A Little Thank You

This morning the Britmums BiB awards shortlist was announced and I was so surprised to see my name in the Social category. You see, I was shortlisted for the same category in 2014, when I was still so new to blogging and less than a year after starting Redhead Babyled, my previous blog. Since then I haven’t really focused much on awards or stats and really have just focused on giving back as much as I can to the blogging community, something that I am so lucky to be a part of.

But being shortlisted for the Social award means so much. It doesn’t mean any less because I wasn’t expecting it, really it makes it mean so much more. The last year, maybe eighteen months, I have focused on being supportive to other bloggers, helping newer bloggers get established and have faith in themselves and their space online.

A huge part of that is being admin the UK Parent Bloggers group on Facebook. It’s a place where I spend so much time each day. It’s not a chore, it never has been a chore, it’s just a place I love to be and somewhere that so many other bloggers love to spend time too – asking or answering questions, getting advice and support and reading my tips of the day. (If you want to join, go ahead!)

I have spent so much time in that Facebook group that other social media accounts have not had as much of my time but I love Instagram, like nothing else. On days when I’m not at work I post snippets of my life on there, mostly in real time and not filtered very much. I feel like Instagram is a real insight into our lives and it’s as honest as I can be in a little square photo. I love social media. I love the way that I can fit it into my life around work, the blog, school runs and family time. I’m always excited to get involved with Twitter parties, talk to new people and connect with brands and bloggers across social media.

Facebook has been around for as long as I can remember and moving from that to using social media for my blog has been seamless. I’m so fond of my own Facebook page and the community feel that has evolved around that. Twitter is the medium that I dip in and out of when I have a few minutes to spare, and I have a love of Pinterest – even if I think it’s made our expectations way too high.

Really, this post wasn’t to promote my use of social media. It was really just to say thank you. Blogging can be quite a solitary thing, ploughing on with your little space online and I have tried to change that, to try and help other bloggers find and integrate themselves in the blogging community. It was a place that opened its arms to me four years ago and a place that I just love to be a part of. Blogging for me isn’t really about the blog anymore but about everything that comes with it – the community, social media and the amazing friends I have made since I started my very first blog.

Being shortlisted in the social category at this point in my blogging journey just means so much and I appreciate every single nomination that was cast my way. If you think that I deserve to be a finalist, or maybe even win the Social award at this year’s Britmums, please do take the time to vote here – whilst you’re at it, take the time to vote in the other categories too – there are some truly incredible blogs up for awards this year and I have a special shout out for Stevie at A Cornish Mum, a blog so well established it’s hard to believe that she is eligible for the Fresh Voice category. She works so hard and writes so well, that category was made for her.

Thank you again for voting for me but more than that, thank you for continuing to visit and read What the Redhead said. Every follower, every view and every comment means so much.

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12 Comments

  1. I’ve been similarly surprised to pop up in the shortlist for Readers’ Choice. Like you, it wasn’t a category I asked to be nominated in and so it does in a strange way mean a lot more as a result. Your nomination is thoroughly deserved – as Dave says above, your patience and effort in running the FB group is immense and easily overlooked, but vital in keeping the group the friendly and useful place that it is.

  2. I was so pleased to see your name on the list, as I was honestly sad to not see your name in the ‘other’ awards recently announced. You work so incredibly hard on your blog, and your support to each and everyone in the group is amazing. I have also emailed you in the past (as I had a comp question and you are the comp queen) and you didn’t mind helping me one bit. Well done hun, you will certainly have my vote xx

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