The Tattler's Studio #2

Welcome back Snappers to the second edition of The Tattler Studio! This month we are featuring Miss Ali, from High Heels and Coffee! I would introduce you to her, but she does a better job of that than me ! Be sure to visit her blog and tell her I sent you!  Muah! Thanks for commenting at the Tattler Thursday Blog Hop Ali! So here we go! Ali from High Heels and Coffee......

 

Introduce yourself to us!
-- Hello, my name is Ali, author of High Heels and Coffee. I'm a work outside the home mommy to two girls, Bug and Monster. I'm a former active duty Navy Sailor turned active duty Navy Sailor Spouse to Hubs/Ticklebug. I live and work in the Baltimore/Washington region and LOVE what I do. :) I'm currently enrolled in College and I'm thrilled to say that I graduate this February with my Associates Degree! The thrill will be short lived though because I will return to school right away in order to pursue my Bachelor's Degree. Of course I enjoy coffee and shopping for shoes, but when I'm not doing that I can be caught baking and usually failing at do it yourself projects.

What inspired you to start a blog?
 -- I first started with LiveJournal when I was a young teenager. I would post the links to my old blogs, but I am so ashamed and embarrassed of my teenage shenanigans! I don't dare share them with the public for fear my children will find them and find out that their mother was a boy crazed maniac that used to sneak out of the house with her friends just to run down the street naked! I know, I should delete them, but who doesn't love a good trip down memory lane? Is there a message in your blog that you want readers to grasp? -- There is no such thing as perfect and it's okay to laugh at our imperfections.

What is the craziest real life blogger moment you have ever had? -- I did a Boudoir photoshoot and wrote a blog about it. http://pixielaughter53.blogspot.com/search/label/boudoir I received a lot of message from friends and strangers asking about the photographer I worked with, make up, hair, and the experience. I was surprised to know that many people read the blog and the difficulties people had in trying to find someone that had a real boudoir experience.

What book are you reading now? -- Aside from my college textbook, "Effectiveness in Writing" I am currently reading "Catching Fire." I like to read novels that are adapted in to movies and compare them.Name one entity that you feel supported you outside of family members.

 Do you recall how your interest in writing originated?
 -- In the early 90s my father was active duty Navy. To keep in contact with my friends I left behind I had to use good-old-fashioned snail mail! I would about my day with details and twist to entertain my friends. When they would write back saying that their letter made them happy and made them laugh it felt like a great accomplishment. From there it just developed in to a kind of therapy.

 Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing/blogging?
-- Time. Finding the time to blog on a regular basis. I would love to actually stay on schedule for blog post.

How do you handle the family/life/blog balance? -- I don't hahaha. Blogging is something that I do for me, it's my own type of therapy. Like most moms, my desires take a back seat to my family and their desires. In a perfect world I would love to blog on schedule... at least one a week. I tend sneak my blogging in on my lunch break, while the family is sleeping, or when my husband works nigh shifts.

When is your favorite time of day to blog? -- In the morning. When the kids are at school or before everyone comes in to work. I will begin an idea from there and then throughout the day come back to it. Blogging is an all day (sometimes multiple days) process for me.

Do you tell your family and friends that you author a blog? Why or why not. -- Yes, I do. I tell them because sometimes I write about them. I feel it's fair that I warn them lol.

What is your biggest blogging challenge? -- Finding the time to finish a blog! I will have five sitting in drafts but I fail to go back, reread, edits and add pictures and they just sit there. That goes in to time... I need more time.

What do you do to get over writer’s block? -- I will look at the news or see what's trending. Sometimes I will just think about what my kids have done lately. I will take the news and put my own thoughts and perspective in on it. When it comes to writing about my family I try and make it so it's not dull, boring and repetitive.

What keeps you blogging? -- Blogging is it's own type of therapy. Being able to write/type out whatever is on my mind or share something funny, makes me feel happy.

 If you could meet one famous person past or present, who would it be and why? -- Zachary Quinto! I want to find him and hump his face. Yea... I know he's gay... But I totally want to at least try to bring him to my side of the rainbow!

Name three funny facts about yourself. -- 1. I'm still in love with Hanson, yes, the brothers that sing "MMM Bop" Don't judge me! Zac and I are still going to get married! 2. I'm half Filipina, my mother is full Filipina and I've had to explain multiple things to her, like what is an orgasm (they call is satisfaction in the Philippines), what kinky means, what a dildo is, and that there is a BIG difference between condoms and condiments. 3. I'm scared of my parent's basement. No lie, that place looks like something out of the Blair Witch Project! I send my 17 year old sister and my 8 year old down there by themselves, but I wont go. It's that serious!

Hope you enjoyed getting to know Miss Ali from High Heels and Coffee! Be sure to drop by the weekly Tattler Thursday Blog and Social Media Hop, and leave a comment with a funny kid or grown up story to qualify to be featured on The Tattler Studio!



Image by FontMeme

My Blogging Inspiration, Thank You's, and NoWannaBe's

I wanted to take a moment, or a few actually, to tell you about bloggers that inspire me. No pretty pics today, just pretty people!  I created and hosted the first ever Tattler Thursday Blog Hop yesterday! It was a success! To me anyway! I was thrilled! It took my Facebook likes to over 200(203), my Bloglovin followers went up, my page views hit over 7800, and Twitter followers are up to 133! Yay! These may not be the biggest numbers to some, but 9 people(besides me and my co-hostess) stopped by to hop, and I am stoked!

My co-hostess, Miss Cristyl over at CHill Thoughts , called me her blogging inspiration yesterday.  Wow...I am speechless.  Me? An inspiration? Are you sure? I am deeply touched, honored, and thank you from the bottom of my lil heart! Muah! Also a big thank you to Miss Cristyl for being a friend, an OLD friend(heehee her birthday was yesterday!), my bestest blogging buddy, and my partner in co-hosting all new ventures! I appreciate and luvya doll! YOU INSPIRE ME! You cloth diaper, raise chickens, and make your own baby food, have 3 kids, for gods sakes woman, I don't even have one little green freckle on either of my thumbs! Gahhh! And you are a beautiful old soul that has been through so very much, and still shines! And you pour it out there in your writing! And likes ME! Inspiration right there people. Beautiful!

So I started to think, what other bloggers inspire me? What keeps me coming back to their blogs and pages, again and again? Honesty.  I love to read a good post that touches my heart strings and moves me to tears.  A post that takes me along on the author's journey.  A post that makes me feel , or experience what that blogger has gone through!
 I also love brutally honest blogs! People that rip off all the band aids, and just pour it all out on paper. Real people with real issues sharing with the world.  Check out my sidebar; Guest Bloggers!

I love funny mommy blogs.  The ones that lay it all out there.  The good, the bad, and the messy!  Ones that let you know your not alone in this crazy adventure called mommyhood!  I love to laugh, and adore other wifeys and mommies that make me crack up with their take on this big 'ol blue and green planet we live on, and the tiny blue and green(and brown)eyed little monsters(blessings) that we live with!

We have all been about the numbers at one point.  We all start out  about the writing, I think.  Some of us may actually start out as number or attention whores from the beginning! I don't know actually.  I like to believe the best in everybody, until you cross me, or ignore me.  But it is really all about the writing.  And being human, sometimes we all forget! Sometimes, there are just no words, or there is no time! Life, GAH! How dare you get in my way! There is writing to write.....

So now it's time to tell you who doesn't inspire me.  And I have been waiting for an opportunity to write about these pet peeves of mine for awhile now!  I was a hard knock blogger.  Meaning that I did not have one bloggy friend in the universe, when I got started.  I had to research, discover for myself by trial and error, and look longingly at others blogs for things I liked and wanted to emulate on my lil bloggity blog.  I did not have a blogging big sis or fairy bloggie godmother, so to speak to guide me through the blogosphere.  I had to discover and sort through the facebook buttons, the twitter buttons, the linking and unlinking your blog and FB to twitter, the pages, the pictures, the, the, the all of it out by my lonesome.  I had to discover setting up my blog one step at a time.  I finally bought a gianormous book, Blogging for Dummies, which helped on a couple of things, but was no end all be all of things I wanted to know. 

I finally figured out Hops, and commenting on pages and blogs you like to get a return follow or like, I figured out copy and paste, I figured out wallpapers, and the mother of all beasties to figure out, the best kept secret in the bloggy universe when your new, how to create a button!  That one took me forever!  But I finally figured it out!

So I am going to share with you an ugly little story about another wicked step sister blogger, who will remain unnamed.  Because I am not like her.  I was dying to know how to make my own button, I had the perfect picture, finally, and just needed a resource to direct me to a tutorial or something.  One day I saw the wicked stepsister put out a public FB shout for a button swap.  I really, really wanted to do this so very badly!  I commented on her FB message that I would love to, but could she help/direct me to where I could make a button?  She not only did not answer me, help me, or send me elsewhere, but she committed the cardinal sin of all for one, one for all blogging sisterhood, the faux pas of all time, she deleted my message and ignored me! I was previously in awe of said blogger, and her big beautiful girl pride, and beautiful sailor themed blog.  No more.  It made me feel small, sad that a sister blogger wouldn't want to help me, a new fish in a big pond, out, and the rude, better than thou attitude of just deleting my obviously embarrassing to her message.  Geez.  I was bummed.  But like my resilient self, I was pissed! I was going to figure it out Dam%#$, I was!  So all on my own, I, through trial and error, finally figured it out! Just in the last couple of weeks, I noticed she sent out a similar button exchange request, and giggled to myself, cause my lil bloggy blog is the size of hers now! TeeHee! I am sure she won't think this post is about her, because I am not important enough for her to read! And if she does, I don't care!

That's the kind of blogger I never want to be.  The NoWannaBe like her blogger. Thinking that I am better, and 'more popular' than anyone else, too busy or above helping anyone out!  I will help anyone out who asks!  Just ask all the bloggers that have asked for my help, and buttons I have made for them! I am all about helping anyone out with anything. When I do a button swap, I will never put a restriction on only 'similar size' blogs need apply! Ridiculous! All important! This is not a contest or job interview, I do this because I love to write, make people laugh, share, have fun and meet new people! I am a stay at home mommy, I do this to hear myself think/write.  To stay sane some days!Aggravates the crap outta me! Holier than thou my foot! I don't need shallow, self-important people in my lil bloggy world!  I have had enough of those in real life, no more please!

  As my fellow blogging buddy Miss Sarah, over at The Sadder But Wiser Girl told me, "We're all in this together!"  She has offered me her help and advice on numerous occasions, and also has watched out for me when blogger was screwing up my posts, and had my back! She is the kind of blogger I want to be like! And Miss Morgan over at The Inklings of Life , she kindly answered a question or two, when I asked, when she has kids, a hubbie, an etsy store, a blog, a photo challenge, and a million other things going on!  I want to be like her, a kind heart who makes time for the little gals!  And even to listen to a complete stranger pour her heart out! I also want to be like Miss Joy over at ComfyTown Chronicles , who is my pimp buddy! We pimp each other out on short notice all the time, with a "Sure Kid!"  I also want to be like the excited bloggers that write a post around my blog hop theme, Tattler Thursday, like Miss Ali over at  High Heels and Coffee ! I also want to stay honest in following all the hosts and co-hosts when I sign up for a blog hop, comment when I am moved by a post, and help out all of my fellow bloggers when asked or needed! I want to be one of the kind of bloggers that scratches anothers back, helps a girl out, or that everyone just plain adores! Wink! Except for the NoWannaBe, I don't give a hoot if she ever adores me!

So if you have questions, ask!  Most of the bloggy universe will take the time to help you out! If you happen to get a NoWannaBe, just ignore them and move on! Unfortunately they are out there, no matter how sweetly they smile in their blog profile pics! Pretty is as pretty does! Everyone blogs for their own reasons, best I can do is fill my lil corner of the blogosphere with lovely ladies that do and do alike! SO to all my lovelies, and faithful snappers, I love you! You are my inspiration!