Top of the Charts

In September I hosted a blog celebration for the Family and in preperation installed some fun things (stat counters, linkwithin, and new design stuff).  So, being that it was such a big celebration it skewed some stats for me.  (not that I mind!)

I thought I would share some fun things though that I have found.

Since September there have been 21,977 visiters to my humble corner of the blog-o-sphere!  Holy Smokes!  For me that is big!

Some fun stats for me this week:

56% of you are from the United States
40% from Here in Canada
1% from places like: France, Ireland, India, Isrial, Austraila

How cool is that?!

Out of the top ten places visiting two are from Canada, and the rest are from the US.  I was just excited to see my home country represented in my stats!  In order: Alberta, Utah, California, Texas, Nevada, Michigan, Arizona, Saskatchewan, Virginia, Idaho.  I was happy to say I actually KNOW people from all of these places!

Top reffering sites (since September):
Chocolate on my Cranium
We Talk of Christ
Latter-Day Homeschooling

Your favorite 3 things to pin this week were:
Food Storage in a Jar
Inside Out Pizza Bread
Thumbprint Cookies

(I like food too!)

Top 3 Pages here you guys liked:

Homeschooling
Family
Recipes

Those are probably my top three too!  :)

Last of all, here are the top 10 posts of this year.  Because of the Celebration for the Family, most of them are from that.  It excites me to see how well it was "attended" and how much you all loved the guest posters. 

1 - Blessing of Eternal Families
2 - Celebrate Family (with all the links to the fab guest posters I had)
3 - Our Father's Plan
4 - Guest Post (this one baffles me with its popularity!  I did leave a link there that I did an interview...but still wierd to me)
5 - How to Tie a Full Windsor Knot (love that this one has been on the top list for 2 year now!)
6 - Food Storage Friday - Meals in a Bag (so excited that you all love food storage!)
7 - All it Took Was a Bump on the Head
8 - Scottish Dumpling (I love it, but I had no idea you all did too...this has also been on the list 2 years!)
9 - A Taste of God's Love (call me biased, but I am thrilled my Dad's post made it to the top 10!)
10 - Divine Destiny


I just want to THANK YOU all for being along with me on this ride.  This blog started out, and continues to be, an outlet for me to share with my friends and family.  I am thrilled you come along with me!  Thank you all for being such wonderful readers and friends.  I am so excited that I have come to "know" so many of you, and you are willing to share your knowledge and friendship with me.

Here's to a wonderful 2012!

Cheers

Top Ten for the New Year, Little Letter Style

So, I have discovered that even recording my goals doesn't help me keep on track.  This year I thought it might be fun to do it as a really want to learn/do list instead of a goal per sey.  AND, just to make it more fun for me...lets do it little letter style.  :)

Dear Swimming Membership

I am buying you this week...I hope to use you as an incentive to lose this 15 lbs I really want gone.  :)  If you take off more...HORRAY!  I want to go back to deep water jog and you are just the ticket I need for that.

Dear Temple Square

I really want to visit you with my family this year.  We really feel like our family needs to come and see where conference happens, where the temple is, and where exactly Utah really is!  :)  I would love to see one of my friends while we are there as well.  (14 years is along time ago)

Dear Homeschooling

I would really like to teach M to read this year, G to spell less phonetically, and K passed in his piano to Grade 3.  Really, simple goals to finish out the year, but that is our main focus.

Dear Preparedness

Still working on you.  It seems every time we achieve a list and check off all that we want, it is another list to take your place.  I would love to save enough to have a super tanker of water in my basement, and a dutch oven we can play with.  Those are my main two things that I really want to save for this year and have.

Dear New Testament

I would love to finish reading you this year for family scripture study.  I am really looking forward to reading Revelations with the boys. 

Dear Living Christ

I would really like to memorize you this year. 

Dear Food Storage

This year I would like to finish making you a 2 year, for 8 adults, storage.

Dear Camping

This year we need to camp more.  I would love to camp at least 2 weeks this year.  Please be accessible to our family.

Dear Adoption

I would really like to finish you this year.  Even if we are just at the final step of getting it all legal...just really hope to finally get this wrapped up.  (you kind of stall and although that is fine...it is really frustrating)

Dear Soap Making Skills

I am going to learn you.  I am going to learn how to make you totally from scratch and totally natural.  You are my main skill I want to learn this year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Cheers

Top Ten of This Year

Just to recap some of the fun things/events we had this year, I thought I would go through and see what the "top ten" things were that we did.  In no particular order at all...which kind of defeats the top ten part I guess...here are my top ten:

#10 - In January we finally took our gun tests and have our licences.  This is one more step in our list of preparedness that we can check off.  Dh loves having the freedom of having his licence as well because he can now take his scouts out to the gun range (he is also a range master) and they can all target shoot.  I am looking forward to the time I can join them.

#9 - Learned how to make Tamales (from my Mexican SIL and her mom).  Have made them several times since and LOVE them!

#8 - Worked some more on my food storage and 72 hour kits.  I now am set for about one and a half years (more if you count the "extras") for 8 adults!  YAY!

#7 - Experimented with food storage for a full 9 weeks of no shopping at all.  We lived quite comfortably and well TOTALLY off our storage.  Yes, we even drank powdered milk!  :)  (Here is a link to the blog I was doing with a friend, and Here is a link to the "food storage" section of recipes on my blog)

#6 - Became a writer for Latter-day Homeschooling.  I am loving it.  What fun to write about something that I really am passionate about.

#5 - Was encouraged to try making fried ice cream for a fondue...LOVED it and as a result have fondued more this year then any year previous.  What a fun time for our family and friends together.  (here are some fondue recipes if you want to try it yourself)

#4 - Listed our house as for sale.  We are still waiting for someone to come and love it...but are really trying to go on faith that this is what the Lord as asked us to do. 

#3 - Went on some pretty fun "field trips".  Edmonton, Farm babies, Echodale, Art Museum, The Zoo, Writing on Stone, Etzikom Windmill Museum, Raised Tadpoles (I know, not a field trip, but super fun) 

#2 - Had a flood here.  It was pretty eventful.  (here, here and here are some posts about it)  We are still (as a city) cleaning and fixing things that were destroyed from it.

#1 - Participated in one of the most amazing and uplifting months as we celebrated The Family: A Proclamation the the World.  (you can find archived posts Here and Here on the host sites)  Truly one of the best spiritual journeys.  I loved reading each post and learning from each inspired poster.

What are some of your favorite things you have done this year?

Cheers

Top Ten

For the next few days I thought it might be fun for me, and hopefully for you, to count down some top tens.

My first top ten is TOP TEN POSTS.  This is quite entertaining for me because I noticed a sharp increase in readership in about June.  I don't know what happened, but welcome to all of you that follow links, come here on your own, and who have been here from the start (ish)!

So, I love stats.  Makes me feel so popular.  :)

#10

Our Family Proclamation

#9

Lead, Guide, Walk Beside...

#8

Bow Ties

#7

Books, Books, Books, I Want Some Books....

#6

What Makes A Mother?

#5

Let Them Eat Cake

#4

The Importance of Having Good Books in Your Home

(sorry, the picture seems to be deleted....)

#3

Wordful Wednesday - Wholesome Recreational Activities

#2

Guest Posting

(the actual post is here on another blog)

AND...

#1

Scottish Dumpling



This was a pretty fun experience for me to go through and see all the posts that were the most popular this year.  :)

How about you?  Did you have a favorite that didn't make the list? 

Thanks for being along for the ride and joining me this year.  This list would not be this list if it weren't for you.  So thank you.

Cheers