The BiAnnual Blogathon Mini Challenge: Finding Blogger Support #blogathon2

Posted on June 19, 2012 by Jamie

This weekend I’m participating in the Biannual Blogathon Bash which is a twice yearly blogging marathon bash.  This is part of the mini-challenges they have available to work on for the weekend June 22-25th.  Anyone can partake, but entering the bash means more opportunities to win prizes.

The blogathon takes place from June 22nd through June 25th.  If you are apart of the bash please do not participate until the blogathon begins on June 22nd.  Also, don’t forget to follow along on twitter #blogathon2

Where Do You Find Blogger Support?

I know blogging can feel pretty overwhelming at times, how do you find the time to write? How do you come up with content to write, and last but not least, how do you find answers to the questions you have when it comes to blogging?

This is why it’s so important to know where to go for blogger support.  I have been very fortunate in my short blogging life to find incredible support from a variety of women and organizations, and now I want to share some of these strategies with you.

1) The SITS Girls

 First off, I absolutely love this site.  This is information central for all of your blogging needs.  They have discussions forums in which other bloggers sound off on important topics to them, they feature bloggers Monday through Friday in which you can meet and interact with other bloggers, and one day, have a featured day yourself.  The thing is, it brings bloggers together, and therefore, brings on a ton of support in the process.

2) Join a Collective

There are some pretty amazing blog networks and collectives out there.  Through these collectives they offer a variety of support for bloggers, and also amazing opportunities that come your way.

a) The Clever Girls Collective

They are amazing, but with this collective you have to apply, and this means, being a solid blogger for at least 6 months or more.  But once you apply weekly opportunities come your way for being a blogger, and you then apply for these opportunities.  From what I have seen, these ladies have done some pretty amazing work.

b) Shespeaks.com

SheSpeaks is a community that inspires women to share, discover, and interact with new products.  You can share what you know, what you’ve tried, and there are different opportunities and campaigns that come out that you can periodically be apart of.

c) Mom Groups

There are a variety of different mom networks around the blogosphere.  Do your research, and find a couple.  I’d give off some names, however, I am not actually a mom myself 😉

d) Latina Lifestyle Bloggers

If you’re latina, a great resource is the Latina Lifestyle Collective.  For more information please make sure to check out their website here

3) Join a local blogging community

I’ve been very fortunate in my blogging life to run across SoCal Lady Bloggers!  This is a community based out of Southern California that has brought almost 200 women bloggers together.  We are supportive of one another, and this is a good place to go if you have a blogging question or concern or even an opportunity you’d like to promote with others.  Do you know if your community has a local blogging group?  If so, it’s a great place to start in finding support.

4) Club-Content

 I absolutely love Club-Content!  Club-Content is a community of bloggers that helps to achieve better content within your blog, and it helps to network you with other bloggers.  For a small annual fee you can participate in different challenges where others will critique your content in an anonymous way.  A great way to evaluate your blog and push yourself to keep writing better content.

5) Facebook Groups

By being apart of different facebook groups it helps to get your blog name out there, and you create a support system around your blog.  I have joined a few groups where we commit to reading each other’s blogs, sharing each other’s content, and commenting with each other.  It is a huge support system, and you run across new blogs all the time, but you also get to know each other.

So, My Mini-Challenge to you for this lovely BiAnnual Blogathon is this:

1) Join a new community you haven’t joined before

2) Apply for a new Blogging Network or Collective

3) Find your local blogging group, or CREATE one of your own.

Results?

Leave me a comment below showcasing what you have done, or leave some suggestions in how you have found blogging support of your own.

Happy Blogathon! =)


Categories: blogging | Tags: , , , , | 67 Comments

Pasadena Chalk Festival!

Posted on June 18, 2012 by Jamie

Over the weekend I attended the Pasadena Chalk Festival.  I also attended last year.  I love seeing the artist’s at work, the progress they make, and how their artwork truly comes out.

Below you can find some of my favorites:

This girl did a tribute of Whitney Houston.  We talked with her a bit asking how she got involved.  She’s been doing it since was 12 years old (13 years ago!)  She says a lot of the artist’s recognize each other at these festivals, and she has gain someone friendships out of them.

She did a beautiful tribute of Whitney Houston.  You can see the entire picture on the floor, and yes, she was able to complete it.

and boy oh boy I wish I could have been there when the question was actually asked.  Further research, as in, the next day, turns out that she did say YES 😉 So congrats to the newest engaged couple, and what a great idea in asking her!

For the dog lovers out there, I took this shot for you 😉

I talked to this artist a bit later in the day.  She’s doing an entire drawing related to “Where the Wild Things Are.”  What she’s working on in this picture is chopping her chalk down to little pieces then she’ll utilize paintbrushes to work with the chalk.  She said she wasn’t feeling like being all stretch over her drawing that day 😉

This was one of my favorites.  This guy also had a pretty pimped out car to drive in.  I would have loved to see the finished product =)

This artist is named Randall Williams.  And he has an amazing talent.  Just look at how smooth he can get a picture, and how much he can replicate such a picture.  It’s pretty amazing to see.

Albert Einstein decided to join us 😉

These were just a few of the artworks seen around the Paseo Colorado where the festival takes place every year in June!  The Make Music Festival was also happening on Saturday where live bands, performers, with craft vendors onboard to admire and look upon.

I hope you can make it out next year.   It’s pretty incredible seeing the beautiful drawings come to life =)

To check out the list of winners, check out this blog here

 


Categories: Art | Tags: , , , | 12 Comments

“Stonefire” Tandoori Naan Giveaway Ends 6/29!

Posted on June 16, 2012 by Jamie

Stonefire Tandoori Naan is wonderful.  I have been a huge fan of flatbread and naan for years.  I recently ran across the Stonefire Tandoori Naan brand at the California Strawberry Festival.  They gave us samples of the original and garlic varieties.  And they also provided us with a demonstration of some of the fantastic meals you could make with it.

Think flatbread pizzas, stuffing, wraps, pita sandwiches and more.  There are so many possibilities and you can find a lot of their amazing recipes on their site (stonefire.com.)

One recipe I tried the other evening was covering my Tandoori Naan with nutella, and putting raspberries and blackberries on top of it.  In the past I never thought to make dessert with it, but by the end I was so happy I did, and it will become a favorite of mine for years to come.

Although the Stonefire Taandoori Naan tastes best when warmed up, I did snack on it cold a lot this week, and was very happy with the taste, even cold.  Whether you’re wanting some flatbread to munch on, looking to make a fantastic recipe, or even a pita sandwich it can be done.

Stonefire Taandoori Naan can be found in your Fresh N Easy stores, Ralphs, Food 4 Less, and Walmarts.  They can also be found in Canada. T the price is really reasonable.  For a 2 pack of Naan, the price is at 1.99.  For a 3 pack of pita bread, the price was 1.49.  It’s so affordable!

Here lies the nutritional value that was found on the back of the garlic variety:

Calories: 190 Calories from fat: 50

Total Fat: 5g

Saturated Fat: 1g

Cholesterol: 5mg

Sodium: 430mg

Total Carbohydrate: 29g

Dietary Fiber: 1g

Sugars: 2g

Protein: 6g

Calcium: 4%

Iron: 10%

Now you have the opportunity to win your own prize package.

Please make sure to connect with our sponsor on FACEBOOK and also on TWITTER. 

Prize: Prize pack of Stonefire Taandoori Naan (1 package original variety, 1 package garlic, 1 package whole wheat)

Retail Value: 7 dollars

Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment below, please say something nice!

Optional Entries: Must leave an additional comment for each  optional entry below:

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No purchase necessary, void where prohibited.  All entries must be 18 years or older and reside in the US.  Winner will be chosen through the use of random.org and will be notified by email.  All other rules can be found here.  Giveaway ends on 6/29 at 9pm PST

Disclosure: Stonefire Taandoori Naan is providing the winner’s prize package, all other purchases were made by me.  I am a huge fan of their product, and would recommend it to anyone.

 

 

 


Categories: Giveaways | Tags: , , , , | 39 Comments