I have an announcement.

I think this is my first actual announcement for the blog, ever. Kinda feels like a big deal. Like, I actually have readers to announce things to. I can't believe it.

As this is my first announcement, I'm going to keep the suspense going just a bit longer…...sorry.

In June of 2019, I had the littlest baby idea of starting a blog. Many of you know this already, but for those of you who are new, here's the backstory on Hope For The Hot Mess. I had no idea how to even begin a blog, or if I would be able to do it. It seemed very scary at the time, and I hadn't written in years, but I wanted a new hobby and this is what was laid on my heart.

Naturally, before you can start a blog, you need a name. It was probably the hardest part, because I had no content yet and had no idea if I could even write something decent once a month, much less every week.

After weeks of thinking on it, I chose Hope for the Hot Mess, because I wanted to lift spirits. I wanted to encourage others, and share with them what was on my heart. And I am a hot mess. I was a brand new wife, and was just starting to become a grown up (which I don't think will ever truly happen, but here we are). I wanted others to know that it's okay to be a human disaster sometimes, and that there is always hope.

It's been a wonderful two years of Hope for the Hot Mess. I've grown and changed and learned so much, and I've also received more love and support than I ever thought possible. I honestly thought it would be a huge deal if 5 people read my blog, and now I have a subscriber list over ten times that long. I'm still shocked and humbled that you subscribe and read along every week with me.

Every so often, I see one of you and you mention my blog and my little heart bursts when you tell me how much you enjoy it. What's funny, is that in the last six months (like, since I began working on this shift), I've received almost the same feedback from a lot of sources. I'll even tell you what it is.

"Reading your blog is like hanging out with you ."

"Every Thursday, its like I get to have coffee or breakfast with my friend."

"I can hear your voice in my head when I read your blog."

Friends, I cannot express to you how much these words mean to me. They are EVERYTHING when it comes to this blog, this little piece of me. I'm seriously crying a little bit right now as I type.

This feedback is what really sealed the deal on my decision for a change.

Because the truth is, that’s my dream for the blog - to be your friend. Many of us are friends already, and I want to show up for each and every one of you, not as a hot mess or someone who's just figuring out life (although, sometimes I am both of those things). I want to be a friend. Someone you can talk to, someone who shares silly stories, and shares her life with you. I want to tell you about the new recipe I tried, and the thing God is telling me right now. I want to share with you the highs and the lows, and I want to be here as your friend. The one sitting at your kitchen table with a cup of coffee in hand. That's me, Bekah.

So, I've decided to change the name of the blog. It becomes official in August.

For those of you who subscribe and receive my emails every Thursday, the new name will be familiar. The new name feels so right to me, and that’s because it is how I have signed my emails every week for quite some time now.

Because I'm here as your friend, always. No matter what. That's what friends do.

This change is a little bit scary for me, because of silly reasons, like my Google ranking and my internet visibility, but change is a good thing. Change means growth.

I want the blog to grow, just as I've grown by writing it.

It's still small, and it's still just me, doing what I love to do.

Just with a new name.

And here it is…

Always, Bekah

*Next week, my subscribers will get a sneak peek of the new logo, so if you want in on that action, you can subscribe here. (Please subscribe, it's like my favorite thing.)

“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” 1 Peter 4:8-10

“The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt him.” Exodus 15:2