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Monday, October 8, 2018

PASSION......AND MY BLOG ANNOUNCEMENT!


My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


What's your passion?

People aside (that's a given!), what is it that..........

Gets your juices flowing?
Puts a spring in your step? 
Makes your heart beat faster?
Has you doing a little tap dance?

It's no surprise to many of you that my passion is.......
 Travel.

Even when I'm not physically traveling, it's always on my mind.

My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


My picture frames are filled with places we've been.
I'm always thinking about where to go next.
My bookshelves are loaded with travel books.
I'm reading about intriguing destinations in the newspaper.
Souvenirs I've collected are all over the house. 

My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


My travel bucket list is longer than a CVS receipt.

My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


When I first started Ms. Toody Goo Shoes five years ago, 
I barely knew what a blog was.
I was eager to start writing, and so I focused on a number of things that interested me........
Baking, home decor, gardening, travel, and a bunch of other random things.  
I always felt like my blog was a hodge-podge........
not that there's anything wrong with that;
it just didn't feel right for me.

My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


If I am completely honest with you,
I never felt I was 100% in my zone.

I never pretended to be an expert in anything.
I simply wrote about things I liked,
 with an "if I can do this, it can't be all that hard" attitude.

For the first few years of blogging, I enjoyed staging photos.
Finally, all that stuff I had collected for no apparent reason found its way into my posts.
Somewhere along the line, I grew tired of the time and effort it takes to do a blog shoot.
 I wondered whether I should give up blogging altogether.
Becoming an Instagram blogger wasn't the answer,
because it's not the way I want to tell my stories.  

My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger



After a bunch of soul searching, 
I realized that I still want to blog.
I love writing, taking pictures, and telling stories. 
I want to use my photos and my words in a way that comes naturally to me. 
I don't want to say, "Wait! Don't eat till I take some pictures!"
(unless it's while we're traveling, wink wink!)
And, mostly, I don't want to clean up my house in order to take pictures for my blog. 😀

My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


An idea had been percolating for awhile.
When the answer came to me, it was.......
As clear as the sky in Santorini.......

KAMARI BEACH, SANTORINI | My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


As clear as the turquoise water in the Caribbean........

ST. JOHN'S ISLAND  | My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger



As clear as the church bells in Europe. 

Amalfi Cathedral | My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


I want to write about travel.


My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


Simply put, I want to take pictures of places,
and use them to tell stories.


My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


And so, friends, I'm officially switching gears. 
You may now refer to me as a travel blogger, thank you very much!

True, I don't travel constantly like other travel bloggers do.
SO...........
I'll just have to be a little creative. 😀

When I do go somewhere, I'll write about it, of course, 
but not all of my posts will be
"Here's where I went, and this is what it was like."

Frankly, I'd get bored doing only that. 

I plan to do themed Travel Collages like this or this,
 using pictures from places around the world.

I live close to New York City,
and I'm going to focus on that more intensely.
Heck, it may not be a travel destination for me,
but it is for 99% of my readers! 

Travel doesn't have to be a plane ride away...........
It can be a cute little town nearby, can't it?

Who knows...........I might even do a recipe here and there 
if it is something inspired by my travels.

And..........I do plan to continue my monthly Photo Diary,
as an excuse to use pictures of my dog and flowers and such! 😜

My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


For now, I'm keeping the name Ms. Toody Goo Shoes,
but I have changed a few things.
I've modified "About Me" on my sidebar;

made some changes to the tabs at the top of my header,
(new tabs include Travel Collages and New York City),
and revised my tagline.

My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger


So there you have it. 
 
Grab a seat in your favorite armchair,
and let me be your virtual travel guide! 

Oh, the places we'll go! 

My goal is to bring travel into my everyday life!  | Ms. Toody Goo Shoes #TravelBlogger



LINKING WITH:
Best Of The Weekend



 

19 comments:

  1. Great idea! I've always loved your NYC posts. My blog has changed too, because my life is very different in Florida, but like you I could never switch to insta posts - I like writing too much.

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  2. I think I’m as excited as you are about this change Amy. It’s a perfect move at the perfect time. Few people I know can tell a story quite as eloquently as you can...longer than a cvs receipt? Who thinks about that? YOU DO, and that’s a strength not many are blessed with.

    You’re absolutely right that travel can be close to home, particularly if you live near NY where there is so much to see, whether it’s manhattan, upstate during foliage season, or the shore in the summer. You won’t run out of places to write about and I think by choosing to highlight local places your travels will be more accessible to many of your readers.

    Good luck on your new venture, and I love your tag line btw!

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  3. I love it Any It does seem like it's so you. I could tell following you through your travels how fired up and happy you were and excitement in your delivery.

    It will also be fun for me since traveling isn't such an easy thing for me.

    I get to read, see and hear about different places

    Can't wait.

    Cindy

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  4. I always love reading your travel posts. You share so many wonderful places and you do it in such an entertaining way! Best wishes for the new plan...You know I will be reading!
    Cheers!
    Shelley

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  5. Fastening my seat belt as I type!
    Wishing you tons of fun and always a sharp pencil and wit,
    affectionately,
    Merisi

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  6. I absolutely LOVE your travel posts ... you have a great talent in how you share your travels! I also enjoy ANYTHING you share about NYC, and your monthly photo posts are a favorite of mine ... so I'm not mad at all, LOL! Sounds like a great plan, that fits you to a T!

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  7. Sounds great to me! Please help me celebrate the holidays in NYC, That has always been a dream that has never worked out schedule-wise for me. I'm counting on you! Good luck and have fun doing what you've always loved.

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  8. That sounds great! I think local travel posts are just as fun to read about because while it may be local to you it's sill a travel destination for many!

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  9. Greetings from Canada. I do love your travel posts. They are always interesting, especially with your personal comments... your love of travel really shines through. I am pleased you will be documenting your close-to-home travels, as well as your more exotic trips. I also really enjoy your garden photos, including the pictures of your deck and flowering pots. Looking forward to hearing about your future adventures! Barb

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  10. Hi Amy, oh you did a great job with the blog updates and changes. I am looking forward to seeing and reading about your travels. Good luck and have fun with this. Julie xo

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  11. So happy for you for taking the plunge to be a travel blogger!! I am sure you will become a valuable resource for all kinds of destinations. Looking forward to it! Love the new picture, tag line and About Me.

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  12. So excited for you. I have enjoyed reading about all your travels and because of you, want to go to all the places you visited in Italy. Keep up the good work!!!! Marian, Toledo, OH

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  13. Amy I think this is perfect for you! I’ve gotten some great NYC tips in the past. If you ever want to explore Minnesota, let me know and we can meet. Can’t wait to see where you travel to next. My best, Deb

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  14. This sounds truly perfect for you, and I'm willing to armchair travel with you! I enjoyed your visit to Iceland, it was great seeing it through your eyes, and hearing how you experienced it. I look forward to learning more about the rest of the world through your eyes :)

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  15. Hi Amy, I'm so glad you are still blogging and that you decided to do what you love. I so enjoy reading your posts, especially the travel posts. I want to do more traveling and get ideas from you. You are a great writer and photographer and I look forward to many more interesting posts in the future. Take care.
    Joan - My Cookie Clinic

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  16. I'm looking forward to following along as you take your blog down a different path.

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  17. What a fantastic idea …
    Looking forward to reading and seeing more from you about travels.

    All the best Jan

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  18. I did read this, Amy, and was so excited for you. Didn't comment then because I was sick but I stuck my fist in the air and yelled Yes! Not just because you're my favorite travel writer but even more for that giant step you took in evaluating where your true interests lay (is it lie?) and having the gumption to use your time for what matters most to you. I love the idea of travel collages too and more time devoted to NYC. And then the monthly photo diary can remind us of other beautiful things your camera captures.

    You go girl! (Or is that out of style now? Whatever its equivalent is today, I wish it for you!),
    Dewena

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  19. Amy you must be my twin. I too have been blogging for a number of years and blogged primarily about DIY projects but I always wanted to add photos of my travels. Not to exotic locations like you but of my surroundings in my neighborhood. I will be delighted to follow you in your new direction in your blogging journey and of course keep up with you on Instagram. Good luck to your future en devours.

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