How Gathered In The Kitchen Started (15 Years Ago)

This month, Gathered In The Kitchen turns 15 — and that feels a little surreal to even type.

I literally remember the moment I published my first blog post on Gathered In The Kitchen. I had begun working on the post last at night, after my 6 month old and 2 year old had fallen asleep…laying next to me in bed (yes, our kids slept with us, no shame!)

My little guy woke up early, and as I nursed him back to sleep, I pressed publish on my very first post, Hello world! at 4:48am. Never would I have imagined that 15 years later, I’d still be doing the same thing…just later in the day, no more 4:48am posts for me! haha!

The Beginning

Why I Started

The interesting thing, and I talk about this in my original blog post, I actually began a blog back in 2006, when I was still in college. – So technically, you could say I’ve actually been blogging for 20 years! {omg, excuse me while I recompose myself from self-realization of how old I am!}

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I began blogging way back in 2006 because of the family I babysat for. I began babysitting for a young, educated, high-executive family who lived in the historical Old West End in Toledo, Ohio my sophomore year of college, when I was 19 years old (2003). I babysat for them the remainder of my college years, and as their family grew. I even moved in with them after my then finance (now hubby) moved to Georgia and I had to stay in Ohio to complete my internship.

I just adored their entire family and wanted to be like the mom, Danielle, in real life. Seriously, still to this day, I would say she was one of the most influential people who challenged the way I thought and saw life…and I can thank them for my desire of always wanting to own an old house, liking antique furniture, and my desire for sharing my recipes.

What Life Looked Like Then

When Gathered In The Kitchen went live, I was 26 years old and we had just moved from Georgia to South Carolina and had two kiddos under the age of 24 months! We lived 1,000 miles away from our closest family member (actually, our Georgia house sold on the day I went into labor with baby #2)!

I was living my dream of being a stay-at-home mom — soaking up every single minute of my sweet little schmoopie babies, teaching myself how to cook, and of course, doing DIY projects!

But even in that sweet season, I felt a pull for connection. Out of all of my friends from high school and college, I was the only one married with kids. I had left a career in healthcare, moved to yet another new state, and was navigating long days at home while my husband was at work. I loved being present for my family, but I also missed having an outlet that felt meaningful and shared.

This was the exact time when The Pioneer Woman was really becoming a “thing”. I used to wake up in the morning and check to see all of her new posts (back in the day, she used to publish 5 different posts per day about various topics). I just LOVED reading her posts and felt so inspired.

So…with all of that building up, I created Gathered In The Kitchen…and to this day, I’m not sure if I came up with the name or my husband! (He thinks he did…but I’m not so sure! 🤣).

What I Didn’t Know Yet

I never would have imagined that 15 years later, with practically grown babies, I’d still be writing content and sharing it.

If you’ve been here since the beginning, you’ve seen my family move to two more states, have another baby, added countless numbers of animals (why am I such a pushover?!?!) and deal with a lighting strike house fire.

This little space on the internet (that I pay a fortune to host every single month 🤣) is so special to me. Sharing my recipes, my projects, my renovations, and my fails = so ❤️.

This space has lead me to some amazing opportunities. I’ve been able to work with brands and create projects and recipes, I’ve been able to cook on live TV multiple times teaching others how to cook everyday recipes, and I’ve been able to connect with many “friends” all around the world. All things I’m so very thankful for.

What Does The Future Look Like?

Honestly, the blogging world has changed so much since I first pressed publish all those years ago. My posts used to be so conversational, kind of funny, and definitely very personal.

Over the years, as blogging evolved into a “business”, the industry said no more of that! Take out all of the personal fluff and just write as much information about that topic and answer a billion questions that maybe someone would google. Basically, think of your blog like selling a house, take down all of the personal photos and don’t show the buyer YOU!

While I can’t say that I ever fully adopted that model, I did definitely change from my “handwritten note to a friend at school” to more “classroom assignment”.

But with all of that said, I have always tried to stay true to why I started this blog and written my own content…in addition to always using my photos I personally have taken. No AI! (I just sometimes use it to help me rewrite a sentence that I can’t seem to make sense when writing out a tutorial!).

I’m excited to continue to keep creating content and sharing it! It truly is my passion.

Thank you for being here and following along on my journey!