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Why You Should Start a Blog (Or Keep Blogging) in 2024

July 29, 2024 by Claire Leave a Comment

why-start-a-blog-in-2024-titleIn December 2013, I went out for fondue with two friends from college one afternoon. One of the girls told me about this website called foodgawker (RIP) that was like a collection of recipes from all around the web. She knew I loved to bake and recommended it as a source for original recipes.

Naturally, foodgawker led me to discover this thing called a blog that I had no idea existed. I returned occasionally to look for something new to bake. Eventually, I started poking around the blogs linked on foodgawker beyond the recipes. My “gateway blog” was Southern In-Law, specifically her banana bread baked oatmeal recipe, still bookmarked on my computer.… Read More »

Filed Under: Blogging Tagged With: blogging, online presence, writing

What’s On My Mind: What Should I Write About?

March 8, 2024 by Claire Leave a Comment

One of my blogger friends used to have a post series called “What’s On My Mind” that I loved. Sometimes you just want to hear somebody’s unfiltered, unedited, not-SEO-optimized thoughts about something.

So, I’m using the idea here. Sometimes I want to chat about a specific topic, and that chat is too long to put in a 2-3 sentence snippet in my Life Lately posts. Today’s topic is blogging as a parent–or more accurately, blogging as a parent when you don’t want to write about your kids.… Read More »

Filed Under: Blogging Tagged With: blogging, online presence, personal, private life

Summer 2022: Memories & Plans

June 20, 2022 by Claire Leave a Comment

Hello friends! I’ve been very very sparse on the blog lately. We’ve had an absolutely crazy June, so I just wanted to briefly update you on where I’ve been + summer plans for Just to Claireify.

This month so far:

  • Both kids started summer swim lessons
  • We saw my aunt who visited from out of town, who we hadn’t seen since we got married!
  • We’ve been working on a variety of small home improvements, both hiring out and Eric & my dad DIY’ing some
  • Catching up with old friends over phone and in person
  • Spending some time at the local pool
  • Attending our college reunion
  • Continuing to declutter the house–we brought another trunkload to Half Price/Goodwill over the weekend
  • And many other things!

That being said, I really miss writing, both on here and my freelance work. I got my first “big” paycheck in the mail today from something I submitted a while back (and by big, I mean more than $10-20 :P). And I don’t do it for the money at all, but it’s nice to think that I could spin it into a career someday when my kids are a bit older and more self-sufficient.

This summer, I’m planning to stick to topics that are a big part of my personal experience/goals right now: decluttering/minimalism, routines, and feminine inspiration. As always, let me know in the comments if you prefer other topics I can add in 🙂 I’m staying away from the personal posts right now since that’s what I’m comfortable with. Maybe they’ll return in the future!

xx Claire

Filed Under: Blogging Tagged With: blogging, life update, writing

Bad Sleep & Let’s Be Friends on Goodreads!

January 5, 2022 by Claire Leave a Comment

Hello friends! I have a serious case of the post-holiday blahs at the moment and haven’t been sleeping well on top of that–so let’s just say my motivation to write anything, for the blog or anywhere else, is basically nonexistent.

I recently shared my 6 top crunchy parenting books of 2021 and I meant to share my Goodreads profile in that post, too! But I forgot. If you’re also a Goodreads user and want to connect, shoot me a friend request (unless you’re one of the spammy bots that stumbles across Just to Claireify occasionally–I won’t accept you)! The more the merrier when it comes to reading friends 🙂

My mind is pretty much jello at the moment so there’s no use attempting blogging/writing right now. Hopefully I can get a couple of good night’s rests and get back to it later this week!

xx Claire

Filed Under: Personal, Social Media Tagged With: blogging, goodreads, life update, reading

Getting Back to (Blogging) Basics

December 16, 2021 by Claire Leave a Comment

Sometimes I think back to when I started blogging in 2015 (on a blog that no longer exists, thankfully–I cringe when I think about some of the stuff I shared in college!).

It was quite a fun time to be blogging as it was a very popular hobby. I was involved in a couple of online blogging communities, the most well-known being Bloggers Gonna Blog. We were all posting various healthy dessert recipes (that usually involved flavored peanut butters for some reason??), sharing our young adult travel adventures, and occasionally writing about deeper things like mental health or relationships.… Read More »

Filed Under: Blogging Tagged With: blogging, online presence, personal

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Hi, I’m Claire!

I'm 31, writer, wife, and mom of 4. Just to Claireify is a lifestyle blog for women who aspire to live healthy, balanced lives. (And, okay, it's a throwback to that girly 2010s blogger vibe sometimes too!) If that sounds like you, grab a cup of coffee and make yourself at home. (Learn more about me here.)

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