My Blogging Why

If you've been around Peaches and Willow lately then you likely know i've been on a path to change this sweet little space of mine. I want to make it more personal and more relatable. I feel like i'm a pretty open book but sometimes being vulnerable is scary and when it gets scary, I get quiet. It's not that i'm hiding from said scary thing but sometimes I have the need to check out and just "be"; just live life without finding the perfect Instagram picture or thinking whether or not it'll make for good blogging content.

Peaches & Willow Refresh



I'm at a place with my blog where I want it to be 100% genuine and real. Sometimes I may post 5 times a week, other times maybe once. I don't want my blog to control my life. I want to live my life and share when the mood strikes and when the mood strikes I want to be sharing the most authentic, vulnerable parts of myself. The parts that make me human and the parts that make other people connect with me.

When I started blogging over 7 years ago it wasn't really popular but I started because I wanted a place to document my son and I's lives in a way where our Illinois family could keep up with us. It wasn't until about 3 years ago that blogging was taking off and I realized I could shift my focus and make it a public thing. Even so, I never had any thought of making money off my blog. I never dreamed of having a blogging tribe where we collaborate with each other and I certainly never dreamed I would be able to work with brands and share amazing products I love and believe in. Three years in to the blogging world, as a public blogger, I still wouldn't say i'm the best or even close to the best. I haven't made one penny off this little space of mine yet and that's okay because that's never been my focus.

I made this a public blog and named it Peachy Keen-A Southern State of Mind three years ago because I wanted to impact someone's life with the words I have to say. It's always been my goal in life to inspire someone else and to connect with other beautiful souls in that "me too" moment. Earlier this year I had a mini re-branding of this little space and changed the name to Peaches & Willow- A Southern State of Mind and for the first time in my blogging years, I bought a theme off Etsy and had someone else install everything for me. I had this mentality of wanting to do it all myself but when I bought the theme and had trouble installing it, I asked the girl I bought it from to install it for me and she did. I love the look of Peaches & Willow now and I feel proud that I over came the do it myself mentality. I'm in love with this space now but my why is something I want to share.



My Why

I touched on the fact that it's always been a goal of mine to inspire someone else and to have those "me too" moments with others. Since I was a young adult I knew I wanted to inspire people and connect with them so they knew they weren't alone. I lived for that moment when someone would say "because of you, I didn't give up or I knew I wasn't alone." Since i've become an adult I realize that I may never actually hear those words from someone but I believe that if I put good out there and share the most vulnerable parts of my heart that I still may get through to someone who needs it. I don't need validation, just knowing that it's out there and people are reading it is enough for me.

I want Peaches & Willow to be a safe place for people to come to when they need a little happiness or inspiration. I want Peaches & Willow to be a place where we gather as girlfriends wearing sweats with our hair in messy buns while we have coffee dates in my living room and share what's on our hearts. I want it to be a place where I speak out on the hard subjects (something i'm not always good at) because I have a platform and I am blessed enough to have a voice; I feel like i've been given these things for a reason. I also want women to know that they are beautiful just the way they are. God makes no mistakes pretty girl. My why is all about heart things and soul connections. It's about being the person I need in my own life and inspiring you to do the same.

10 Ways To Rock Your Confidence

In September I participated in a movement with Ashley Beaudin from The Imperfect Boss and she gave us some prompts to think about and I took some notes on my own. I'll probably do a blog post elaborating on them a little more but so many of them line up with my why but this one is one I want you to think about; Everyday life isn't like Instagram; it has failure and fear. Tell that part of the story.

My why is because of my own fear and failures. My why is my own fear of standing alone, weathering the storm without a comforting hug and a gentle "I've got your back." My why is my own fear of failure and my fear of letting others down or hurting them by sharing my story but all of these things make it easier for me to open my heart and have the hard, vulnerable conversations in my life with the people who need to hear them the most.

Life isn't always Instagram perfect but this is my heart stuff, my passion and I want to share it.