A little bit of this, A little bit of that

Some random thoughts I've got going on right now.....

• I have been working on increasing my readership in hopes of becoming a place of reviews, giveaways, and fun stuff, as well as a small income from affiliate programs.  SO, I've been doing bloghops, commenting like crazy, following, and it just doesn't seem to be working.  I'm just curious what has worked for you?  I've been doing lots of research as well, and working on lists for topic ideas.

• I would like to get my own domain name.  The problem is, I'm not sure where to host it.  Nor do I feel qualified to do the research on this, as every time I find a host sight, I feel as though I am reading a foreign language.  Maybe I should start majoring in that! I'm also thinking of switching from blogger to wordpress, or somewhere I can do advertisements that I choose.  Any suggestions in this area are VERY  welcomed!

• On a totally different topic, I am SO grateful to my inlaws who are allowing us to stay with them until Scott gets this real estate thing off the ground.  (He's doing AWESOME, by the way!)  However, I am SO wanting to have my own home again, to decorate with my things, and just feel really settled. It's very comforting to me to have my things around me, and not feel that we are living out of boxes.  I know that some of this is impatience, and some is nesting, but mostly, we haven't fully unpacked our boxes in over 2 years.  Its frustrating, but I know that it is what is best right now.  Pray that I have patience.  I have faith that God will provide for us.  He gave us the nursery decor I have wanted for years (really random story I'll share another time), so I'm trusting He will provide the room!

• I'm trying to figure out what to do with myself this summer.  I am not the outgoing type, I like to hang back and see what's happening, but I'm also new in town.  Though I've met a lot of people, and made some friends, I don't exactly feel established.  Playdates are few and far between, and with the house on the market, I need to get creative (I can't have a house full of friends and get an hour's notice that we have a showing scheduled!).  I've been thinking of starting a women's Bible study, or a book club, or something of the like.  Well, really, ANYTHING that would be regular and help me get to know some other moms better.  I also think Bella and Bianca would greatly benefit from having some good friends.  They love to play together, but Bella gets tired of Bianca always being right there, and Bianca doesn't really know what to do with herself without Bella most of the time.  Bianca will be attending part time preschool in the fall, and I'm sure Bella will enjoy that!

• We are starting homeschool again, after taking about 3 weeks off for home improvement/cleaning projects.  (Scott's parents decided to put their house up for sale about a month ago, and we've been working hard at getting it ready.  Its finally listed!)  I plan to continue through the summer.  Currently, we are focusing on letter sounds and numbers.  I want to get Bella reading, and Bianca familiar with her numbers and letters.  I'll pick up science and history in the fall again.  We briefly discussed sending Bella to public schools this fall.  It was during a time of high frustration for me.  Since then, I have been connected with a homeschool group in the area on facebook.  I haven't actually done anything with them, but its nice to know that they are there, and I'm starting to establish a support group that I didn't have before.  I also met a new friend who is also in her first year of homeschooling, and having the same frustrations as I, so I think we'll be a good encouragement for one another.  Prior to these, I felt like I was the only one here who was homeschooling.  Its going to take stepping out of my comfort zone to get the support and encouragement I need, but I know that it will be worth it!