Pawsitively Pets' One Year Blogiversary Week!

This week marks the one year blogiversary for Pawsitively Pets. The exact date is October 10th, which is this Thursday so be sure to stop by that day. In fact, you may as well just stop by all week because there will be lots of cool stuff going on!

First of all, I just wanted to take a moment to thank everyone that reads, follows, shares, and helps me with this blog. Without any of you, Pawsitively Pets would be no where and I'm not sure if I'd be here at my one year Blogiversary today. So anyways, thank you! I cherish your friendship and you're all wonderful!

I wanted to take a look at where I started and the goals I laid out for myself with this blog to see what I've accomplished. Looking back at my very first blog post, which had no comments, I think I've done pretty well and could have never imagined that I've come this far with my blog.

On my first blog post, I introduced myself and my pets and stated my mission for the blog.

"I plan to inform my readers of pet health, care, and behavior of all breeds and species."

I think I've done that pretty well. After finding other pet blogs and learning from them, I began to set new goals for myself. (If you aren't a blogger, I'm not sure if this will interest you - sorry!)

• I wanted to establish a readership of loyal followers that value my advice. I'm very glad that I've accomplished this goal and I hope that you find my information valuable here. I also hope to keep it growing!
• I wanted a "job". Blogging helped save me from depression. After working my butt off as a vet tech for 5 years, becoming a stay at home mom was a hard adjustment for me. On top of that, I wasn't communicating with other adults like I used to. The friends I've made since I began blogging have been a blessing. To this day, blogging occupies my time and keeps me happily busy with something to do. 
• I wanted to tackle social media and gain a presence there. I'm happy with where I'm at on social media, and you can find me just about anywhere. I'm active on almost every social media network. 
• I wanted to get good at blog design and photography. There's something about the way a blog looks and I just love messing around with design. I've got a long way to go with it, but maybe one day I'll get there. 
• I wanted to have giveaways for my readers. I have had plenty of giveaways and am always thrilled every time I pick a new winner. I wish I could have more giveaways for my overseas friends, but this is always up to the company. :( 
• I wanted to attempt to monetize my blog. This part is slow-going, but I'm pleased with where I'm at. Google Ads has proven to be not the greatest form of monetization for me. I haven't even made enough to cash out this year, but maybe in a few months at this rate. Affiliate marketing is also a pretty big failure for me as well at this point. I am thankful for programs like the BlogPaws Pet Blogger Network. This program has been my biggest success with monetizing my blog. 
• I wanted to have guest contributors on my blog. I'm struggling with this a bit. What I really want is for some super awesome pet bloggers to come and post guest blogs here. I get guest bloggers, but sometimes they aren't always exactly what I'm looking for. And most of the time, they don't even stop to leave a comment on their own guest blog post or share it, which is turning out to be a pet peeve of mine. This is something I'm currently working on to bring you more quality guest posts. Which by the way, I'd love to have any of my blogging friends be a guest here. 

I know that I now have many more goals than this, but these were the foundation goals. I have learned A LOT this year. I had no prior experience or training in blogging or writing. Although, writing has been a love of mine since before I was in Kindergarten. I couldn't have accomplished what I have this year without the inspiration of other pet bloggers. 

Now, enough with all the mushy stuff and on with the more fun stuff! To celebrate Pawsitively Pets' Blogiversary, we will be having a giveaway tomorrow AND on Thursday, which is our actual Blogiversary date. 

Thursday's giveaway will be open to every type of pet, anywhere in the world so I am very excited about it. So I'll end this post with that and hope you'll stop by again soon! 

Also, if you could take a moment to fill out this survey I would really appreciate it! The survey is 7 questions long and just asks some basic things. Your answers are anonymous, so please be honest. I am hoping to gain some feedback by doing this. Thank you!