*GASP* I KNOW, RIGHT?!?!?! Do not adjust the monitor, your eyes are not deceiving you – I really really did FINALLY launch the brand new IBIH! You didn’t think it was ever going to happen did you? (ME. EITHER.) But then suddenly….
TAH – DAH!!!!
While you Peeps were blissfully unaware and going about your business without a thought to what’s going on behind the scenes over here at IBIH (how dare you), I’ve been hard at work with the talented Robin from Grits Design finalizing the new site layout. So whaddaya think? Pretty sweet, right?
*enthusiastic nodding from audience*
Let me just tell you the suspense has been killing me! We’ve been so close to being done for weeks, but with launching The Wood Fired Enthusiast, trying to relocate to Northern Georgia, and all of the other crazy stuff that’s going on, I didn’t have the time to buckle down and finish it until now. Of course that makes me sound like I was more important to this process than I really was, when it was actually Robin who did all the heavy lifting (thanks girl!)
Well don’t just stand there gaping, COME ON IN and lemme show you around!
First, as you can see above we finally have a logo, courtesy of Louise from The Autumn Rabbit Design Studios. She also made my awesome social media icons, which I L.U.R.V.
Super cute, right? Beyond the fun cosmetic stuff is where the real improvements lie though, and I think (hope) you’re going to really appreciate them…
FINALLY a correctly functioning recipe index that is a lot less work for me to maintain, and a lot easier for you to use. I appreciate your patience with the old site and what a D.O.G. it was – I got SO many emails and comments about how the thumbnails wouldn’t load, and then for some of you they would suddenly start loading once you’d commented about how they wouldn’t load…
*cue creepy Twilight Zone music here*
I dunno – I gave up trying to figure it out a long time ago!
Another issue this new design addresses is the site loading time – you should notice a significant difference in loading speed…as in it should be a LOT faster!
To further help with site speed, and the mobile experience especially, I’ve scaled way back on the ads for now – which means less revenue for me, but a much better experience for you.
I think the trade off will be worth it – though for awhile the monthly giveaway budget will probably take a hit.
Don’t worry, I’ll still be giving away super awesome prizes – like a couple of only slightly used toothpicks and stuff. Maybe if you’re lucky and I can swing it – an entire BOX of brand NEW toothpicks!
(Not those fancy multi-colored ones though – those are wayyyy spendy.)
One of the features I’m especially happy about is the new IBIH Community Forum. You may remember that I tried a forum when I first moved to WordPress a couple of years ago, but it never really took off and I eventually removed it. I plan to leave this one up regardless, even if it’s only me and one other person using it. (Mom??)
The forum is the perfect place for you guys to to keep up with who is doing the Weekly Keto Menu Plans at any given time, to participate in 30 day (or whatever length) challenge threads, etc.
I’ve also included a forum section specifically for the Egg Fast Menu Plans. A bunch of you are doing them and chatting on the Egg Fast Facebook group about it which is great – the problem is that those posts eventually fade into obscurity so the same questions get asked over and over. With the forum, you can search out existing threads, start your own, and join a weekly thread of people starting the egg fast on a Monday of any given week and report daily on your progress, ask questions, share recipes, etc. Just like a facebook group, but better I think!
I’ve also included a section on Whole 30 Support (I’m planning to do another one soon), and General Discussion for whatever you want to talk about. If you’d like a section that’s not currently included – let me know and we can add to it as we go.
I’ll be hanging out in the Forums for a little while every day keeping up with it, but you guys can also get to know each other and chat amongst yourselves even when I’m not online. You can start with the Introduce Yourself section – after all, you guys are some of the coolest and most inspiring Peeps I know – you should get to know each other and spread your awesomeness around!
So that’s the highlights! The rest of the site looks a little different but the content is pretty much the same. Some of the older posts might need some formatting changes so bear with us as we go through them all. We may add or tweak a few more things in the coming weeks, so let me know if there are bugs or things you notice that need attention.
(I can see Robin now – *facepalm* “Why did she SAY that?!?!?)
*pats shoulder soothingly* “There, there, Robin. We’re almost done…”
The bottom line is that we all want you to love using the new IBIH website – so please feel free to speak up if you notice something amiss! And don’t feel bad about it either, Robin promises to bill me exorbitantly for any changes. (Tee hee, just kidding, she’s ridiculously inexpensive and incredibly talented – you should totally hire her for all of your website needs.) (She didn’t even make me say that, honest.)
So what’s next? Well I had planned (I should just stop that, seriously) to have a new ebook of recipes and menu plans published by the first of the year, which obviously never happened. I’d still like to do that at some point, but honestly right now I just want to enjoy the new space and start posting recipes regularly again (Meatball Mondays, how I’ve missed you!)
I’m not going to put a date on it, but I will eventually start chipping away at the outline I have for the new book and will keep you posted when I have something concrete to report on that and other future publishing projects.
Meanwhile, poke around the new site and stay tuned for more delicious low carb and gluten free recipes coming your way soon! Yay!
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