Medicine Cupboard Cleanout!

• Empty the area one item at a time.
• Check the expiry of each item; toss any that have expired. {A google search revealed several sites that suggest that flushing isn’t a good idea.}
• Group like items together.
• Wash out the area. Find appropriate containers or baskets that work for the area.

We bought some HE light bulbs and they came in this plastic case. We’ve used the bulbs and now the case has been sitting in my laundry room as I pondered what to do with it. Then, I realized it would be perfect for our medicines. I can easily see what is in there without riffling through a shelf or basket. It’s also portable with the fancy little handle.  While this container isn’t childproof – it does require a couple snaps to open so that is a bit of a deterrent to little fingers.

I also have three baskets from the dollar store. One houses bandages and gauze, one houses aloe vera along with peroxide etc. and the last one contains various creams and lotions for diaper rash, Chloe’s eczema etc.

I’m just so pleased with myself for finding a use for this container and I’m so happy to have all my medicines so well organized.

{For the record: Our medicine cupboard is underneath the sink in an extra bathroom. We have a special closure on the cupboard and the door to that bathroom is kept closed, with a child-proof door cover on it.}

Have you ever did a little happy dance when you discover the perfect container for something?

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. Medicine Cupboard Organization is a post from Beautiful Calling.

photo adapted from jessica.diamond

After birth, at minimum your perineum is sore and chances are, you may have some minor tearing. A soothing herbal bath is great for promoting healing and also good for helping baby’s cord stump to heal. The Hamilton Midwives’ website has the recipe but I simply went to the drug store for a large bag of Epsom salts and then our local Holistic Healing store and purchased the following herbs (small bottles) in concentrated liquid form:

• Calendula
• Shepherd’s Purse
• Uva Ursi
• Comfrey

Beside my tub, waiting to be used

Depending on the size of my bath, I add a few drops of each (up to a tsp) along with a cup of salt. The herbs don’t all smell beautiful so I sometimes add a drop or two of an essential oil like orange  or lavender.

Well.ca doesn’t have all the herbs but I’ve found that their prices on the essential oils to be quite reasonable and of course they offer free Canadian shipping, no minimum. {Yes, this is an affiliate link.}

I can’t claim with certainty that this bath is a miracle worker but in both of my previous births, I’ve healed quickly with no complications. Both John and Chloe’s cords also healed beautifully and fell off quickly as well. I think this was in large part due to the frequent herbal baths that baby and I had during the first week or so.

Did you use any sort of herbal bath after birth?

• Read more in our Simply Baby series!
• This post links to Works for Me Wednesday

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. Postnatal Healing Herbal Bath is a post from Beautiful Calling.

photo adapted from jessica.diamond

Considerations for Setting Up:

So you’ve gathered all your supplies. Good job! Before you begin to set up, you’ll want to decide where you will labor. {Note: I’m not a doctor, or any sort of medical professional or birth expert. I’m simply sharing what works for me.} There are three main parts to your labor:

Early Labor – where you may want to walk around, watch movies, have visitors etc. Yes, you are having contractions and they can really hurt as this stage progresses but you’re still quite mobile. {With Chloe this phase was about 30 hours+/- for me and with John about 5+/- hours. I spent this part of labor in the main part of our house}.

Active Labor – when the contractions start to become really intense and you are dilating up to 10cm. At this point, you may want more privacy to use coping methods such as rocking on a birth ball, bath, shower etc. {With Chloe this phase was about 6 hours and John less than an hour. For this part, I spent some of it in the main part of our house but most of it in the bath or the privacy of our bedroom}.

Pushing – Once you’re completely dilated, it’s the pushing phase and one of the most intense stages. You may try a couple of things before finding the “right” way to push for you. It’s good to have an idea before hand where you might like to deliver so that you can have the supplies close at hand, though of course you reserve the right to change your mind. {I don’t remember where I thought I was going to have Chloe but leaning over on my birth ball while on the bathroom floor wasn’t exactly my plan. But that was the perfect position and spot for that birth. For John, after trying several things, sitting on a birthing stool – brought by the midwives – on the floor of my bedroom was where he was born. Guess I’m a floor person.}

Once you have an idea of where things are going to happen, it makes it much easier to form a plan to setting everything up.

Putting It All Together:

I like to have all my items gathered together about 35 weeks along. Homebirths do not happen unless you’re min. 37 weeks along. If labor starts before then, off to the hospital you go! I gather everything I need in one spot so I am ready to set up when I go into labor.

With Chloe I had loads of time during early labor, but with John I didn’t have as much. If you have all the items gathered together in one spot, it makes setting up a breeze and will take you but a few moments. My set up looks like this:

Portable CD player and CD’s ready to go. Depending on where I am for early labor, I might plug it in in the TV room, bathroom etc.

My Ensuite Bathroom:

• All “extras’” put away with only necessities out.
• Extra toilet paper stocked. Kleenex Stocked.
• Stack of old towels on the side of the tub along with some facecloths.
• Tena disposable underwear, wipes, breast pads put out on the counter by the bath.

Bedroom:

• Surfaces cleared, “extras” put away. Dresser top available for midwives’ use.
• Kleenex and lamp on  night stand.
• 2 Rubbermaid totes lined with garbage bags and labeled “garbage” and “laundry”, you’ll be amazed at how much of both you may have.
• 1 large bowl or container (lined with a grocery bag) for the placenta.
• If you have a crock pot, you can keep warm, damp facecloths in here for perineum  compresses to sooth and help prevent tears.
• Two folding chairs {in case the midwives want to sit down, or for leaning on/support during labor etc.}

The Floor

• An inflated birth ball/exercise ball on the bathroom floor covered with old towels was perfect for Chloe’s birth. {so I make sure the ball is inflated and towels are handy}
• Sitting on a birth stool {brought by the midwives} supported by DH was what worked with John. So I make a “laboring spot” on the floor with a flannel-backed table cloth on the floor and an old blanket or towels on top for comfort.
• I will also put a table cloth on the floor alongside the bed just in case.

Note: I used shower curtains the first time round and discovered that shower curtains on carpet are very, very slippery and someone is likely to slip and fall! Flannel-backed table cloths (Dollar Store) are much safer!

Make the Bed a ‘Special’ Way:

Vinyl flannel-backed tablecloth, large waterproof cover, shower curtain etc. on the bed, then a fitted sheet, then another waterproof cover then another fitted sheet. {This makes changing the bed -if necessary- a very quick job.}

Pillows on the bed don’t need anything special but you may want to use some pillows to sit on, lean on etc. during labor. For these pillows, put a garbage bag over them and then put the pillow case back on them.

You’ll also want a light blanket that you don’t mind getting dirty. While you probably won’t need it during labor, afterwards you may very well be cold. Your body has just experienced quite an ordeal and you may be shaking.

Baby Area

After the birth, one midwife will attend you and one will attend baby. She will need an area to examine and care for baby. If you have a heating pad, it’s nice to turn it on when active labor starts. Have a receiving blanket below and on top of the heading pad to make sure the blankets are warm and toasty to welcome baby.

You’ll also want to have a diaper, outfit, cap and wipes in this area as well though baby doesn’t need to be dressed right away.

Bottom Line

Whether you’ve gathered everything you can think of, or whether you’ve just gathered some towels and basics, your baby is still going to come and you’ll still be marveling at the miracle of birth in just a few short hours…

• This post in part of Simply Baby and links to Works for Me Wednesday

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. Prepare for a Home Birth #2 – Set Up is a post from Beautiful Calling.

photo adapted from jessica.diamond

Is it Safe?!?

Choosing a home birth is not just for the brave. or the insane. It’s not really even that radical of an idea; though society would have us believe that. Prior to the introduction of hospital births 100+/- years ago, home was where you had your baby. Oh, yes there has been a drastic reduction in the amount of fatalities surrounding birth in the past 100+/- years however I think it’s important to take note of the progress we’ve made in the area of hygiene as well. I think that, more than location, is the biggest contributing factor.

There have been many, many studies done on the subject of homebirth safety and it is generally concluded that planned homebirths are just as safe as hospital births. In fact, studies show planned homebirths have significantly less medical interventions and result in less C-sections. To be fair though, the homebirth pool contains only low-risk women to begin with.  Studies also show that women who choose to birth at home generally report being happier overall with their overall birth experience. Though regardless of where you give birth, no doubt most women are delighted with the outcome.

My Experience

If you missed it, the story of my switch from OB to midwife at 26 weeks and my resulting home birth decision can be found here. When I first made the decision to have a home birth, I was:

• terrified I couldn’t handle the pain!
• concerned about the mess and envisioned blood and birth fluid gushing down my stairs.
• concerned about emergencies?

It turns out that I can handle the pain, because there is no option. It also seems that the “huffy puffy” breathing I made fun of does come in handy and that water is an incredible pain reliever. {love my tub!} It is also true that while after the fact you view the labor in terms of hours, during labor, you’re focused on one contraction at a time and one contraction is manageable!

As for the mess, there was gushing but it wasn’t down the stairs. I have to admit, a part of me was surprised at the amount of fluid from my water breaking {and I now wear disposable underwear during labor so I don’t have to worry. Yep, I just admitted that to the world!} as well as all the fluid that you gush after the birth. That being said, with a waterproof pad or a vinyl tablecloth under your mattress and a few old towels, there really isn’t that much laundry or mess afterwards. Really.

This may sound naive but there are less “emergencies” in childbirth that you think. Because midwives are specialists in normal, healthy deliveries, anything out of the ordinary beforehand is usually quickly spotted. Any concerns and their recommendation would be a hospital delivery. During delivery, they do bring oxygen, medication for hemorrhaging etc. The most common reason for a transfer to the hospital is long labor with a tired momma who would like medication or a midwife who has concerns about the lack of progression. Also, if there are any concerns at all during the delivery, the midwife is likely to spot them and the transfer is done before it becomes an emergency state. That being said, there is always the risk of a true emergency and there are unhappy endings at homes and hospitals.

Quick List of Perks in Random Order

1. The hospital is full of sick people. My house isn’t {though I do have a 4yo and 2 yo so sometimes it is}.
2. Less likely to have interventions.
3. I don’t have to worry about when to go to the hospital. I don’t have to go anywhere at all. {Though I do have a hospital bag packed just in case}.
4. I’ve gotten to know my midwives and their backups. The woman helping me birth my baby is familiar. In these parts, if you have a hospital birth, whichever doctor on call delivers your baby.
5. I just plain like my house. I’m comfortable here. I believe that my body can labor naturally and for effectively if I feel comfortable and safe.
6. I don’t have to be hooked up to monitors etc. ‘routinely’.
7. I can eat and drink what I want at home. I don’t like hospital food.
8. I can walk around naked comfortably. I can just wear on oversized T-shirt.  I can watch TV. I can soak in my big tub or relax in my oversized shower. I can have whoever I want present…or no one at all. I value my freedom.
9. It’s quieter at home with no one laboring in the room next to me, across from me or down the hall.
10. Everything I need and want is here. I don’t have to figure out what the “essentials” are, being limited by what I can carry in a bag.
11. I’m less likely to be rushed and less likely to have a C-section.
12. I can walk around outside, lay in my bed, bounce on my exercise ball or rock in my rocking chair.
13. My husband is more comfortable here.
14. I can give birth on my bathroom floor {which is where I ended up with Chloe} or my bedroom floor {where I ended up with John} and I can change rooms, positions, places etc. in the middle of it all if it isn’t working for me.
15. It’s easy for visitors to come and go.
16. There isn’t a whole ton of paperwork and I don’t have to wait to be discharged before going home.
17. My children can meet our new baby right away. They don’t have to be concerned about mommy going away for a few nights/days. I’m always right here.
18. Giving birth is special; a miracle of God. No matter where you give birth, that doesn’t change – but for me, I’m happy to celebrate that miracle in our home. 
19. There is no time frame rushes. I can labor then push at a rate that is good for my body. We can cut the cord in our own time, I can nurse leisurely in my bed right away with all the newborn stuff {like weighing and measuring} waiting until I’m ready.
20. My husband or I can catch the baby ourselves.
21. DH had emailed out pictures of our babies within minutes of their births.
22. You aren’t sharing a room with 1 or 3 other mothers who just had babies. {Never experienced it but can’t imagine trying to get sleep in between 4 newborns night feeding schedules}. Also, no one bothering me about my blood pressure, temperature etc. while I am trying to nap.
23. Your midwife will come to you for your checkups for the first week. You really don’t have to go anywhere!
24. And not that this was a deciding factor but in Ontario, the cost of your midwife is covered by the province and it costs the province of Ontario a LOT less for you to have a midwife and birth at home. And you’re helping reduce the strain on the healthcare system.

A homebirth with a midwife is a a wonderful, viable, safe choice for women who are healthy with low risk pregnancies. I share this post and my birth stories to raise awareness.  But homebirth is not for everyone! For those who have health issues or any sort of risk involved with their pregnancy, your OB is the best choice you could possibly make and I am thankful that we have the medical facilities available today that we do! Even as I choose to birth at home, I am thankful to know that a transfer to the hospital is an option.

Homebirth veterans, feel free to add to the list in the comments. If you’ve never had a homebirth, what would be your biggest fear?

• Guess Baby Henry’s Arrival Date and WIN! (AppleCheeks, MonkeyDoodlez & Dimplskins)
• Watch for more during Simply Baby
• Visit Works for Me Wednesday

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. Choosing a Home Birth is a post from Beautiful Calling.

photo adapted from jessica.diamond

My sister had children quite a few years before me. After watching them all get attached to something {blanket, stuffed animal, quilt etc.} we decided to be a bit pro-active.

When I was expecting our first child, we talked about it and decided that our children would have small, square, lovey blankets; much more portable that the 3 foot tigger that someone I know became attached to! (It did go on vacation with them too!)

We found just the thing. A small 12” x 12” soft yellow blanket with a little embroidered duck on the corner. We named the blanket “Ducky” and bought three of them! Yes, you heard me…THREE! From the very first night she was was born, it was in her crib. When she was old enough to have it with her and hold it {and not suffocate herself!} we would give it to her at bedtime or naptime and tell her, “Here’s Ducky. Have a nice sleep” kind of thing. Four years later, Chloe still loves her Ducky.

John’s “Puppy”

When I was expecting John, we found this adorable Douglas Blue Dog Lil Snuggler lovey and bought three of them. Again, putting it in with him from day one, John is now 2 1/2 and “Puppy” is his best friend.

When we were at Carter’s the other day, we picked up “Monkey” for Isaac, or should I say three of them! Sure it costs a bit more up front but you’ll save headaches later!

Isaac’s “Monkey”

So deciding ahead of time what we could live with as a lovey really worked for us.

Because we had decided ahead of time what their lovey would be and introduced them to their loveys at birth, it also gives the advantage of being able to buy more than one. If you wait until they become attached to something on their own (which they probably will) you can’t necessarily run out and buy another one. Three was our magic number.  Purchasing 3 enabled us to have one for the vehicle, one for the bed and one backup. All have been in circulation so they look, smell and feel the same – this is an important thing to remember. Having multiple loveys also means that if one is in the wash, currently missing etc. it isn’t a household crisis.

From day one lovey {Ducky or Puppy} was for bed or van only but could come along somewhere in extenuating circumstances such as needles at the doctor. This has eliminated {for our family anyway} too much attachment since I didn’t want to battle with children being unable to go anywhere without their loveys. I don’t want to be keeping track of loveys in grocery stores and on walks!

Having a lovey helped us avoid bedtime battles too. We’ve always been very matter-of-fact about bedtimes. It’s sleep time. You have a hug, kiss, prayers etc. here is {Ducky, Puppy}. I’ll see you in the morning. We’ve never had much bedtime drama and I attribute that partially to routine and our attitude but also to the fact that they have their lovey.

Having a lovey seems to help them in stressful circumstances such as doctor visits. It’s a comfort thing and helped them rein in their emotions a bit. It really helps them to be calmer.

So these are some thoughts on loveys that worked for our family.

I’d love to hear what your child is attached to!

• This post in part of Simply Baby and links to Works for Me Wednesday

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. A Lovey for Baby is a post from Beautiful Calling.

Last week Chloe got hold of a dry erase black marker and had a hay-day in her room during nap time. Doors, walls, desk, laundry basket, bathroom and her quilt! A combination of Epicure’s All Purpose Cleaner, a Magic Eraser along with perseverance and her room is cleaned up.

The quilt was another story. I put it in the wash right away on warm, having sprayed it with Resolve Dual action and adding a Stain Release to the load. No effect. I tried nail polish remover and alcohol; both of which worked pretty well with an ink fiasco before. Nothing worked. The marker was still on the quilt. I did not dry the quilt in the dryer!

A google search led me to try Murphy’s Oil Soap. I bought a good sized bottle and tested on a small area first and it seemed fine. I poured some undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap directly on the first mark. I used a toothbrush, then scrubbed with a floor brush which had firmer bristles. I had a towel underneath that absorbed some of the ink. I did this with all the marks until I was tired. I then washed it and let it air dry. The following day I repeated and the next day too.

Murphy’s Soap Oil, a lot of elbow grease and effort later and you can’t see the dry erase marker unless you examine the quilt closely. I’m hoping one more scrub/wash cycle and they will be gone permanently.

Murphy’s Soap Oil to remove dry erase marker off a quilt worked for me! I’m so thankful since it really is a beautiful quilt.

• This post links to Works for Me Wednesday
• Don’t miss the Stunning SHABBY APPLE Dress Giveaway (US Only)
• Don’t miss the BecoPotty Review & Giveaway (Canada & USA)

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. Murphy’s Oil Soap to Remove Dry Erase Marker is a post from Beautiful Calling.

Wondering how to display artwork in your child’s room without a bulletin board or traditional methods? Why not a clothes line? I saw Work of Art Clips at Land of Nod and thought I’d do my own spin on it.

Cheap and Customizable

A little string, some embellishments from the buck store or your local craft store and you can completely customize your own art display. Whether you want to display it on the wall, under a shelf etc. you can make it as big or small as you need for anywhere in the house!

Hiding it under a shelf:

Using a little string and a few decorated clothes pegs from the dollar store, we strung it across the bottom of her shelf {thus avoiding holes in the freshly painted walls!}. Chloe was delighted and immediately chose four pictures to display. I figured four was a good number because it fits the space. Also, she happens to be four years old. She can display whichever four she wants but in order to hang something new up, an old creation has to go. This also helps her decide which ones are important to her.

I was taking a picture and Chloe asked to get in on it. She’s pretty excited about her new clothesline and proud of her artwork!

A clothesline art display works for me! Next week I’ll be sharing how else we display, store and save artwork as well as some ideas for what to do with it all. You can’t keep and display it all!

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. DIY: Easy Art Display Clothesline is a post from Beautiful Calling.

I remember when my husband and I first looked at the model home before building ours and I said jokingly {but not really joking} that we would have to hire a cleaning lady because of all the tile. The main floor has a lot of it and then there are 4 bathrooms!

Un-Maintainable Standards

I had this idea that in order for the tile and grout to be truly clean, it needed to be washed on hands and knees with a scrub brush. {picture Cinderella scrubbing away}.

For the first three years we had a cleaning lady. It took me a while to find one who was willing to clean all that tile they way I wanted but I did. Alas, in order to be a stay-at-home mom, some things have to go. My cleaning lady retired when John was 6 months old and I didn’t replace her.

I missed my cleaning lady but found that I took great pleasure in a job well done and scrub brush in hand, washing my floor became something that gave me satisfaction. Weird, I know! I would put on my knee pads {a necessity if you are going to be on them on tile for an hour} and off I’d go.

Fast Forward to Fall of 2010. I’m pregnant, with a 2yo, 3yo and no energy whatsoever. I’m battling dark clouds, drowning and overwhelmed with the upkeep of my home according to my standards. I asked for help by hiring cleaning ladies. They came in for one long day, to put my home back in order and then they came on a regular basis for the rest of the year. The one thing about these ladies, as fabulous as they are, they do not wash floors on their hands and knees. But I was desperate and hired them anyway. I thought, “clean however you want – anything is better than what I’d been able to do”. That is when I recognized that I can not spend an hour+ on my knees with my scrub brush every time my children spill on the floor – it’s not realistic, nor is it necessary.

Maintainable Standards

Turns out, the cleaning ladies did a fantastic job with the floor and every thing else. I humbled myself and asked them how to clean my home, what products they used and have been thrilled with the results and the time saved!

Yes, I liked knowing that my floor was hand-scrubbed but did I notice the difference between my hand scrubbing job and their microfiber mop job that took a quarter of the time? No!

Do I need to deep clean my bathroom every day? No! A quick wipe down every day or so will suffice with a deep clean less frequently.

When I let go of my unrealistic, unnecessary standards, life got a lot sweeter. I constantly need the reminder that my beautiful calling is not all about housework, it’s about people; about my family! While I am not advocating “bare minimum” as a standard for life in general, it’s the cleaning rule I’m operating on right now, in this busy season of raising littles. It’s what works for me!

I encourage you today to evaluate your cleaning methods today. Is there a shortcut you could take where the results would be the same? How about frequency? Are you cleaning for the sake of cleaning or does it need to be done?

My Two New Friends:

Vileda Flat Fibro Mop

Microfiber Cleaning Cloths

I am just loving my new mop. It does a great job, saves me so much time and the microfiber heads are just tossed into the washing machine for a thorough clean. What a revelation.

What is your favorite cleaning product?

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. Bare Minimum Cleaning is a post from Beautiful Calling.

Doesn’t look like much but these were all over the walls in the corner from a puppet house we had. It was original builder’s paint and even the finger smudges around the lightswitch wouldn’t wash!

I’m going to paint today!

I woke up the other morning and decided that I wanted to paint our TV Room. Nesting? Perhaps. I had won a gift certificate a while back to Splash Wall Art. I purchased some wall designs for the boys room but also two train decals for above the train table in the TV room. I didn’t want to put them up with walls that were covered with marks and had annoying dirty smudges that wouldn’t wash off.

A while ago a friend had given us a few cans of paint left over from their own paint job so really, all that was needed was my time and energy!

Painting in a few easy steps:

• Move furniture out of room, or at least away from the wall.
• Vacuum floor and use a microfiber cloth on the baseboards.
• Remove switch plates.
• If you are a bad painter, like I fear I am, use painter’s tape. Just line the baseboards, ceiling and around doorways and frames.
• Put a drop sheet {old sheets, towels…whatever} down where you will be working to catch splatters.
• Open your paint can and use a brush and light stroke, paint the edges around the room along the painters tape.
• Then use a roller and working in small strokes, do a little patch of wall at a time. {My friend can paint using the extender in an floor to ceiling stroke without effort. When I tried this, attaching the roller to a broom handle, paint seemed to splatter everywhere. I think it takes a more experienced painter to master broad strokes}.
• If you have the energy, you can do a second coat. I didn’t have any more energy by the time I finished, so I inspected my work carefully in the sunlight and rollered over any spots that I missed the first time round.

The littles join in!

You can not imagine their delight when they were allowed to paint a small area themselves. They love to help and be involved. John did get “fired” when he began to try and paint outside his designated realm though. He didn’t seem to mind too much. He’d had his fun.

It looks like a pretty light color but it actually is much darker than the original wall as you can see in this picture below. I’m quite happy with it and as soon as the paint sets (about 2 week), I then will put up the train decals for the wall.

You can do it too!

So I want to encourage you, if you’ve never painted before, that it isn’t that hard. It’s a lot of work and requires energy but not any special talent because I did it and I don’t have any talent in that area at all. That being said, if you are going to paint your room yourself, you need to be kind to yourself. I can see where I made a few mistakes, some paint sneaked past the tape and I touched the ceiling in a few small spots. Only I notice these insignificant “oopsies”. When others look into the room, they do not see these little imperfections.

Have you ever painted? How’d it go? If not, why not?

• This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday and Transformation Thursday.
• On a high from my success, I’m going to paint my bedroom next!!

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. Painting the TV Room is a post from Beautiful Calling.

I’ve received numerous emails from friends, family and readers asking questions about starting a blog. Rather than continually typing out emails, I thought I’d turn it into a little post.

Let me start by saying that I’m no pro. I don’t know 10% of all there is to know about blogging. I’m still a little fish in a big, big pond and I’ve been blogging for 2 years. But, I will share with you a few little things I learned when I first set up my blog. If you follow these steps, you will have set up a basic, functioning blog.

Set up your physical blog: when I started, I set up mine on blogger because it was simple, free and took seconds to set up. It’s a super user-friendly option and works well. Though I am now self-hosted, I blogged happily on blogger for over a year.  I have no experience with wordpress.com blogs but it is a free option as well. If you want to invest a little money in it, you can set up and host your own blog for as low as $4 a month with 1&1. My husband tells me it’s a very simple step-by step process.

You’ll also want to consider purchasing a domain if you don’t decide to host your own blog. It’s completely optional. If you set up a blog on blogger, your website address will look something like this:  www.blogsname.blogspot.com. If you have your own domain it would look like this: www.blogsname.com. It makes it more memorable for others and looks more professional. You can buy a domain for about $10 a year. I bought mine at http://www.10dollar.ca/ but there are many out there.

Find a theme: blogger only has a handful of designs/themes when you initially set up your blog but if you search the web you will find thousands of free templates for blogger. With patience, I’m sure you can find a design that suits you and your vision for your blog beautifully. Again, blogger makes it very simple to install themes. You may go through a couple as you look for the right fit for your blog. If you want a custom logo etc. you can certainly hire a designer to make you one. The prices range wildly depending on their experience and  what you’re looking for. They can be fairly inexpensive or cost hundreds of dollars.

Add some gadgets/widgets: what’s that? As soon as you set up a blog you’ll see. They are things you can add to your sidebar to enhance your site. Add a search box, your followers, some text…the options are endless.

Then I would suggest adding the option to subscribe by setting up a feedburner account; again another Google service. The step-by-step instructions are pretty simple.

Adding a statistics tracker is optional but a good idea. If you don’t care about numbers, who’s reading etc. and it’s just going to be a personal then you may not want to bother but again, it really is quite simple. Google to the rescue again; Google Analytics makes a great statistics tracker that is easy to add though Site Meter was the one I used initially.

LiveWriter: while you can certainly write your posts in the online editor provided by blogger or wordpress, I’ve found that downloading LiveWriter makes writing posts and inserting pictures or videos an absolute breeze. This fantastic tool is free too.

So there you go.  Using the above links, you can set up a free blog in minutes and be sharing your thoughts with the world. This is not by any means a comprehensive list but it certainly has your blog started and going in the right direction.

So do you have a blog? I’d love to hear your tips for setting up a basic blog?

• This post links to Works for Me Wednesday

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Jenn is wife to one, mother of three and above all, a humble servant seeking to honor the Lord with her life. Starting a Basic Blog is a post from Beautiful Calling.