Hannah Morrison

Hey Hannah, How Do I Start A Blog?

Hey Hey, friends!

So today’s post is a little different than I would usually do… but I have so many of you email and DM me the exact same question multiple times a week, and it goes a little something something like this:

“Hey Hannah, love what you do and I would really love to start a blog myself, but I have no idea where to start. Can you give me some tips?”

And since there’s only one of me, and I can’t get coffee to teach you what’s worked for me with all of you, I thought perhaps you can grab a cup of coffee and sit down to read this… and it’ll ALMOST be like we are chatting together. 😉

I pretty much tell everybody the exact same few things who ask me this question, and they are what I believe built the foundation for The Cake by Hannah. And, everything I am about to share pretty much was taught to me by meetings with other influencers, podcasts, or blog posts similar to this one when I first was getting started.

Getting Started:

  1. Start your website and blog as though you already have thousands of followers. You want to create content you are proud of and is already at the caliber you want to produce later down the road. This means your content, your site, your photos… if you start at a 10, you already are appealing to people who are seeing your name and site for the first time regardless of numbers. It’s sort of like a “fake it til you make it” mentality. (Any start-up will tell you that this is how to do it well. Start running the race how you want to be in 2-5 years.)
  2. Pick Your 5: I was told this by somebody when I was getting started (I don’t even remember who it was), and then heard Jenna Kutcher talking about it on one of her podcasts I listened to recently. What I mean by “your 5” is pick the 5 things that you are going to post about on your page and feed- the 5 things that make up who you are- and it is what people will go off to know whether or not they want to follow you or not. Rotate posts on your Instagram between these five topics. It’s as simple as that. NEWSFLASH: It’s ok if people don’t want to follow you because of your 5. You want readers who connect with you and what you are writing about over numbers. Engagement and genuine community is everything.
  3. Along the same lines as your 5- be genuine, raw, and real. People are sick of this game social media is playing of “showing the best”. My experience as a writer and “Instagrammer” is that people want to know they’re normal, not just what sales are happening or what shoes we are buying this week.
  4. Pick your niche: I am the first to say I am not a “fashion blogger.” I talk about fashion, yes, but it’s not what I am. I am a writer. I learned really quickly when I was getting started that the whole “fashion blogger”, true to the term, wasn’t who I was. I am a writer, I was a broadcast and creative writing major in college, and that is where I found the most fruit in what content I was creating. Writing and sharing truth with people- that’s why you haven’t seen a whole lot from me throughout the N Sale or why I don’t have a “Shoesday Tuesday” post every week- I tried that niche, it wasn’t me and that is totally ok. Sure, I lost people when I really shifted my focus for The Cake by Hannah, but I gained way more once I started doing what I felt convicted and led to do. And, bonus, I am thankful for the bloggers who ARE that “Fashion Blogger” niche, because they help me know when and what to buy. It’s a win-win situation.
  5. Start With Brands At Your Same Level: I got to meet with Katey Mcfarlan (Chronicles of Frivolity) when I first started my blog (literally the sweetest person ever), and she told me this piece of advice. What I mean is, don’t start by emailing Fossil or Dillards when you’re at 1k. I got my first really big partnership with Bare Minerals at 10K, and then other big brands came after that. So, I started my marketing side of The Cake by reaching out to shops on Etsy once I had around 1500 followers. I told them who I was, what my blog was all about, and that I would love to share their product with my readers. (I wasn’t charging for my talents at first- I was just trying to create content.) It was an easy email pitch, and I sent out about 20 emails a week when I first was getting on my feet. (no joke) I spent hours every day developing and creating for The Cake long before it was profitable or the community it is today- all while working a full time job as a head buyer for a start-up in Dallas. It was an absolutely exhausting season of life, but worth it to create what was a initially just a hobby for me and now a career.

As far as growing your following goes… this is the #1 question that, when getting started, feels impossible. To be honest, you’re going to hear 101 different opinions and tactics to do this. So what I am about to say is my own personal opinion. I have chosen the route of organic and real vs. buying followers or the follow for follow game. I did the following game for a short period early on and it was exhausting, overwhelming, and… at times I definitely saw things in my feed I didn’t want to see. Also, at the end of the day, if you go look at a blogger’s account that you can tell they follow for follow (look for someone who is following thousands of people…) you’re going to see that their engagement is really low. If you want to turn your blog into a career, brands don’t care as much about the number at the top of your feed as they do about the engagement from the number that is following you. Make sense? Numbers do matter, but not as much as engagement. When you play the follow for follow game, you’re not getting a genuine readership or community. I care SO MUCH MORE about if the content I am creating and what I am writing is getting to people who need it over just any and every body who could care less.

Find other genuine bloggers who are in the same niche as you to do a “Follow Friday” with on occasion, share about people you’re loving, be engaged with people who ARE reading your posts and create community with them. I legit feel like I know so many of you who consistently comment on my posts, because I read and respond to everything you say. I have definitely stalked you, too. It’s my favorite part about this blogging thing! Because of the route I chose, I feel like I truly have a community that I affectionately call “The Cake Community”, and it’s developed naturally over the last year and a half as I have stepped into what I really wanted The Cake to be.

Starting The Cake Shop came AFTER my blog. It was part of the plan from the start of The Cake by Hannah, but I knew I needed to wait to launch it. I wanted to create a community before I turned it into my shop, too. (This was super hard, but worth being patient!) The Cake Shop came to fruition when it felt like a true extension of what The Cake by Hannah already was. I launched the shop just this past November, and it has been WAY MORE than I could have ever hoped.

I hope this helps. I know some of this seems basic… but it’s just the truth. Lastly, I pray for God’s favor on The Cake daily. I thank him for the community that has already developed, and that he would continue to use it however he wants. This is most important to me above all else.

Love you guys so much, and I am cheering you on in whatever business or blog you have in your heart! The best best piece of advice seriously is to just GO FOR IT. Do it. Don’t wait, there is no better time than now. Today. Bring alive the dreams inside of you.

xoxo- Han

For funsies… here are just a small portion of The Cake by Hannah archive photos from over the last two years as my blog has grown and developed. You’ll see a change of style… hair color… content… haha.


Why We Chose To Use A Midwife

Hey hey, friendsies!!

Ugh, first off, can we just talk about how I am still soaking in the fact that I can TALK ABOUT my pregnancy now?! It feels so freaking good to, and it makes it all the more real. Oh, and the whole I AM HAVING A BOY thing. Knowing what we are having has made everything more real, because I can talk to him by name now and really start shopping for him.

Though I know there is zero reason or need to justify our decision to keep it quiet for so long, I wanted to share a little about it. Our decision in keeping it to ourselves and close family for so long wasn’t because we don’t believe this is already a life inside of me (we very much believe he is) nor was it because we didn’t want to tell everyone “just in case”. Frankly, because I believe life begins at conception, I wanted to start announcing it immediately. But, Paul and I chose together to keep it quiet a while because of my health and it being our first baby. We just didn’t know what being pregnant would be like, and it’s entirely new territory for us. As people who were told getting pregnant would likely be difficult for me, I wanted to just soak in the fact I got pregnant so easily.

It was fun for us to be experiencing something together for the first time just us- it was a special bond we had knowing only WE knew about something so big. It felt sort of like a secret club, or something.

We shared over time leading up to our big announcement with people we love and would want to mourn with in the middle of grief, if that were how this panned out (though, of course, we prayed against that). As youth pastors, there are hundreds of kids we shepherd, and having to tell them in the middle of our grief if we lost the baby would not only make grieving hard and public for us, but it would be incredibly hard and traumatic for a lot of our kids. We would no doubt share what we were going through in due time, but we decided to keep it from them until the second trimester.

Anyways, I don’t know if that helps any of you or sheds some light as to why everyone treats what time they share with the world at such different times, but that’s our story. We got asked a lot why we didn’t share earlier, so since I am all about being honest and open, this is why.

Alright, so MIDWIFERY. Y’all, first off, that word is so freaking fun to say. Now, you might quite possibly be asking yourself, “What the heck is a midwife?”

Fair enough. My parents were like, “oh cool. um what is that?”

I like to think when it comes to the “Granola” scale, I am about a 5. I am right in the middle. I like natural methods. It is after all an all natural biomagnetic doctor who changed my whole life last July. And his diagnosis and care is very much the reason I got pregnant so easily. So, I am all about off the beaten path methods, but I am definitely not a “there’s an oil for that” kind of person. I like medicine, and I have no problem using it when needed. (Although, I am kind of against antibiotics and avoid those… big part of my story as to why I was sick my whole life.) I have a couple oils I like to use when needed, but that’s about the extent of that. I tell you that so that you don’t just tune me out if you hear “midwife” and think that’s only for crunchy people. I am not super ultra crunchy.

Anyyyyways,

There are different levels of certified midwives, and I would personally suggest getting one who has a masters in nursing and THEN has her midwife certification. This means you are being cared for by a highly knowledgable RN, and they happen to be allowed to do these off the beaten path methods because they ALSO got their certification in midwifery. Does that make sense?

Anyways, a nurse with a midwife certification is kind of like the golden ticket to get out of having to do all the rules of the hospital. All of my appointments leading up to birth are 100% exactly like they would be with the traditional Ob-Gyn. My women’s center is actually split, half Ob-gyns and half Midwives, and they all work with one another. It’s really awesome! I get the same sonograms, same care, same tests… it’s all the same. A mid-wife just will look to more natural methods to cure sickness, nausea, or anything else that might come up during pregnancy before medicine. Then, when labor comes, I will deliver in a hospital with my midwife. Here’s the kicker, the golden ticket, I get to deliver however I want (I am not restricted to giving birth on my back), I get to eat, I get to walk around as long as I want, I get to go to the birthing tub or shower, and I can deliver in them should I choose to do so. It’s basically getting the benefits of a home birth in the safety of the hospital. I will be fighting to do a medicine free birth, but my midwife can give me an epidural at any time. Should I need a c-section, my midwife is certified to be the assistant to the doctor in surgery. If you don’t have a midwife with all the credentials mine does, you are passed off by your midwife and not allowed to be touched by her until your delivery is done if you have complications. But mine literally is with me throughout the entire thing because of her schooling. You’re getting the best of both worlds with a certified nurse and midwife.

Lastly, my favorite part, unlike when you have a traditional doctor, you are guaranteed delivery with your mid-wife unless the VERY rare case another patient happened to go into labor at the same time as you. But, even still, another mid-wife on call will come help you until your own can take over.

I am trying to keep all of this super simple and understandable… haha. Don’t judge my very non-medical terms for all this.

Picking your midwife feels a lot like rushing in college… or speed dating. We set up an appointment to come in and meet all four midwives at our practice. You get about 15 minutes with each one to get to know them, learn their personality, hear their story, etc. We were really nervous. Like, what do we do if we don’t really click with any of them? Find a different practice? But, we just went in praying God would make it so clear who he had for us.

The first midwife came in, told us all about herself and we just totally clicked. Before she even left, BOTH Paul and I were crying. We knew that was our midwife. We went ahead and met a couple more, and were meant to go back later that day to meet the last one… but we cancelled. We knew the first one was perfect for us. You just click with the person you want to be with throughout this process, and hopefully it’s as clear for you as it was for us.

So did you learn something new today? 😉 I am so excited about the method we chose, and I cannot wait to continue journeying through this process with our midwife! I even found out my midwife was neighbors with close family friends and delivered one of my Pure Barre teacher’s babies earlier this year, and they all love her! I’d say we made a good choice.

 Now hear me on this: EVERY WOMAN IS BEAUTIFULLY DIFFERENT. Whether you do a fully hospital birth, a completely natural home birth, a birthing center, or a hybrid like I am doing… You are a BAD-A. You’re growing a human inside of you, and you’re going to do whatever is perfect for YOU to deliver that beautiful babe inside of you. There is no method better than another, it’s just what is best for you. 

That’s what I love about my practice! My  women’s center supports absolutely whatever the mom wants, and they do every type of birth plan (except home births). They don’t even like calling what I am doing “natural birth”, because they don’t want their moms to feel guilty or shame if they should decide to use medicine during their labor. There is a stigma that comes with choosing a medicine free birth and then if you don’t stick to that plan… it’s somehow shameful to use drugs because you said you wouldn’t. THAT IS CRAP and it’s just not true! Y’all, you might come in with a plan for your birth and absolutely everything has to change and be done differently because of A, B, or C. Find a practice who loves you and cares for you personally, and support you in every decision you make along the way. You are, after all, going to be getting really close over the next 9 or so months. Pick carefully, do your research, and choose simply what is best for you.

xoxo- Han

All photos by Cottonwood Road Photography for The Cake by Hannah

Shop my favorite go-to heel, here.

My dress is from Pink Blush, here. It’s almost out of stock in all sizes. WOMP. But below are some other top floral wrap choices from the same site that I am loving (and currently might have in my shopping cart…)

Here | Here | Here | Here |Here

           

Pretty in Blush & Weeks 7 & 8

Remember, all of my pregnancy updates are from the actual weeks I was in the thick of them.**

 So writing this, I am 8 weeks and 2 days and feel semi-normal for the first time in two weeks. I ain’t gonna lie y’all, about a week into the nausea I wondered what the heck I signed up for. I was on my back nauseous from sun up to sun down from the Friday before week 6 set in (the Friday before Easter) until well, two days ago. Whoever coined the term “morning sickness” set up all of us future pregnant ladies for a massive disappointment when we realize that actually means ALL DAY SICKNESS. And though I feel so much better today, anything can make me sick again.

I have had to ask Paul to not make certain foods when I am around. Or like at all… because my senses are out the roof and I can smell EVERYTHING. Seriously, I feel like this must be what Spiderman felt like when he started experiencing spidey senses. Even if Paul made chicken two hours before I walk through the door… I can smell it. And I instantly want to vomit.

I have experienced the biggest aversion to poultry. And coconut oil. But, specifically any chicken we cook at home, and basically all veggies except spinach and romain lettuce. But oddly enough, if it’s sliced up chicken- like on my salad at La Madeleine or Panera- I am a-okay. Basically, I feel like I am experiencing what Paul surely always has felt like when I can’t make my mind up and my hormones are crazy during “that time of the month”. I just feel all over the place.

I cannot get enough French Onion Soup. Gimme all the french onion.

But for so many things, something I ate and couldn’t live without yesterday is repulsive today. Thus, Paul has changed our grocery budget entirely for the time being. I have my own monthly budget now, and I can only buy food for the next 1-2 days in the likelihood that I end up hating something that sounded so good the day before. Our first month of pregnancy led to going about $300 over food budget because every single night I was left thinking about what wouldn’t make me vomit, and we would then go order it and pick it up. I ate out more for the last two weeks than I have in the last year.

Guys, this pregnancy thing. It’s so freaking weird. And funny. And a slew of emotions all at once.

Paul literally did so much for me during this phase where I could hardly function. It was sweet to just get to experience that together, too, since so few people knew. He left at 6 AM to find me ginger lozenges one day, went to PF Changs for egg drop soup another day, tomato soup the next… the list goes on. One day I was so miserable and all I wanted was Saltines, but I cannot eat them because of food allergies. (Trying to combat morning sickness with gluten and yeast allergies adds a whole new frustration to the nausea.) So at 9 AM that day, after already having left at 6 AM for the ginger lozenges… he went out and bought me 6 different kinds of gluten free crackers for me to test out. He literally has been so selfless, and I just felt so bad yet so loved. He just kept saying, “don’t you dare feel bad. you’re growing a baby.” Find a husband willing to buy you ginger pregnancy candies at 6 AM from Wal Mart. You have seriously made it when you find that.

I am praying this whole nausea thing truly is over. (**Added later: It wasn’t. I was sick from week 5-10) But now, I am experiencing A FLABBY BELLY like nobody’s business. I wake up normal, but by mid-day… holy moly. Hello soft tummy. I am not going to lie, this has been really hard for me. I am having to pray constantly for God to give me his eyes toward this body as it grows a baby. Like, I am growing a freaking human being inside of me, which is actually still really odd to grasp. It hasn’t hit just yet. But, none the less, there is definitely a human in there and I have all the symptoms.

Week 8 is also exciting, because we are going to our first pregnancy class on Wednesday and then our first appointment/sonogram on Thursday. WHAT?! Ugh. I am so excited. I can’t wait to see that little strawberry growing in my tummy.

Anyways, cheers to week 8 and to entering into my final month of the first trimester! I am so ready for you second trimester. So000 ready.

xoxo- Han

This dress is from Landry Kate, and is ammaaazing. If you are local, stop by the store! (They are the BEST!) If you aren’t (sad!), no worries because you can also order it online here!

All photos by Cottonwood Road Photography for The Cake by Hannah

            

Oh, Hey 25

Y’all, today I am 25. That feels SO weird, and I am not gonna lie, this is the first birthday I have ever semi-dreaded.

Side note: I also had to think really hard about how to skip when Hannah told me to skip for this photo. That’s depressing and definitely ages me.

I guess turning 25 makes it official that I am not just a carefree young twenty-something anymore? I am officially knee-deep into being a mid-twenty-something.. gasp! Haha. Maybe it’s because I only have one more year left with double insurance because I am also on my parent’s but only until 26? Maybe it’s because I legit don’t understand what half our students are saying, and they have to explain to me the latest lingo. Dear Lord, I am becoming my mother! Maybe it’s because, straight up, I have had to start using anti-wrinkle cream and stretch mark preventatives… haha. Keeping it real, y’all.

But, whatever the reason- a combination of all of the above- the thought of 25 has been a scary birthday to me.

Well, that is until about 3 months ago…

Up until 3 months ago, I felt like 25 was just bringing another year of some uncertainty, busyness, and saving every dollar possible to put toward a home- all done now with the title “Quarter of a Century” under my belt. And, although 25 will certainly still be this in every regard, it’s also on track to be the most purposeful year I have ever had in my life. As of three months ago, my job title, my goals, my role for the coming year… it’s all changing in year 25 and I couldn’t be more thrilled. The dread I once felt has turned into overwhelming excitement.

I always knew in theory one day I would carry the title “mommy”, but I had no clue when it would happen. I definitely wondered if it would ever click for me and how old I would be when I wanted to become a mom. But, I couldn’t honestly have knit together a more perfect time for Paul and I to become parents than this exact time in life. So much is still unknown, of course every penny still counts, and we have nothing but EVERYTHING to learn about kids and parenting, but on the same token, so many puzzle pieces have worked themselves out over the course of the last year. I truly believe it’s all led to this.

This week we had so many plans change, but now four days later, it’s all shaking out to be perfect. I am honestly just in shock what a difference there is in our plans for life we had last week vs. this week. Life changes, but it’s always good.

Of course it is though, God is moving.

So sure, 25 might bring a whole lot more sleepless nights than college did, a lot more laundry and spit up on my tee shirt I have likely worn three days in a row, and feeling a tad frazzled at [all] times… but I am going to be a mom and I wouldn’t want to welcome a quarter of a century any other way. I am also entering into 25 as a home owner- that’s freaking exciting. The Lord’s hand has been so gracious and sweet to us this past week.

So today, I celebrate 25. And I mean genuinely celebrate it. I feel like more than ever before, more than any other stage of life, I am looking forward to the year to come with anticipation and uncontrollable giddiness. 25, I think you might be my favorite year to date, and I am sorry I ever thought any different.

I kicked off my birthday celebrations yesterday with my first facial ever, and I am sorry to say I haven’t done them more! I will definitely be adding that to my regimen. Today, I am getting a massage and my nails done, letting Paul cook, and starting to pack… because we are moving, and SOON. It’s such a good day, and I am thankful to celebrate with y’all!

xoxo- Han

All photos by Cottonwood Road Photography for The Cake by Hannah

This dress is sold out now, but it’s from Ashley Lemieux and there are a ton of similar options!

 

The Cutest Blue Dress & PG Update

For today’s pregnancy update, I will get into what I physically felt in weeks 4-6, but I really wanted to be honest about psychologically what I was starting to feel at this time. I started having a rush of emotions and fears as the reality of pregnancy hit me.

Note: I wrote all of these updates in true time, so though some of these things have changed or stopped, I am sharing what I wrote as I wrote it to keep it as real and honest as possible.

What am I most scared about?

A couple of things. First and foremost, I am nervous about pregnancy itself. I am not that scared about being a mom, that part really excites me. But I am scared about the process to becoming one. The changes I will experience, the sickness (dear God, don’t let this last the whole time!), and the fear of labor. I am also, to be completely honest, really nervous about how I will respond to my body getting bigger and changing. Because of my history with my body, struggling with eating and obsessive habits for so long of my young adult life, I’m really nervous about what my reaction to a growing belly and thighs will be. I want to enjoy the process, not despise it. I am just prepping myself to give grace upon grace. Again… I am growing a child in me. And as I sit with a bowl of Captain Crunch in my lap currently, I would like to say I am starting this whole grace thing off on the right foot. It was literally the only thing that sounded good to me this morning and momma had to eat.

What am I feeling?

At this point, we have known I am pregnant for three or so weeks, and have made all the big necessary changes and appointments. I made my first 8 week exam with the doctor (actually, I am doing a midwife- I will share all about that decision), told my parents, grandparents, and siblings, and a few close friends. I don’t think there is anything more thrilling or sweet than telling someone you love that you’re having a baby. My daddy’s reaction and my sweet sister melted my heart to pieces, and my mom and mother in law made me giggle non-stop.

I have been nauseous for the last week, which has been miserable. Not going to sugar coat it. And, according to my Ovia Pregnancy App, next week is likely to be the worst for those symptoms. I am bracing myself… but hoping for the best!

Weeks 4-6 honestly were the moments I thought to myself, “What the heckkk did I sign myself up for?” Like, I was trying to get pregnant… I really did sign up for this, and it’s miserable.

The food aversions have been SO REAL. Things I used to love that I literally can’t look at without wanting to vomit (like coconut oil and chicken… which is like 90% of my diet pre-pregnancy), and random smells that all of a sudden bother me. I will think I really want something to eat and then start to make it, and I have to stop immediately and walk out of the room.

Chinese food is the best thing ever. Thank God for PF Changs.

The thought of a cup of coffee has made me want to vomit. WHAT?! Coffee? Haha, it’s true!

Cravings… they’re all over the place. But when something sounds good and I don’t want to puke from it, then I jump on it. One night it was a bowl of spaghetti sauce… literally just the meat sauce… no noodles. Another day it was ham and turkey with cheese. And cereal, that has been a big craving! I want Lucky Charms and Captain Crunch.

I have slept a TON weeks 5 & 6. Week 4 I felt pretty good other than feeling bloated. Week 6 I have slept about 3 hours a day and am averaging 10 hours a night. And I am STILL SO TIRED. I have had to give myself some serious grace the last week as I have been propped up on my sofa. Where I am usually a go go go girl, I have had to be a sit sit sit girl which is so hard for me. I have felt worthless and lazy just because of the way I am wired, but I keep reminding myself I am growing a CHILD in my belly and my body is working twice as hard now. Literally, pumping blood twice as much. That’s exhausting work!

All in all, even in the nausea, I am having a blast starting to really grasp the concept that I am going to be a mom. (WHAT?!)

xoxo- Han

This dress is from Landry Kate, here, and I am SO OBSESSED with it. It’s as light as a feather, and doesn’t feel like you’re wearing hardly a thing when it’s on, which is great for those outdoor summer weddings. It will also totally grow with me as baby grows, which I am very stoked about. Oh, and did I mention it is less than $50? BOOM.

 

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