They're Just Good People

There are some people who have been around the internet for so long that you sort of forget a time when they weren't your friends. Here are four bloggers who have been around the corner and back again seventeen million times and counting.

A Whole Lot of Nothing--Angie hails from Orlando, which makes me insanely jealous of her and her easy access to all things Disney. I forgive her, though, because she's raising a little Penguins fan. That's all it takes for me to know that someone is good peoples, n'at.

Thin Spiral Notebook--Tara hasn't always been at this URL, but she has always been one of the sweetest, kindest people around. She posts beautiful photographs and meaningful commentary that make me want to just walk around with her and listen to her describe the world.

Redefining Perfect--Sarah somehow manages to find time to blog in between wrangling three kids, two of which have Cystic Fibrosis. She documents the challenges of parenting special needs kids in a way that very few could, and yet manages to throw in a laugh just often enough for you to know that she truly loves the life she's leading.

The Miss Elaine-ous Life--Elaine wins for the best blog title, of course, but she also wins for posting adorable photos of her brood. She loves them with every inch of her being, and it shows in everything she posts.

Pittsburgh Mommybloggers

I've never really understood how it is that the word "mommyblogger" is sometimes used as an insult. I'm a mom. I blog. Sometimes (usually) I blog about my kid. Does that make me a mommyblogger? OK, then. I can live with that.

Here are a few others moms who sometimes blog about their kid(s) and who happen to live in Pittsburgh.

Mildly Amusing Musings--I try to surround myself with people who live a full life, who find joy in everyday things, and who want to make the world a better place. Elisabeth is most certainly one of those people. On top of being a really amazing person to be around, Elisabeth is also a hugely talented seamstress and absolutely gorgeous. Go read her blog. You'll fall in love with her like I did, I'm sure.

Bralys in the Burgh--They are quite possibly the most adorable Okies in all of Pittsburgh. Seriously, the entire family is so adorable and sweet that it makes my teeth hurt. This blog documents their lives in a way that no baby book ever could. I'm a fan.

Secret Ninja Mom--Shortly after I presented at PodCamp in 2010, Kathy walked up to me and introduced herself. She was interested in meeting some other Pittsburgh moms who maybe were "normal." Apparently, I had fooled her good, because the group of us who get together frequently are SO far from normal. As is Kathy. She's the mom of three girls, and two of them happen to have been born on the same day. I think having twins does something to your brain because Kathy is crazy. The good crazy. The kind of good crazy that writes funny stories and sends you bizarre text messages.

Three Weasels--Speaking of twins making people crazy, here's another example! Ha! Jennifer writes at Three Weasels about her daughter (who Alexis absolutely adores--it's a little scary when they get together, to be honest) and her twin sons. The whole family is the very definition of Pittsburgh. They work hard. They play hard. Jennifer manages to document it all on their blog.

Some Pittsburgh Love

I love Pittsburgh, but you already knew that. I'm not in the minority, fortunately. Here are some blogs by other people who love Pittsburgh almost as much as I do.

Steeltown Anthem -- A little architecture, a lot of design, and even more Pittsburgh love. I just flat-out adore this site and it's author.

Confessions of a Human Vacuum -- It's a personal blog written by the amazing Lindsay. She works 62835 jobs and yet manages to fit in some time for fun and food.

ScareHouse Scott -- Scott is all over the place, but usually you'll see him representing his kick-ass haunted house (ScareHouse) located in Etna. This blog, however, is a bit more on the personal side. It gives you a chance to see how twisted he really is and just how much he loves Pittsburgh.

Cusp of Normal -- Mermanda is ridiculously adorable, entirely too sweet, and altogether a great person to have on your reading list. She defines happy. Period.

The Voices Made Me Do It -- In a perfect world, I would have Mindi chained to one of my kitchen cabinets. The woman can COOK. And she needs to cook for me. Now. Her blog isn't a food blog, but rather a sort of diary. It's probably a good thing because I would gain 20 pounds just looking at her blog if it were all about food.

Around the House

A funny thing happened when it rained and rained and rained and rained all through the month of March--I was forced to turn my usual exuberance for getting started in the garden into something that might just be more productive. I dove head first into a couple of projects in the house. There are ladders, paint, frames, lead paint-covered window frames, artwork, and screwdrivers EVERYWHERE. When all is said and done, I will have finished the guest bedroom, guest bathroom, loft, and dining room. Which, WOOOO!

Through all that home renovation and decorating madness, there are some sites I've been relying on to stay motivated. Some are blogs and some are not, but all are a good place to go when I need a little kick in the butt.

Young House Love--I don't get that many ideas from this absolutely adorable blog, but I do get a lot of motivation. The lack of ideas isn't because what they manage to accomplish is bad--on the contrary, they do some really amazing things. I just happen to be dealing with the blank slate of new construction while they're giving existing things a facelift. They're doing it in amazing ways and constantly inspire me to get up off of the couch and get things done.

Pinterest--If you want to make a bunch of your friends love/hate you even more, send them a Pinterest invite. They'll be thanking you as they curse you almost instantly.

Pinterest is a place to save pretty things--home decor ideas, DIY projects, recipes, art projects, photographs, anything. You "pin" things you like to a board (you can have as many boards as you want) and you're left with a virtual bulletin board of related items. For example, I have a board for outdoor projects which has lots of photos of decks, gardens, and playhouses. Everything I have pinned to that board in some way will serve to help me focus my goals for those projects as I get to them. It will be far more efficient that printing out a bunch of pages or saving a bunch of bookmarks.

Houzz--I'm a sucker for photos, so I just dive into this site and stare at all of the pretty pictures.

House*Tweaking--Similar to Young House Love, this site chronicles the story of a family as they work towards making a house their home. They are at the very beginning stages of a new house right now and I'm looking forward to watching them work some magic.

I have about 400+ more sites I could list, but not the time needed to list them all. At least this is a start!

More Pittsburgh Moms

I haven't listed any Pittsburgh mom blogs in a really long time, so what better time to fix that than now? Most are all people I have met. All are people I cyberstalk. Some of them probably wish they could get rid of me, but OH WELL.

Shirebacon--This blog is new to the blogging universe, but Amy is not new to my social media circle. She's been cracking me up on twitter for a very long time. I may have used twitter to bully her into starting a blog. It's possible. Anyway, she's off to a great start with clean writing, adorable photos, and consistent posting. AND ZOMG HER BOYS ARE SO CUTE.

My Very Last Nerve--Gina writes exactly how she speaks. She's a little bit rambly, never lacking in an opinion, and absolutely hysterical. She writes about anything that makes its way into her head on a particular day, which is sometimes her kids and sometimes not. Gina is an incredibly kind and generous person and while she tries to put on a meanie face sometimes, her heart of gold keeps on shining through.

Long Daze Short Years--I haven't met her yet and now that I think about it, WTH? That needs to be fixed. With four kids serving as inspiration, this is one blog that is never lacking in material. Expect a little of this, a little of that, and a whole lot of what you'd normally expect from a Pittsburgher--hometown pride doused in kindness.