Can you believe we’ve been blogging for five years? It feels surreal.
It seems like yesterday we threw together a simple page with a bright blue background so friends and family could follow along as we renovated our first home’s kitchen. That small beginning turned into something much bigger: a place to share projects, everyday life, and the ups and downs of DIY and homeownership.
For our fifth blogiversary, we wanted to celebrate in a big, goofy way—ideally with a parade of homeowners waving hammers and paint rollers—but logistics and safety concerns (not to mention the potential for missing eyeballs) led us to a different plan. Instead, we put together a full week of celebrations: behind-the-scenes posts, giveaways, reflections, and plenty of photos. Over the past few years we’ve done similar week-long events to mark milestones, and this time is no different: we’ll be sharing stories, answering your questions, and giving away some fun prizes in honor of The Big 5.
Here’s what we’ve lined up for the week:
- A concise timeline of how we met, fell in love, started blogging, and arrived where we are now (we even included it below — no time wasted).
- An exciting giveaway featuring multiple $500 prizes to mark the fifth anniversary.
- A “day in the life” post with candid photos and practical details about a typical day for us.
- A numbers-driven look at our blog’s growth, stats, and other metrics, plus seven blog-related facts that surprised even us.
- A candid Q&A video answering personal questions submitted by readers on social media.
- A clear list of our goals for the coming year and an honest review of how we did on last year’s goals.
- A roundup of our favorite, least favorite, hardest, most memorable, and weirdest posts from the past five years.
- A community post where we get to know you better—who you are, where you live, and what you love. We can’t wait to hear your stories.
Below you’ll find a visual timeline we assembled that traces big moments back to 2004. Seeing those milestones laid out made us realize how far we’ve come—both personally and as a site—and brought on a few happy, teary moments. The timeline highlights defining events that shaped our family and our blog, and it’s a reminder that this unexpected journey has been made possible by this community. Your support, comments, and visits transformed a simple hobby into a real part of our lives, and for that we’re deeply grateful.
Time really does fly when you’re busy building a life—moving, marrying, starting a blog, welcoming a child, writing, and learning as you go. Looking back, we’re amazed at how much has happened in five years, and we’re thankful to have you along for the ride. Your enthusiasm and encouragement have helped shape everything we do here.
If you’re curious about blogging as a business, we’re still figuring it out too. We’ve put together a large collection of posts that explain how the site evolved, how we monetize content, balance work and family, find sponsorships, and handle the practical side of running a small business like taxes and insurance—useful reading for anyone thinking about starting or growing their own blog.