My husband, who does most of the cooking in our house, thought that baking Hanukkah cookies and other tasty treats over winter break would be a fun way to entertain the kids. Normally, he’s not a fan of baking (too boring, he says), but he must’ve been feeling the holiday spirit something fierce because he made no less than five different baked goods last week.
While snacking on homemade biscotti and Neiman Marcus chocolate chip cookies, our 5 year old declared that daddy is “the best cook at home.” That is, he’s the best home cook — but not quite as good a restaurant chef.
“So what am I the best at?” I asked, hoping Levi would say something like “taking care of us” or “playing with us” or, at the very least, “getting us dressed every day.”
“You’re the best at blogging and taking pictures and working,” he replied. “You’re a smarty pants!”
While I’d rather my kindergartner not think of me as a workaholic, the truth is he’s seen how busy I’ve been at the computer the last couple of months. So busy, in fact, that I haven’t posted anything on the blog since September. Instead, I’ve been devoting the 15-20 free hours I have each week to my other gig: freelance writing.
I’ve written articles about high-tech beauty products and kitchen gadgets for Techwalla, lip treatments for Brides, and DIY patio furniture for BHG. I’ve contributed posts about beauty oil, fall nail colors, and more to Perfumania’s new blog. I created a modern football-themed bedroom mood board for The Land of Nod and wrote more website and newsletter copy for Artfully Walls. At the end of the year, I spearheaded a massive research project for Oriental Trading and interviewed Adam Pascal of Rent for a local performing arts center’s newsletter.
(I also went through a vigorous two-month-long interview process for a job I really, really wanted and made it all the way to the final round, but that’s a story for another time.)
It’s been a busy, stressful few months in a (mostly) good way.
During that time, I continued to debate what to do with A Girl Named PJ. Should I try reviving it? Or had my little lifestyle blog simply run its course?
Making New Year’s blogging resolutions
When I really thought about it, though, I realized that I probably wouldn’t have gotten any of the opportunities listed above if it weren’t for this blog. A Girl Named PJ has been my post-graduate training as a content writer, and while I’ve been using those skills to steadily grow my career, I’m not yet where I want to be professionally. So perhaps I still have more to learn here.
If you’re expecting me to now announce blogging resolutions like “post more often” in 2017, I’m sorry to disappoint. Resolutions, or firm decisions, just beg to be broken, and besides, what qualifies as “often” anyway?
I could challenge myself to write a certain number of posts each week, but I’m not going to do that either. Between parenting and freelancing, I never know how much extra time I’m going to have. Plus, if I don’t reach my goal one week, I’ll feel like I failed.
Instead, I’ve decided to set a New Year’s intention, or plan, to keep at A Girl Named PJ. What that means, I’m not 100% sure. It might mean weekly content. It might mean a monthly newsletter. It might mean a brand new website with a new name and mission statement. If nothing else, I’ll probably tweak my template a bit. (I think I’m done with sidebar ads, aren’t you?)
Until I figure it out, I’ll pop over here when I have the time and write about I’m excited about at the moment. Based on my current interests, I’m forecasting more beauty and wellness content. Unless you tell me…
…what are you interested in reading on A Girl Named PJ?
Until next time, you can follow me on Instagram (where I post almost daily) or on Facebook. Happy New Year!
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