Hello and welcome! This is the third check-in post since starting my blog on July 30th 2021. Check out my August 2021 and September 2021 Check-ins to see my food blog progress! I have been slowly learning the process of food blogging, what works and what does not work for me. For October 2021 check-in will recap my progress, October Recipes and Foodtography School update.
Skip to the Good Parts
Life Updates
Google Analytics and Traffic
October Recipe List
Foodtography School Update
Looking Ahead
Life Updates: Fall is Here!
I always like visiting houseware stores and looking at kitchens. But since food blogging, that love towards housewares doubled, maybe tripled! If there is a homeware section, I will be there! My 2 small drawers with small kitchen gadgets (mini waffle maker and french press), along with special ingredients is now overflowing! It takes a great deal of strength to NOT buy every baking item out there. I did, however, buy a baked donut pan. It was too cute not to.
William Sonoma 
Small Business in Dufferin County
During the last 18 months, walking has become a source of exercise and stress reliever. Even with the cooler weather setting in, I do my best to walk everyday. If you can, bundle up and walk!
As the end of October approached, Halloween decorations started appearing. Last year we did not give out candy on Halloween but this year we did. We pre-packaged the candy into little containers and set them on a table for people to take. It’s not ideal but it’s the safe way.
The best part of Halloween is the bite-sized version of my favourite chocolate bar – KitKat! Did you know over 300 Kit Kat flavours have been produced in Japan? These Kit Kats are hard to find in Toronto, Ontario. But I went to the Kit Kat Chocolatory and bought a ~fancy~ Kit Kat Flavour. This Kit Kat’s flavour is called “Delightfully Coffee and Donuts” – and there was a coffee taste and lots of sweetness.
Check out that list of Kit Kat flavours in Japan, is there a flavour you want to try? I would like to try the Cherry Blossom Mochi, Ginger ale and Watermelon!
October 2021 Check-in: Google Analytics and Traffic
I’m seeing the small – but significant – growth for the food blog. In October, I had more visitors and sessions compared to September. Previously I was focused on the number of visitors (users) but going forward I am paying attention to the number of sessions. Sessions are the number of users who were actively engaged in the site – this is why this number is important!
Next we have the top 5 pages for this month. Number 1 is my homepage but after we have Pumpkin Pie Spice Scones. This particular recipe is very popular on Pinterest! Pumpkin Spice desserts are trending during the Fall season, especially during Thanksgiving.
Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies are also popular on Pinterest, and it’s also one of my earlier recipes. So I’m happy to see it still trending. Thirdly, the Cinnamon Nutmeg Apple Crisp is another Fall dessert and it’s currently trending on Google and Pinterest. Last are the Oat Flour Waffles, I do love this recipe and who doesn’t like breakfast?
The main sources of visitors are from Pinterest and Instagram. I am active on both of those social media accounts. Speaking of Pinterest, I have scheduled posts each day which I attribute to my growth on the platform. That being said, search engine optimization (SEO) is incredibly important for blogs. And I am still learning about SEO so the Google/Organic searches increase.
Although this growth shows great promise for my blog, we should consider that Fall is a HUGE baking season. Thanksgiving, followed by Christmas are popular months for home baking. As of today, the most popular recipe on my blog ever are Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies and the Pumpkin Pie Spice Scones! (Hey, Pumpkin sells!).
October Recipe Roundup
October was a special month because it had 5 Sundays! That meant 1 extra recipe for this month!
Apple Cinnamon Crumble Cake
Dairy Free Pumpkin Chai Latte
Halloween Cookies and Cream Cookies
Halloween Hot Chocolate Bombs
Mummy OREO Cookies
October 2021 Check-in: Foodtography School Update:
In October, I finished 5 weeks of Foodtography school! Over the past 5 weeks, I learned photography composition, lighting and colour theory. There are still lots of learn, but the photos below speak for themselves. There is progress being made!
In addition to basic photography principles, I discovered my photography style. And no, it’s not sticking candy eyes on everything! I love the photography style in the right photo – warm, cozy, inviting and comforting.
What do you feel when looking at the photo on the left vs the photo on the right?
Halloween Cookies and Cream Cookies 
Mummy OREO Cookies
Looking Ahead:
First, I want to thank everyone who has visited my blog over the last few months. Also thank you for those who follow, like, comment and subscribe. Everything helps and it’s incredibly encouraging for me to see ♥︎
In November, I’ll focus on SEO and foodtography! Learning about Search Engine Optimization will bring more users to the blog – and this is what we want! Learning photography is a valuable skill that can be transferred to all platforms – the blog, Instagram, Pinterest etc.
We are coming very close to the end of year! We are slowly growing and I hope to see more growth in the next couple of months. Thank you all again!
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