Why I don't blog frequently

I've had several conversations in the past couple weeks that started with the question, "Why don't you blog more often?"

Before I answer that question here, let me say that I really am honored to know some people visit my blog regularly enough to notice how infrequently I publish blog posts.

I should also mention that I'm not a big fan of excuses, so please consider these an explanation, not a list of excuses.

It would be easy to say that I simply don't have time to blog more often, but that's not really true. I have as many hours in my day as everyone else. The truth is that blogging isn't on the top of my priority list. Which means that even though I would love to write a post every day, I have other responsibilities that are more important – namely my kids and my cows. I say this all the time: "Nothing is going to die if I don't publish a blog post today." Kids and cows, however, require daily attention.

I also believe that spending time on my blog should never be more important than spending time with my kids. There were so many things I wanted to blog about this summer, but Glen and I set a goal of making more fun time with the kids, so my blog posts had to wait. I shared this quote from Rory Vaden's book, Procrastinate on Purpose, in my last Dairy Star column, but I'm sharing it again here because I think it is such a good reminder.

The other part of this explanation is that I do have a lot more on my plate now than when I started blogging in 2008. We are milking twice as many cows and we have three times as many kids as we did back then. We choose not to have any employees, which means that all of the extra responsibilities fall on our shoulders. It would be easy to stop blogging altogether, but I cherish the stories I share here and sincerely hope that Dan, Monika, and Daphne will one day cherish them, too. If I didn't write these stories down, they would be forever lost.

I also now place more value on my need for sleep. Right after Daphne was born, I was part of a panel that discussed social media strategies. During the discussion, an audience member asked about what it takes to have a blog and be active in social media. When it was my turn, I answered, "Midnight oil." Everyone laughed, but my answer wasn't a joke. At that time, any blogging and social media I did was after the chores were finished and the kids were in bed. I'm not the spring chicken I used to be... I can't stay up late anymore and still function the next day.

If you're one of the loyal people who read my blog and you'd like to keep up with what's happening with our family and farm in between blog posts, I invite you to follow me on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter. I share photos and updates there several times a week.

You can also sign up here to have new posts delivered to your email inbox. The entire post, with photos, is emailed the morning after the post is published. The form only collects your email address and nobody else sees it. The only messages you will receive when you sign up are my blog posts – nothing else. However, the first message you receive will be a subscription confirmation, which you will need to reply to.

I hope this helps you understand why I don't blog frequently.

As always, thank you for reading.