Happy New Year, friends!
I can’t believe the year 2012 is already gone! It’s been a year full of trials, reflections, and blessings for sure. And because it’s always interesting to take a look back at our lives for the past year, I thought I would do the same for my blog.
A lot of bloggers will be doing end of year countdowns on their blogs this week. I thought about choosing my personal Top 10 Personal Favorites, or my Top 10 Most Read articles. But honestly, as I was looking through the past year, I realized that there are some months that were just busier than others, and I might end up missing something I’d want to share if I did things that way. So instead, I decided it would be fun to do the most read blog article of each month.
I think you’ll find a nice mix of inspiration, reviews, and helpful tips this way. I hope you enjoy looking back with me! I’m having a blast!
January — Free Kindle Books for Your Kids has been a big hit in 2012. This has actually been my most popular blog article EVER. With more than 10,000 views, it still gets hits almost daily. People love their Kindles and they love great books for their kids. It’s a perfect match!
February — This month, my most popular article was my introduction to my Blogging Through the Alphabet Link-up — A is for Alphabet. Here you’ll find an A-Z list of my most favorite homeschool resources!
March — In March, there was a tie for my most popular articles, and both were Blogging through the Alphabet posts. In the first, I share about our homeschooling method — D is for Delight-Directed. And in the other, I give you some tips for expanding your learning in your neighborhood — F is for Field Trip.
April — April’s post hit a nerve with a lot of folks, when I stepped up to share my thoughts about allowing God to plan the size of your family, in “God Made Birth Control“.
May — This month’s article was emotional for me. I was challenged by the Schoolhouse Review Crew to write about what I wanted my child(ren) to remember about his childhood. Just so you know, there is not one thing on my list that has anything remotely to do with homeschooling. Here is the list of what I Want Him to Remember. And yes, there’s a snake story.
June — In June, my most popular article was a review. It doesn’t surprise me because we loved this product so much that I still talk about it! Did you buy it? You really should! Schoolhouse Review: Discovery Scope.
July — July was actually a big month for giveaways. August, too. But because those numbers are skewed by people just stopping by hoping to win a prize, I’m going to skip over those and share the most popular article that didn’t include a giveaway. I was thrilled to see that this one was at the top. It’s special to me and one that I go back and read for myself over and over — Building a Foundation for Your Homeschool.
August — Giveaways aside, the most viewed article for this month is pretty cool because I spent a lot of time compiling all of these resources for my readers. So, if you have an iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch or Kindle Fire, you’ll want to click over to peruse Appschooling Central — Educational Apps for Homeschool!
September — I took the most of the month of September off from blogging and reviewing, but I filled the days with some wonderful guest posts. This guest post has become one of the top 5 in viewed articles on my blog. I hope you enjoy it as much as so many others have — Giftedness 101: What It Is. What It Means.
October — It’s always a win-win situation when you give away free printables on your blog. During the month of October, I gave away a simple printable PDF — Nature Study with an Autumn Scavenger Hunt — and it was a hit with my readers (and many of your friends apparently — thanks for sharing!). Oh, and it’s still available if you want to download it for next fall!
November — Here’s another one to tuck away for next year. I shared a tutorial for making my Handmade Quilted Christmas Ornaments. I saw lots of folks on Pinterest and Facebook taking about making them. Did you?
December — It’s December as I write this, and I really haven’t blogged much. My most popular post was actually this running list of free Christmas books for Kindle. But that’s not very helpful for you now. My next most popular post was my birthday message for Ben. It’s not very helpful either, but it is sweet and has an adorable picture of him as a baby — 12 Years Ago I Became a Momma.
I also wanted to take a moment to thank you, my readers, for . . . well, reading. And commenting. And sharing my blog with your friends. And encouraging me. I started this blog at the end of Ben’s kindergarten year, to keep a record of our homeschool journey, but it has grown to be so much more than that.
It is my prayer that our journey, along with my random thoughts, reviews, and few fun tips and resources along the way, are an encouragement to you. In 2013, you’ll find much more of our homeschool personality and fewer reviews and giveaways (though there will still be some of those, too). I hope you’ll like what we have to offer at Ben and Me. As always, feel free to leave us a comment to let us know how we’re doing, ask a question, or just to share your own journey with us.
May 2013 be a year of abundant blessings for you and yours.
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