Author Archive
Help for Haiti
Posted by: | CommentsJust a quick note… with a link to Laura’s HeavenlyHomemakers blog. She has posted about offering Help to Haiti, and is doing a “giving challenge“. You can help just by visiting the site and commenting on her blog! And if you have written a post about helping Haiti, you can link up on her post and help even more!
Blessings to you…
Busy New Year
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s been a busy beginning to a new year, and I apologize for the lack of posting around here! I have several new series planned (how about some how-tos), and hopefully a few features too!
If YOU are interested in being featured here on theNanaBlogs.com, please just send a note through the contact form and let me know about you and your blog.
If you haven’t been reading the “Less of Me” posts over at NanaHood.com, you need to scootch on over and read them.
More soon…
Merry Christmas!
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A Free 2010 Blogging Calendar and Planner For You
Posted by: | CommentsA couple of questions I’m asked regularly are “what can I blog about” and “what SHOULD I blog about”? It’s really something each writer/blogger needs to decide, based on interests, likes, and personal experiences. It’s much easier to write about those things you know and like.
But even if you are passionate about healthy eating… or your grandkids… or your hobby or craft – writer’s block can still set in occasionally. Well, one of the best ways to jump start the creative juices again is to simply look at the calendar. How simple is that?
Every month, week, and day, there are strange, fun and downright funny holidays and observances celebrated everywhere. In fact, you can even make up your own ‘holiday’ to celebrate on your blog with your readers.
But you don’t have to make it ALL up yourself. I found a blogging calendar that features some of these fun, crazy holidays. And it has room to jot down your own ideas! You can use it to literally plan out the year’s content – or just a month or two ahead if you’re not the planning type. This really helps keep your blog going without rushing to write last minute posts.
Download and check it out for yourself. I bet you can find at least a few posts you can write about from the prompts. And you can even write about them right away and schedule them for future dates. (If you need a tutorial on how to schedule a post, click HERE).
Yes, I’m printing out the calendar as I type… you can expect to see at least a few blog posts in 2010 based on the prompts.
What are YOU blogging about today? Feel free to share your blog links in the comments!
Scheduling a Post for the Future
Posted by: | CommentsI’m a planner. An organizer. A “think about things way, WAY too much in advance” kind of person.
But I also have three children under the age of 7. Which means that no matter how often I plan and organize and think ahead, I’m always working around curve-balls thrown at me by the kiddos. Or dodge-balls. Yes, I’ll admit that my children like to play dodge-ball with my plans, schedule and those dreams for a little REST during their naptime.
(No, I’m not a Nana yet, but I can still blog here, right? Thanks!)
Anywho… all of this means that I’m actually not really good at the blogging thing, because if anything gets cut from my schedule during these “games” of dodgeball, it’s the ability to sit and think and put words together in a coherent fashion.
(In case you haven’t noticed, I’m also rather wordy. You’d think this would help me be a prolific blogger. Surprisingly enough, it doesn’t).
SO, the point of this post is to tell you how to PLAN in advance for those times when YOU may be dodging balls too.
The next time you are in your admin panel, writing a post, take a look to the right of the “add a new post” box. You should see a Publish box, with a few options inside it. One of those options is Publish immediately. There is an “Edit” link right next to the words “Publish immediately”. See that?
If you write a post, but want to publish it tomorrow (or next week), simply click the Edit link (BEFORE hitting the Publish button), and click on the date and time you’d like your post to appear. This changes your Publish button to a Schedule button. When you are ready to schedule/publish the post, just click that button.
You CAN also change the date/time of a post that has already been posted, so if you accidentally publish too soon, no worries.
And just like that, you can control the date and timing of your blog posts.
Now, if only I could figure out how to control the date and timing of my children’s naps – I’d be in great shape!
Do you Twitter? Do you Facebook?
Posted by: | CommentsIf so, we’d love to have you join us at both locations.
You can follow us on Twitter by clicking HERE
And become a fan of our Facebook Fan page, by clicking HERE
Featured Blogger… Nonnie
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s always so much fun to read the blogs posts of new Nana Bloggers, and today’s featured blogger is Nonnie. She has jumped right into things with her new blog, and over the weekend, she wrote a great post about loom knitting.
I had never heard of loom knitting until just a few weeks ago. I have to admit, it is my new passion now!! I have had so much fun learning how to knit hats, scarves, and now my latest project, a car seat blanket!
It all started when a friend of mine, who works at Hobby Lobby, told me about the kits they had on sale. Here is a link to what I am talking about: KNIFTY KNITTERS
I started out by watching YouTube tutorials and within one or two video’s, I was making my first hat!! Then I got hungry and decided I wanted to learn how to make scarves; so I searched a little more on YouTube, and viola’ SCARF VIDEOS!!
I was in heaven!!”
You can read more about Loom Knitting and see some pictures of items she has created over on Nonnie’s Blog.
Reinventing the Bloggy Wheel…
Posted by: | CommentsOk, so I don’t actually WANT to reinvent any wheels, bloggy or otherwise, so instead I’m going to link you up to some great how-to articles and informative websites that might be of help to you as you get started with your blogging experience!
Blogging How-To’s and Prompts:
- Blogging Basics 101
- Blog Basics
- How Often Should You Blog?
- Blog Writing Ideas
- Adding “Conversation” to your Blog
- Blogging Prompts at the Meme Express
Social Media and Networking:
What to Do With Your Photos:
What links have YOU found to be helpful in your blogging?
Friday Fun Links
Posted by: | CommentsI posted this over at NanaHood.com today, but posting here too in case you missed it!
It’s time for Friday Fun Links! (And some FREE stuff too). I’ve been short on time this week, so I’m going to cheat and do quick and easy “bullet” points with links.
- Download a free PDF from Grandparents.com – 100 Fun Things to Do with Your Grandkids
- Laura has a ton of great FREE yummy recipes to make as gifts for the Holidays over at HeavenlyHomemakers.com
- Get a FREE Holiday Hosting Guide from Paula Deen, with recipe, decorating, and entertaining ideas.
- Over at 5MinutesForMom.com, they are giving away 5 $50 Gift Cards from America Express
- There is a FABULOUS giveaway going on over at BooMama’s blog. She, along with HP, is giving away an HP Touchsmart computer!
- And because ONE computer giveaway is just not enough, HP is giving away FOUR more computers. Check out the links on THIS PAGE at BlogHer to enter four more times!
- There are several additional giveaways and contests over at BlogHer. You can read about them here: http://www.blogher.com/special-offers
And don’t forget about THIS fun link:
A Few Ideas for Getting More Traffic
Posted by: | CommentsHere at theNanaBlogs.com, you can build a blog for free and begin posting content right away about your life, your family, your grandkids. And while it can be fun to write for your friends and family, you might just be interested in getting a larger following! (And maybe even figuring out a way to make a little pocket change with your blog)!
Here are a few ideas to bring extra traffic to your blog:
1. Fresh Content – no one wants to visit a blog day after day and see the same posts. We recommend that you update your blog content at least twice a week. One easy way to do this is to write several posts ahead of time and upload them at the appropriate times.
2. Social Networking – these sites are everywhere. Join Facebook, MySpace, Squidoo, Twitter or a dozen others and make connections. You can join groups of like-minded people who are also bloggers, nanas, or even entrepreneurs. (We’ll write in more detail about this topic in another post!)
3. Viral Marketing – this is where you spread the word about your blog. Talk to friends, family and even strangers. You might even consider giving out business cards (or calling cards) that have your blog address on them.
4. Use RSS Feeds – RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication.” Readers can subscribe to your feed and get email updates when new content is posted. It is an easy way for them to keep up with your blog without spending all day online.
4. Submit Blog to Search Engines – doing this allows your blog to be ranked. Google and Yahoo! are two of the most popular search engines you want to crawl your blog pages.
5. Visit other blogs – show your appreciation to those who visit you by also posting comments on their blogs. It is a kindness that shows others you are not just out to advertise your blog alone.
6. Social Bookmarking – submitting posts to social bookmarking sites allows others who are members of those sites to track you back to your blog.
Using any of these ideas will start the traffic moving in your direction. It takes time but you CAN build the readership you want.
And as always, we are here to help! If you need assistance with any of the suggetions above, feel free to use the Contact Form and ask your question(s).
