do.  Sometimes it's all I can do to keep writing this one.

Originally, I intended to post a top ten blog posts here, but I couldn't do it.  I started scrolling through posts from the beginning and as I was reminded of different events in my life or things I've said, I found it hard to find "the best".  If you have a few minutes to kill, and you have any interest, the archive is always available in the margin of the blog.  Some of the pictures from seven years ago made me say, "Wow! The kids were YOUNG."

Only one post has ever been deleted from the blog.  It had something to do with peeing in a jar.  That's all I'll say about that!  (Note - that isn't the only post about peeing in a jar! Seriously!)

April Fool's posts are usually fun to write.  Since I normally post the truth, making up a complete lie is entertaining for me.  I hope it is for you too.

Well, I think I've come to the end of blog number 1,500.  I appreciate you stopping by to read, especially, all the way to the end!  Although some say that social media sites like Facebook and Google+ have killed blogs, I intend to keep writing, and I hope you keep stopping by to see what I have to say.

My goal for the blog this year is to add in more posts of ranting about random stuff that pops in my head.  I'm afraid you'll tire of the, "we went to the park" blogs if I don't try and mix it up a bit.  Those random rant blogs take a bit more effort and time on my part, so the number of those posts will be directly related to the amount of quiet time I can scrounge up.

We'll pick back up on Monday morning with post 1501.