Beyond the Books - Best Moments in Blogging

Beyond the Books is a weekly feature hosted right by Kissin Blue Karen. Beyond the Books is a weekly writing prompt where she throws out a topic (mostly non-bookish) and others blog about it.

Today's Beyond the Books topic is: Best Moments in Blogging

Oh, my. This will be a tough one. I've been blogging for over ten years now. I also have had twelve blogs through the years and contributed to several others. I should be down to five active blogs now and I contribute to Christian Children's Authors twice a month. I'll do my best to keep this list down to a minimum.

1. My first blog post at The Book Connection. By the time I started this blog, I had already been blogging for at least 18 months. My main reason for switching is that I had been hosting virtual book tours for Pump Up Your Book (Pump Up Your Book Promotion at the time), and my aspiring author blog was more about other authors than my writing. In order to be fair to the authors I was hosting (and my creativity), I wanted to separate them from my own rambles. It was a simple welcome post that started off this blog in July 2007. 
2. First review of a book an author sent me. I started out by blogging about books on my own shelves, but by asking (nagging) authors and hosting book tours, I was able to get some new books sent my way. I truly enjoyed Trust in the Wind by Vicki M. Taylor and still remember bits and pieces of it. 
3. First time hosting an author who became a friend. Sometimes you get books from authors and they thank you for a review, but you never see them again. Every once in a while you're lucky and that author becomes a friend. Such is the case with Marilyn Meredith. A talented, award-winning author of two of my favorite series, she never ceases to amaze me with all she does. Her friendship has been a true blessing. 
4. First book I read by Kathi Macias. If there is an author whose books have changed my life, it would have to be Kathi Macias. Beyond Me: Living a You-First Life in a Me-First World made me stop, reflect, and consider how I approach life. Many of her books--fiction and non-fiction--have touched me this way. I consider her a dear friend. 
5. Starting The Children's and Teens' Book Connection (TC&TBC). When I started The Book Connection, I covered books for all ages. I eventually felt that books for younger people needed their own space, so in July 2009 I started TC&TBC. In addition to books for pre-school through young adult (depending on content), this is the blog where I discuss my own writing for children. 
6. The year I read the most books. Though not impressive for everyone, in 2010 I read a record breaking 174 books. It started to go down after that year and now I am lucky to read 35 because my work schedule and family life are so nutty.
7. Our first blog award. Back in 2009, The Book Connection was still a pretty new thing. Virtual book tours had really taken off and I was a busy gal coordinating them. That's when this blog received its first award. It received a couple of others, but I think blog awards got repetitive and people started saying they were award-free zones. 
8. Little Shepherd Breaks into Amazon Top 100 Books. When my first book, Little Shepherd, came out in 2010, I followed its rankings religiously. Not only did it hit the Amazon Bestsellers list in its category seven times during the early weeks of its release, it also broke into the Amazon Top 100 for large print children's books. I believe it made it up to #18. Not too shabby.

There are so many other great blogging moments that I better stop before this post becomes a novel. Thanks to everyone who has blessed me along this blogging journey. I've met a lot of wonderful people online and I've had the chance to read some fabulous books. Here's to many more blogging memories for years to come.