Do you feel inspired? I’m trying to draw you in and get you to read about these thirteen blogs I admire.

Did it work?

Each of these 13 blogs is great in some way that I admire, some way that inspires me in my own blogging. So here ya go…

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13 Blogs I Admire:

(in alphabetical order so as not to play favorites)…

Blog: I’m an Organizing Junkie

Author: Laura

Why it’s so great: Laura knows her niche, her passion and she sticks to it. Her blog is one of the very first I discovered when I began reading blogs several years ago, and though she has added new features and abandoned some others when need be…she has never abandoned her voice. It also helps that she writes about organizing,…a subject that I love!

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Blog: Keeping the Kingdom First

Author: Alyssa

Why it’s so great: Alyssa’s mission is to lead a frugal life while Keeping the Kingdom First. I like it! Every week, nearly every day, Alyssa dishes up ways to save money, thoughts on frugality, freebies, coupons and other great deals. Alyssa also hosts a weekly podcast along with another blogger friend, wherein they tackle one topic each weeks and toss around ideas to keep that topic frugal.

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Blog: NieNie Dialogues

Author: Stephanie (NieNie)

Why it’s so great: Like Molly, (see below,) Stephanie’s story is a story of beauty. Tragedy has tried to marr her story, but her faith, her love for her family, her family’s love for her and God’s blessings towards them..these things shine through greater than the tragedy, bigger than the trials, more beautiful than the scars. Reading Stephanie’s blog before the accident,…her love for her family shines through the pages. After, her love for them shines even brighter. Particularly, I adore the way she speaks of her husband and their marriage. It makes me smile, makes me think of my own husband, makes me want to love him more and better.

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Blog: Pensieve

Author: Robin

Why it’s so great: I love poetry, poetic things, playing with words, fantastic alliterations and beautifully descriptive sentences. Robin is poetic, creative and writes beautifully descriptive sentences. Robin also takes great pictures. Her blog has grown and changed a bit since I first began reading, but in a good way and it inspires me to remember not to become complacent but to keep learning and growing – a good lesson for many things in life to be sure! Robin also inspires me (through her blog posts, comments and our conversations on Twitter) to look for the beauty in daily life, see the details and hear life’s poetry and song. (She’s going to grin when she reads that, then feel humble and modest – but it won’t be fake – and then grin some more because the phrase “life’s poetry and song” makes her smile. Am I right??)

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Blog: Pioneer Woman

Author: Ree

Why it’s so great: Number One – the photograpy rawks! Reading her blog posts are so interesting because the photography supports them so well. Number Two- her blog design rawks! When I created Classic Housewife last November, I was looking for a way to combine all my blogs in one. My original setup was close to what I wanted, but not close enough. The current layout and functionality of my blog was indeed inspired by the creative way that Ree combined her separate blogs together in a way that they can stand alone or function as a whole.

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Blog: Rocks in My Dryer

Author: Shannon

Why it’s so great: Shannon’s blog is another that I have been reading since the beginning of my blogging days. Shannon, who also has the ability to be very serious, can also be very funny – and it should be obvious by now that I like funny. Shannon, too, has grown and changed and adjusted her blog as need be, but she’s still just Shannon. To me, even though I know her blog, readership and influence has grown and grown and grown… she doesn’t come across as OH, I’M THIS BIG BLOGGER…. AND YOU ARE?? It’s just one of the many reasons that I like reading her blog.

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Blog: Run the Earth, Watch the Sky

Author: Kristi

Why it’s so great: I envy Kristi’s way with words – in a good way. As she writes about lessons from scripture and current topics from a biblical perspective, she is able to string her words and thoughts together with a scholarly cohesiveness that I have never posessed, (but also in a way that I can understand what she’s talking about.) It almost makes me want to go to bible college. But then, it would seem kind of silly to go to school just so I could write better blog posts, wouldn’t it?

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Blog: Scribbit

Author: Michelle

Why it’s so great: Michelle has mastered the art of combining informative and fun blog posts, as well as the skill of incorporating video tutorials. She also has a great writing voice, crafting stories wonderfully. Her regular posting of 13 things on Thursdays encouraged me to pick the tradition back up myself – since back in the beginning I used to do Thursday 13 pretty regularly. Is it ironic that her Thursday 13 is making it into MY Thursday 13 list? Or is “irony” not the correct literary term for that? Anyone?

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Blog: The Pipers

Author: Molly

Why it’s so great: Molly is a strong woman. Not on her own, all by herself. Molly is a strong in her faith, and because God makes her strong. And she’ll tell you that’s what gets her through. Molly’s story is inspiring, encouraging, and humbling. It’s also beautiful. Not beautiful as a perfect and sparkling diamond or as a fine piece of art – without blemish or flaw. No, Molly’s story is beautiful because of and in spite of the trials that try to marr the beauty of God’s blessing. Though circumstances can sometimes obscure that, nothing can truly marr the beauty that is God’s grace, faithfulness and sovereignty. I admire Molly’s transparency, honesty and genuineness. I feel certain that God is using her to minister to other mothers who read her blog who have also lost their own little ones.

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Blog: The Run-A-Muck

Author: Amber

Why it’s so great: The reason I love this blog has nothing to do with us sharing the same name and everything to do with the emotions that flow off the page from Amber’s mesmerizing and magnetic writing. Amber has a way with words. Not the same way that I have a way with A LOT of words. No, she has a way with MORE meaning in LESS words. The way that she writes seems unique, though I can’t put my finger on it, not quite. Candid, telling truths and life, drawing out emotion like water from a deep well with a beautiful bucket. There’s something incredibly like-able about her, this country girl, simple, complicated, and her unabashed love for her husband and her three run-a-muck boys.

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Blog: This Side of Eternity

Author: Kristie

Why it’s so great: A homeschooling mom who is trying to save money and live frugally? Right up my alley! In addition to alerting her readers to great deals and other ways to save money, you’ll also find other posts about homeschooling, family life and good food for thought.

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Blog: Velveteen Mind

Author: Megan

Why it’s so great: I only just recently discovered Megan’s blog…but when I did, I read and read and read. Megan has a way of really connecting with her readers, and just being “real.” One neat thing about Megan’s blog is her “audio blog” page where she has recorded some of her blog posts verbally. To sit and listen to her tell you the story (I listened to The Trouble With Pies) was really neat. And it reminded me, as I listened to her telling it, at a nice calm and perfect pace, that we often speed read and skim through things, without taking the time to really enjoy them. Listening to that particular post was so enjoyable – it was a good reminder to slow down and take more time for things instead of rushing through them. Makes me almost want to audio record a few posts of my own…)

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Blog: We are THAT family

Author: Kristen

Why it’s so great: She is seriously funny. Seriously. By sharing these funny little moments with us, Kristen makes it easy for us to connect with and identify with her. Kristen helps moms everyone come to terms with and find consolation in the middle of every THAT FAMILY moment we experience. Kristen doesn’t just smile and say “how cute” and glorify all of her children’s bad moments, though, condoning and encouraging them to continue. No, ma’am. She actually approaches parenting from a biblical perspective (Grace-based parenting) and her posts about parenting issues (in between the funny THAT FAMILY posts) are SPOT ON.

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These 13 blogs are definitely not the only great blogs out there. What great blogs do you read? How do they inspire you? Why?

This post has been happily been submitted to Things I Love Thursday @ Diaper Diaries.