16 July 2019

30 million page views

I've just realised that a significant blogging milestone has been reached - there have been 30 million page views here on my blog! I knew is was close because I did a couple of workshops on the weekend and showed my blogging class behind the scenes on my blog, including the statistics.  I smiled when I saw it and kept going, thinking I'd do something about it later.  And then I forgot.

I started this blog because I'd written the beginnings of a book about how Hanno and I had changed our lives for the better. I couldn't find any Australian books then about this change of lifestyle and I was desperate to share how we'd been enriched and energised by the changes we made. I sent the book proposal off to some publishers and all of them rejected it. I was absolutely sure that other people would be able to make their own changes if I got the information out, so I started this blog.  Very soon, readers started pouring in.

Back in those early days, I had no idea about blogging and just wrote, every day, about what we were doing.  And over the 12 years I've been here, that's what I kept doing.  What I didn't know back then was that I'd grow close to the people who read here, I'd care about their families, sometimes I'd visit them, I'd meet them in book shops, libraries and halls and often I'd come away with phone numbers, jars of jam, bottles of home brew, cakes, chutneys and so many more little tokens of love. I have been truly amazed at the number of people who came to meet us and the thousands of emails we received over the years.

Thank you for being part of it all. It's been a pleasure to write for you and to show with my photos what is possible in a small home with a backyard vegetable plot and chickens, and to help spread the message of a splendid, slow, simple life. 

♥️ ~*~ ♥️ ~*~ ♥️
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47 comments

  1. Thank you, Rhonda, for keeping this lovely space to encourage, learn and grow. It's so interesting to see what's happening on the other side of the globe, and lots of other places too. It's a pleasure to visit this peaceful spot, where there are always good things going on, and such a cute pup too.

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  2. I'm so grateful you started this blog Rhonda, our lives are richer for you having done so. I'm not at all surprised at the number of views you have had, I for one just keep coming back:) Best wishes for many more blogging days ahead. Margaret

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  3. Congratulations Rhonda! What an extraordinary amount of page views! So many people have been influenced by the work and words you share here from all around the world. How awesome is that?

    xx

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  4. Congrats Rhonda, I am so pleased knowing your that work, time and knowledge have been used by so many others. Your readers don’t just read the blog they would take in the information that you share. The labels section is like an encyclopedia of simple living. You mention that you have grown close to people and their families, the same applies to you. It is lovely being part of your family and your life sharing many things including watching Jamie grow up and of course seeing Gracie antics.
    Hopefully you are very proud of yourself – I am very proud of you!xx

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  5. Congratulations, Rhonda! Your success is well deserved. I enjoy your instagram postings but also very glad you decided to continue with the blog.
    Spud.

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  6. Congratulations Rhonda, it has been so good to pop in and visit your blog over the years to see what Hanno & yourself have been doing - a bit like visiting a neighbour. Thank you for sharing your thoughts & ideas with us.

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  7. Well done Rhonda, that's quite an achievement.
    Cheers Kate

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  8. Thank you Rhonda, I have learned so much from you over the years. Congratulations on this milestone.

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  9. Well done. I love reading your daily life. Your lifestyle is similar to mine. I still make your muffins each week.

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  10. Your writings are beautiful. Just like most here I found you when life circumstances were evolving at my house and in my life. The best decision I made was to go back from the beginning and read all of your posts. Occasionally I go back and read some more. Either way, it is inspiring reading just like a book that you can't put down. Congratulations Rhonda ��.

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  11. What a milestone...I'm so glad that the publishers rejections didn't stop you from sharing your lifestyle changes. I have been following you for many many years and my friend and I were into the simple lifestyle but none of her friends or any other of my friends were into that. Now it's becoming more popular and the old saying "everything old is new again" comes to mind. I've just done a 4 week on line course about keeping preservatives and additives out of our food and it's quite eye opening even though I cook 90% of stuff from scratch I learnt a lot. Congratulations on your readership and sharing your knowledge with the world literally. Regards Kathy A, Brisbane

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  12. Congratulations Rhonda on reaching this amazing milestone. Thank you for sharing so much with your readers.

    Over the years you have helped, encouraged and inspired so many. You are a wonderful role model.

    I enjoy reading your blog and your books. I love the photos of your home, family, pets, cooking, garden, knitting and sewing projects. Many of your recipes have become family favourites and I pass them on to my family and friends.
    I have learned a great deal from you and have come to think of you as a dear and wise friend.

    Thank you Rhonda.
    Warmest regards, Maria.

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  13. Congratulations and thank you for the inspiration, advice, and contagious upbeat spirit.

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  14. Congratulations Rhonda! You have really reached a milestone by talking about what you know, do and love and teaching and inspiring us all.

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  15. You are also going worldwide. I found you in Denmark. Funny to read about the seasons in the south.

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  16. Well done Rhonda you certainly have enriched many lives. Thank you and Hanno for your generosity.

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  17. Such a wonderful achievement Rhonda. I am so happy I have found your blog. You obviously tapped into something that people have been searching for. A simple life full of meaning. The most life changing thing I have learnt from you is to put on my apron! After that everything flows.

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  18. Warmest congratulations Rhonda - I remember when you were approaching your first million!
    Again my thanks for all the inspiration and knowledge you have imparted over the years. Like so many others I have been regularly inspired and learnt so much from you on my own journey of living a simpler and more sustainable life. May you see many more million page views! Leonie xx

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  19. What a splendid example of a slow, simple and satisfying life you and Hanno have set for us to learn from and be inspired by. Thank you for all that you have shared on your blog and in your wonderful books Rhonda. Congratulations & cheers, Kelly

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  20. Congratulations Rhonda! That is indeed a milestone. Did you say something about 'retiring' a while back? LOL!

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  21. congrats on this milestone. As the young one's say - You rock Rhonda. Big achievement.

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  22. Congrats Rhonda! That is wonderful. Thanks for being the inspiration that you are. FlowerLady

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  23. Wow ... Congratulations ♥️

    Write well and people will read, speak sense and people will pick up on it. I've learnt so much from your blog and your books over the years.

    Thank you. Xx

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  24. Congratulations Rhonda! My first comment here ever but I’ve been an avid reader for many years!
    Rebecca

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  25. congratulations and thank you! :) I enjoy this blog so much! xo

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  26. Thank you Rhonda for normalising this ‘splendid, slow, simple life’ and making it okay. When I’m around friends who are always on the go I sometimes feel like I’m missing out on life and should do more. Then I remember your example and appreciate the choice I have made to move into the slow lane. I’m okay for the fast lane to pass me by. I’m not missing out on anything. I’m soaking in the good of this ‘splendid, slow, simple life’ every day. Thank you xxx

    Fay (Brisbane)

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  27. Congratulations Rhonda and well done for inspiring thousands of people!!

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  28. Congratulations Rhonda what a wonderful milestone, I first saw you on a TV show, (a breakfast show I think, & I was instantly interested in your story & was surprised the hosts of the show didn't 'get it'). I have followed your blog, brought your books, come to your talks & incorporated some of your ideas into our daily life since then, thank you for being so inspirational, I have learnt so so much

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  29. ❤❤Very Special❤❤
    We all have been blessed by you and the sharing of you journey!

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  30. Congratulations Rhonda!

    I am so glad that I found your blog and the forum. I’ve learned a lot from you, and your Down to Earth book has a very special place on my bookshelf. You are such an inspiration.
    Thank you 🙏

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  31. Congratulations! And thank you for being there for every one of us who knows we need to get back to a nourishing life. I think your books should be available in schools as there are so many youngsters realising the same thing as us.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you. I only know of one school in Brisbane that uses Down to Earth as a text book. However, in America, Down to Earth and The Simple Home have been added to the ExLibris Homeschooling Curriculum. Small steps, but important ones.

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  32. Congratulations!

    I have no idea how I found you or when I started reading. I know that you had your 2 airedales then, and it was before you had your one son's wedding at your house. I want to thank you for writing your blog, and for still continuing to post on occasion. I know so few people in real life (so to speak) that choose simplicity, and it was like finding "my people" when I found your blog. It has been a great resource as well.

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  33. Congratulations Rhonda!
    I'n not surprised that the blog has been so successful as it is such a good read. Well done and thank you so much.
    Helen from WA

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  34. That is fantastic Rhonda! Your blog is like the encyclopedia of simple living.

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  35. What a lovely achievement.
    You have made an invaluable contribution to our little household over many years & your two big books sit proudly in our 'quick access pile' of books as they are looked at at least monthly.
    I will always feel incredibly grateful for finding your blog as I had the seeds of this idea of making life simple, even as someone in her late 20's but I just didn't know where to start in a practical sense & now in my mid 30's I feel like we are well on our way down the simple living path.
    Congratulations!

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  36. Congratulations and may there be many more views to come. I discovered your blog after I heard your interview on the ABC radio program Life Matters. I did not know what a blog was and did not have a computer at home so went to the local library to look you up. When I heard your interview I thought she is living the life-style I want to live. I just did not know how to start. Your blog and your books have lit the path for me. Now, over ten years later I am recently retired from paid work at age 57 and living a quiet simple life. Thankyou Rhonda.

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  37. I remember being so happy when I first found your blog. I had been living the same way, but didn't have the courage to make soap. I eventually started using your recipe for Olive Oil Soap and even learned to knit my own clothes. Thank you for all of your posts. They are marvelous. So are the photos...

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  38. What a great milestone! You should get a plaque for your wall or something to commemorate it. IV just started my own blog and its so much fun being able to remind people that our lives dont have to be complicated to be full.

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  39. Congratulations Rhonda, you are such a very special person !
    I'm not very spiritual but sometimes I wonder about people turning up in my life just at the right moment, and you were one of them. I discovered your blog many years ago, when I needed to focus on something positive and also when I needed to slow down and make do with very little. Most of what I know and what I do now, I've learned from you.
    I'm not surprised that so many people follow your blog, it is simply an amazing source of knowledge, and you present it in such an appealing and simple way.
    I follow some other blogs, some that focus on the philosophy, or the money, or the food, or whatever subject. Yours is the whole package, and I think it's the reason why it is so successful.
    I can't thank you enough for all the lessons you have taught me (and countless of other people).
    Cheers, Corinne.

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  40. Sandy in the USAJuly 20, 2019 2:14 pm

    I love reading your blog. Obviously Rhonda you are a sweetheart and that is what your readers pick up on .... and so they keep coming back. Congrats on your successful writing.

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  41. Congratulations, Rhonda. I love you blog and am so very grateful that you have shared your family and your life with us. I've learned and enjoyed for a number of years now. Very best wishes, Lynne

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  42. Congratulations Rhonda! It just goes to show, you are really needed. Your blog and books helps many people find home and live a richer life. Blessings, Pam

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  43. Hello Rhonda,

    Wow 30 Million Views! Congratulations honey!
    Your blogging course was really amazing.

    Kindest regards,

    Leonie

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  44. This is so exciting, what a tremendous accomplishment! You have enriched so many lives and have made the world a better place. Hugs from Seattle!

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