How, when and why I started my blog

This post was originally published for Living24 Magazine, a new online platform that brings together young writers and professionals to share their own insight into life. I loved getting to sit down and write out my honest thoughts on blogging after all of these years. You can read my post, along with other lifestyle, wellness and culture themed articles on Living24’s site.

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Let’s rewind to high school. I think it was my junior year (2010) when my middle sister Kathleen first got me hooked on reading blogs. Blogs? What is a blog I thought? On our parent’s giant Mac desktop computer, she showed me Jane Aldridge’s wacky vintage fashion on Sea of Shoes and Emily Schuman’s cali girl next door vibes on Cupcakes and Cashmere. From there I was hooked. I vividly remember sitting near the back of my 300+ person mass comm lecture course during first semester freshman year, skimming through my bookmarked list of blogs, reading each and every new blog post instead of learning about how to write a proper press release. I was enthralled with these digital platforms people were creating. They were merely just sharing creative aspects of their everyday life, but I was eating it up. I was making recipes I found on blogs, recreating outfits (you bet I was on that Hunter rainboot train because of this post - LOL), and DIYing my little heart out. I’ve had a creative bone since birth and reading these “lifestyle” blogs fueled me.

Being the blog junkies that we were, Kathleen actually started her own blog back in 2011. A Peony For Your Thoughts - because some things in life are too sweet not to be shared. While APFYT is no longer, we had a blast posting and coming up with content for her site. I say “we” because I was chomping at the bit every chance I could to guest post. Here is one of my favorites - ha! Around spring of my sophomore year of college I started to relish with the idea of starting my own blog. I sat on the idea for a while because I was honestly nervous my sister would be mad. I remember texting her, hey I’m going to start a blog. And she replied good you should!! You’ll be better at it than I am (blushes).

Take A Bite was established in 2013. My little creative outlet to share “bites of my life.” I remember spending a full day at the corner table in the dining room of my sorority house, piecing together free font downloads and creating header images for my site on PicMonkey (scroll down in this post for a look at what TAB looked like on day one). This was back when blogging was still really just gaining its stride. This was the Blogspot registered domain days where my posts looked like articles on fall fashion, nail DIYs, or how to style costume jewelry with horrible low-res and over-filtered images. If you dig back in the archives of Take A Bite you can find some true gems like this DIY t-shirt turban headband, homemade tassel garland, and mint is the new black. I was devoted to putting up 4-5 posts a week on the best pumpkin quinoa recipe (what?), how to washi tape your laptop, and the best fall bag from Old Navy... These old posts give me the biggest chuckle when I revisit them, but will always be some of my all-time favorites.

Blogging back then was worlds different than what it is in now. There are a few true bloggers still hanging on, but we have pretty much all retired our Blogspot web address for a sleek Squarespace site that really just acts as a concrete place to link an Instagram post to. #guilty. However, from day one of creating Take A Bite I was serious about two things. 1. Not making this a short term thing. I wanted to commit to longevity with my blog. I’ve seen so many people go through all the work of starting a blog and after being hyper committed for a month, just slowly stop posting. This included friends of mind. I didn’t want that. I saw TAB as an extension of me and I wanted it to run a long course. 2. To keep blogging my hobby. Strictly my hobby. 

I’m proud to say seven years later I’ve held on to those two truths I first promised myself. Take A Bite has shifted to be much more food heavy than fashion and DIY. I’ve also shifted to rely much more on Instagram as a way to share quick content, leaving new posts fewer and farther between. However, I think that is really just an expression of the times and how the digital space has turned. All this to be said, Take A Bite is still very much a part of my life it’s just expressed differently. 

Take A Bite is also not my full-time job, nor do I think it ever will be. I work full time as the Marketing Director for a fabulous restaurant group and I truly love what I do and who I get to work with. Being apart of a team, having a boss, being told what to do, yet also having my own responsibility and freedom is something I personally love. Blogging/content creating/influencing whatever you want to call it has always sounded isolating to me. This goes against the cultural dream to be your own boss and building your own platform, but I don’t want that. I’m already working from home due to the pandemic, but working for myself on top of that sounds lonely. This is nothing against all of the wonderful people who have been able to create a beautiful life from their blogs, that’s just not want I have ever wanted for myself. 

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Now I’ll be honest, Take A Bite has cultivated a decent little community for me. I do get paid here and there from content I produce and I’ve had far more opportunities than I could have ever imagined because of my blog, and for that I’m so thankful. I’ve met incredible people through blogging, including one of my dear friends who I’ve traveled with, talk to regularly, and got to go to her wedding two years ago. It’s not lost on me just how cool blogging has positively impacted my life. What an awesome hobby if I do say so myself!

All this to be said, there is so much pressure out there to be a hustler striving for more Instagram followers or to become the next Defined Dish. Oh you don’t have 10k and a swipe up, then why bother sharing? I feel those pressures. I feel them hard. But I do my very best to remember the voice in my head that told me back in 2013 that this is a hobby, this is for fun, this is my creative outlet. I’ve never wanted my blog to overshadow me, I’ve just wanted it to be a bonus add-on. Sometimes I want to scream “Hey look at me, I’ve been doing this for 7 years!!! Follow me! I’ve been around forever.” But honestly, that’s just me being jealous of seeing people grow quicker around me. If I put my head down I’m sure I could get those numbers up and create more opportunities. But for the 5th time, I really and truly love this as my hobby. I have never personally put pressure on myself to post something at a certain time, to stick to a content calendar, or to reply to every DM. Because I’m really just a normal ol’ 27-year-old girl who has this blog and can use it as my excuse to post yet another picture of my chocolate chip cookie recipe and show you what I bought on Amazon and pretend as you care. 

If you want to start a blog, or maybe more relevant today, and Instagram account. Go for it! This outlet continues to be so incredibly fun. Just own it and own your intentions on where you want it to go, and I promise it will be worth it.

Annie

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The most accurate valentines card.

Cute valentines for co-workers that don't "succ."

7 ways to unwind after work. #3 is my everyday and I'm really trying at #6.

How to figure out your dream job.

Then how to grow old with yourself.

How to get a good 'ole belly laugh.

Almond butter latte like woah.

And lastly, Juicy suit no tag backs!

Annie

Guest Post: Sense Appeal XXIX

MB here taking over TAB for the day from BOD. Some call me Moll and for a few it's Bridge, but all of you probably know me as Annie's blogger bestie. 
I'm honored to have that title and to guest post today, sharing my 29th edition from my regular 'Sense Appeal' series. It looks, feels and sounds (pun intended) a lot like Annie's 'Bites of My Life' posts with a focus on what has especially aroused each one of my senses in the past week. 
for the eyes: 
Inspiration board at the Camille Styles office fed our creative juices on the fifth and final day of the work week, Friday!
Click here to see me and Olivia's original, orange bloody mary that went live yesterday on the site. 
for the mind:
I watched the sun rise on Sunday and Monday morning. Until my Dallas friends reminded me how unpleasant their trek home is on I-35, I took the scenic trip to Houston for granted. 
So, this weekend, I soaked it up for all it was worth, finding it all the more therapeutic in the wee hours of the morning. It reminded me of this article, noting how we can take "immense pleasure in the natural world [because] all the natural world bears the stamp of the God that made it." 
for the ears:
A story in lieu of a song this go-around. 
I'm studying visual communications for my thesis, so Sister Corita Kent's ability to look at pop culture images "from a slightly different angle" spoke to me. 
She makes art out of ads, turning mere marketing into powerful messages like in this Beatles poster: 
Listen here for more on how this nun made a lasting and loving influence on the world of pop art. 

fashion for feel:
In need of a mid-weight jacket on a mild Texas winter day, I bent (broke, really) the fashion rule of avoiding white before Easter with this blazer from Chico's. 
Chanel had a spare after this shoot and encouraged me to add it to my closet, the perfect addition to the more professional wardrobe I'm building slowly but surely. 
for taste:
Grandma's hummus spread on Ezekiel english muffins, topped with barely pickled cucumbers. 

I've never pegged myself a picky eater. I'm not even partial when it comes to one part of the food pyramid over the next; though lately, my taste buds are becoming more selective when it comes to my favorites. 
I'll forever be the number one fan of brussels from Fresa's and pitas from Smoothie Island. And in today's grocery store landscape where hummus varieties are as vast as cereal, I choose grandma every. single. time.
I finally made my way to grandma's (now operated by granddaughter) kitchen, The Mediterranean Chef Café, where they offer a small lunch menu as well as their wholesale goods. Grandma shows the love as all first timers leave with hummus on the house. 
Hope I too have spread some love and inspiration on my first guest post. Happy Friday's Eve! 

New Season, New Blogs

New season, and new blogs on my radar. Some food blogs and some fashion/lifestyle or as one blogger describes her's, an "inspiration blog. I love that.

First up, My Name is Yeh. Pronounced Yay!!!, with lot's of exclamation marks! She's Chinese and jewish, uses code names of important people in her life and doesn't believe in capitalization. Not to mention her recipes all make me yell, YAY!!!

Some of my favorite recipes are her Pistachio Pop-TartsFunfetti Biscotti, Coconut Quinoa with Dates and Nuts (the recipe that put her on my radar), and Chicken with Apples + Chardonnay.

The Darling Detail is written by Jessi Afshin, lives in my new favorite city, Austin. A few "details" about Jessi: she has a crazy legit blog, she has amazing style, she is the production Assistant for Camille Styles (woah) and she's my age. She also wakes up at 5:45 ever morning to work on her blog. It's currently 6:47 a.m. so I sort of feel your pain, this isn't an everyday thing for me though.

Yeah...Immaeatthat. Kylie makes awesome sweet and savory healthy food that is still "crave-able." She wants to pursue a career intertwined with food without working in a restaurant (you and me both girl). She makes stellar sweets, veggie rich meals and also shares "what she eats every week" similar idea to my bites posts. My friend I interned with this summer showed me Kylie's site this summer and now we are in a constant game of sending screenshots of her dishes back in forth!

Some favorites are  Baked Apples Stuffed with Oatmeal Cookie GranolaSingle Serving Pumpkin Cinnamon RollsLess Slutty Brownie and her new Tea Latte post (perfect for my new tea kick!)

Mrs. Lilien, written by Kelley Lilien is a blogger, designer and author of the adorable, Mrs. Lilien's Cocktail Swatchbook. I love the way Mrs. Lilien formulates her posts. The graphics, colors and placement really sets her creativity apart from most blogs I read. They are crisp and impressive but still simple. Her aesthetic is to always keep the "Mrs." in mind, so you can expect every post to be tres chic! P.S. her current post on jumpsuits is on par. 

Lady and Pups-An Angry Food Blog. A misery outlet as the author likes to call it. L&P is the result of her move to Beijing and the anger it brings her. She has channeled her anger into delight through food. She is cynical, sarcastic and cooks some amazing food. 

Most dishes have an asian feel, but I love her recipes like The Saucy Marriage PieSea Salt Buttercream and Chocolate CupcakeMicrowave Sausage and Cheese Spaghetti  and Green Butter Grilled Oysters. She doesn't believe in measuring, but I don't either, her recipes are more of "guides." Don't let that scare you. Five seconds of looking at the photography on her site and you'll be sold.

Straight From Kate  is my newest read. I found her on Tuesday and had to add her to the list. Kate lives in Dallas where she ditched corporate world to pursue, well, anything. She is a photographer, freelance artist, creative and stud sugar cookie decorator so we obviously bonded on that. Since Straight from Kate is so new on my radar as well as new in the blog world, I look forward to seeing how she progresses it.

Sometimes you just need some new inspiration.

Annie

I'm Blogging

Okay, here we go. After wasting too much time going back and forth whether I should or shouldn't start a blog, the time has come. I'm taking the plunge. With encouragement from friends and family I finally felt like it was time to just do it.

image via pinterest

Bear with me as I develop this blog. I have been an avid blog reader for about the past four years, but now that I am on this side it is completely different.  To be honest I'm nervous. What will people think of my posts, my blog design, my awkward writing style etc? So like I said, bear with me.
The focus of my blog is to basically share all the fun/weird/crazy ideas and things going on in my life. Like the title says, I want you guys to "take a bite" out of my life. Heads up, my life consists of lots of food, fashion, friends and all things girly. So prepare yourself for lots of recipe posts (first one is tomorrow!), posts about my favorite fashion trends, and whatever else I'm currently coveting!

If you notice on the right sidebar, I have a list of all my favorite blogs. Maybe one day my blog will be on someones "daily reads" list (wishful thinking). This is where I get my daily inspiration. I love to wake up (perks of an early riser-perfect time to catch up on blogs), make a bowl of oatmeal and search through the new posts by my favorite bloggers.  Since this is only my first post, I thought I would share a couple of my favorite blogs so you can read through some of their amazing posts.
First, and foremost, my favorite is A Peony For your Thoughts. I may be bias because this is my big sisters blog. But, a day doesn't go by that I don't check her blog. Her blog is one of the main reasons for starting my blog. I was constantly thinking of things I wanted her to post about and loved the few times I got to guest post that it only made sense I just start my own.

Other favorites include Cupcakes and Cashmere, A Piece of Toast, The Everygirl, Channeling Contessa and my fellow Oklahomie The Pioneer Woman. This mix of fashion, lifestyle, and food blogs keep me continually inspired.

So while I work on getting future posts together, enjoy exploring some of my favorite blogs! Please stop by tomorrow to read my first recipe post! I know you will love it!

xo annie
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