I’ve made it to what I hear is a milestone for bloggers…the six month mark.  I haven’t been able to find the stat again, but I have read that most people who start a blog with the intention of updating regularly don’t make it half a year.  Life gets in the way, they lose interest or they realize that writing every week (or several times a week) has its challenges.

DadisLearning.com has been a lot of fun for me so far.  Blogging taps into several things that I enjoy in life.  In my teenage and college years I always wrote for the school newspaper.  I might not have been the best writer (and I’m still not the best), but I enjoyed putting an article together.  Some of my favorite posts are the ones that require some thought and research like my ‘how much does it cost‘ posts.  Those posts are among my most popular writings.

I also enjoy writing about my life as a Dad.  Being “Dad” has been quite the adventure so far and I’m sure it will only get better as it goes along.  Anyone who reads this blog knows that my ‘Dad life’ covers a wide variety of interests from giving chickens baths to trying out new recipes.  I also enjoy being able to thread a spiritual message throughout most of my posts since faith is a big part of my life.

This is a busy week as we are getting ready for church camp, mission trip and vacation.  I did take a quick moment to look at my most popular posts have been so far.  Here are the top 5:

1. Treadmill Desk – This is by far the biggest search term that gets people to my blog.  That is why I setup DIYTreadmillDesk.com about a month ago.  That site is doing really well and I have written a few original posts for that site and have several more planned.  I’m still loving my treadmill desk and look forward to being on it every day.  Last week a friend of ours texted me a photo of the treadmill desk her husband had built for her.  She liked the idea of my desk so much that she wanted to convert her treadmill too.  That is cool!
2. Why I Quit Being A “Professional” Photographer – I was surprised at how big this post blew up.  I have heard from people in literally every corner of the United States who enjoyed the message of this post.  I have found photography to be much more enjoyable since I stopped trying to do something that I wasn’t fully qualified to do.
3. Favorite Things Friday: AirSpeed One Giveaway – We were given an AirSpeed One by the good folks at Eureka and I decided to reinvest some of my blog earnings and give one away to folks who read DadisLearning.com.  The contest really took off and so did the post.  There were a total of 619 entries which I thought was pretty good!
4. I’m Not the Babysitter – My rant on being referred to as a babysitter instead of an active and involved Dad took off…much to my surprise.  This post along with the photography post have been my most shared posts.
5. Backyard Chickens: Baby chicks! – Our backyard chickens also drive a lot of traffic to the site.  Most of the traffic comes from the accurate titles that I give to my images.  (Quick tip for bloggers: Always give your photos accurate file names before you upload them.  Instead of ‘photo1.jpg’ rename it with an accurate title like ‘white silkie chicken.jpg.’)  I set up LiveChickenCam.com on a whim and you might be shocked to find out how many people come to look at the cam every day.

Looking ahead…

I appreciate every one of you who have been a part of DadisLearning.com.  So many of you comment on the posts and share them via Facebook and Twitter.  Your participation plays a big part in helping me reach new people.

I am going to be on the road for the next several weeks and I have lined up several friends to help me with new posts on Monday and Tuesday while I am gone.  Some of the Monday posts include a write up on selling items on eBay and a cost/benefit analysis for adults returning to school.  My Tuesday series of family worship guides will continue with guest posts from my brother and several minister friends.  The Wednesday “Lessons From the Trail” series might take a break over the next few weeks.  And “Favorite Things Friday” will continue with a few updates about my adventures over the next few weeks.  i think all of you will really enjoy some of the guest posts I have lined up.

I have already mentioned my two spin-off sites – DIYTreadmillDesk.com and LiveChickenCam.com.  Those two niche sites were developed in an effort to refine some of the material I post on DadisLearning.com.  Over the next six months I will be working to refine the purpose and direction for this fun experiment.

And a bonus surprise for you…

Our orphan owl.

I can’t emphasize how great you guys have been to me!  You have each made writing DadisLearning.com a great joy.  So many people, especially my beautiful wife, have indulged my varied interests and love for all things tech.  So here is your bonus….OWL CAM!!!  What???  Why does the guy with chickens have an owl?  The other night my wife called me from our driveway.  She had seen a small owl hopping along the driveway, through our yard and under a bush.  It was unable to fly away.  After observing it for a while we knew something was wrong and decided to give it shelter.  My parents (who live next door) told us about seeing a flock of crows attacking some owls the day before.

I took the owl to a wildlife rehab volunteer who told me that all of the flight feathers on the wings of the owl had been pulled out in the fight with the crows.  All of the tail feathers were also missing along with various patches of feathers on its body.  She advised that the owl would rehab best near its home environment so it could be released immediately when it is able to fly again.  So we have an owl for the next few weeks!  I didn’t want to miss out so I set up OWL CAM so I could check on the progress of the owl while I am gone.  For now you might see us spoon feeding the owl mealworms and gizzards.  In the next few days we should be able to set the food in the cage for it to ‘hunt.’  Last night when my wife and I were going to bed I looked over at her and said, “We have an owl in our house.”  And we both burst into laughter.