I just love how the internet connects people and one of the best things about blogging is connecting with other bloggers. This past April I had the opportunity to connect with a great group of midlife bloggers when I attended the Bloggers At Midlife Conference in Las Vegas. These are MY people. We all had different goals and reasons for being bloggers but it was truly a meeting of the minds as we were all connected by our age and life experiences. 
When I saw that Katherine of Katherine’s Corner was going to do a special blog series featuring bloggers 50 years and older I decided to jump in on the fun and today is the day that It’s Just Life joins some other bloggers to be featured.
I have always technically been a midlife blogger, I guess, and while I do not think that age defines me or who I am I do think that because of my age I can draw on experiences that others younger than I have not experienced. I love being the age that I am and am definitely the most confident and self assured at the age that I currently am than when I was younger. With age comes a sense of being at ease with who I am and that is a very good thing.
The best thing about blogging for me is and probably will always be is my Comments for a Cause program that I do every month. If you are new here it is very simple. For every comment on my blog during the month I make a 50 cent donation to a charity/organization that I have chosen and shared with readers on the 1st of the month. What this has done is help increase awareness and raise a little bit of money for each cause that I have featured on It’s Just Life since April 2011. It also has encouraged a lot of interaction and comments on posts when that is not always what happens with blogs. Everyone is busy and it takes time to read and comment and I really appreciate each comment. This month our recipient is Shriners Hospitals for Children and the comments are rolling in.
Katherine also asked me a couple of questions to answer for her post and I thought I would include them here as well.
1. Do you think the colors of a blog layout affect your subscribers and activity? I am sure that everyone had different ideas when it comes to color schemes for their blogs. I love the color red and it denotes excitement and happiness to me so that is why I chose it . I have always had some red in my template since the day I started blogging so I don’t really have any experience with reactions from subscribers to different colors of my own but I know when I visit blogs I enjoy seeing some color in the design. The ones that do not attract me are the ones that are just black and white with no splash of color.
2. When was the last time you saw the sun rise? Why just this morning! I am a morning person and usually am up with the sun and when I am home I see it out my bedroom doors rising over the lake which is pretty spectacular and not something I want to miss.
So today if you have time hop over to say hi to Katherine at Katherine’s Corner and also visit the other featured bloggers. The series has been going on for weeks and there are a lot of great bloggers to visit who have really interesting topics. Hopefully the linky icon below will direct you to some of them.
But before you go one request, pretty please. In the comments section please list the name and URL of one of your favorite blogs to read so I can add some more to my list. I would love to see what you are reading and it all will go to help Shriners Hospitals for Children at the same time.
21 Comments
Leave a commentI’ll hop over to your feature shortly.
One of my favorite photo bloggers is Dan Traun from Red Wing, Minnesota. I always learn from his photos. He thinks outside the box in photos and doesn’t miss much. Most of his images are shot from his vehicle while traveling. I don’t know how he does it. But he’s talented.
Check out Dan’s blog here:
http://dantraun.com/
I find your idea of donating to charity a smashing and generous idea. One of my favorite blogs is Stevie Turner’s. She is an indie writer. She can be found at http://www.steviet.wordpress.com. I look forward to reading more of your blog.
Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to read AND comment, Bernadette! I will hop over to see what you are up to in a little bit!!!!
Hi Beth Ann! I found you through the Between the Lines series. It’s great to get to know bloggers my same age. Your Comments for Charity idea is brilliant! What a great way to spread the love and help those in need. I commend you my friend!
Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by and also leave a comment! That means 50 cents to the Shriners this month! Yay! So glad to meet you–will hop over to your blog and say hey there as well!
thank you for your bloggy friendship and for participating in the Between the Lines series xo
Hi Beth Ann, I am a morning person too and I am also privileged to see the sun rise over our lake every morning – I’ll be thinking of you at sunrise in your part of the world from now on. I think your comments for a cause is a great idea – what a wonderful way of paying it forward. Very glad to meet you via Between the Lines!
Looking forward to checking out Katherine’s Corner
Thanks, Jeni!
Beth Ann, what a delight to meet you as a fellow Week 7 featured blogger. As the Mother of a severely disabled young adult son, I love your idea of donating to such a worthy cause, for each comment. A generous idea that would be wonderful to duplicate on our own blogs. Thankyou. Inspirational. Mimi xxx
Mimi–thanks so much for stopping by and taking time to leave a comment. I have had several other bloggers who now do Comments for a Cause on their own blog in one way or another and it has really made me smile. If you decide to do something like this please let me know so I can link to you!
Hi Beth, I read yours post via Katherine’s Corner (I’m not up until late June!). We may have met at BAM, but there were so many awesome ML bloggers to get to know! Your donations idea to Shriner’s Hospitals is wonderful. Now you have given me an idea! You might like this post (proceeds go to anti-bullying–Interactions 4 Peace). http://secondwindleisure.com/2016/05/26/baby-bow-ties-time-launches-childrens-line/
Terri–thanks so much for stopping by! There are so many great ML Bloggers and I am loving meeting them all including you. I have been doing Comments for a Cause since April 2011 and it has been such a great thing for me to do. I am checking out your great cause on your blog right now! Thanks for the link!
I was at BAM too! What a great conference. And I LOVE your comments with a cause. So many great blogs viewfrominhere A Well Styled Life The Queen in Between Over 50 Feeling 40 …. Great connecting with you in Between the Lines. I was in Week 5.
Nice to meet you through Between the Lines. I’m following on Google+. Favorite blog? Geez, I don’t know. I have so many I follow and I like them all for different reasons. I don’t think I have any favorites. I guess if I had to pick one, it would be Amber Fillerup Clark’s because I love her photos, her babies are precious, and I love her travel posts. I also love that even though she is so famous, she responds to each and every single comment.
Amy, thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to comment. I will check out that blog because I have not heard of her before and yes–answering comments is key to building relationships! Thank again for stopping by!
I’ve always loved that tree in your header, and the red. It’s one of my favourite colours, with my own personal fave being an organge/coral shade. Kinda like the sunrise! 🙂
It’s definitely important to have a pleasing aesthetic on your blog. Ones that are too busy and with too many ads can detract from the content. I like something that shows off the blogger’s personality a bit too. I have definitely moved towards simplifying on my own blog over the years.
I do like the colors and layout of your blog. Nice to meet you between the lines.
Thanks, Sheila. I appreciate it! Great to meet you as well and to get the chance to find some other bloggers to follow!
It has been a true pleasure to connect with my fellow bloggers from Between the Lines. So nice to meet other bloggers of a “certain age”! I enjoy so many blogs, but I will say Thrifty Nifty Mommy because she is my daughter-in-law!
Great to meet you as well, Teresa. Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by!