Make it a dozen. Last weekend I celebrated my 12th anniversary of Don’t Blink. For those itching to guess my age, I can now say that I have authored my blog for exactly a third of my life. During that span, I have written more than 2,340 posts.

I have authored “Don’t Blink” for 12 years…way before these children were born! (thanks to Sloan for making her own handmade sign to commemorate the anniversary).

Just a quick history lesson: My blog launched as a Blogger site back in 2011. After a year of writing on that free platform, I decided to “get serious.” During a summer night in 2012, my friend and I bellied up at our favorite college bar so we could use the establishment’s free internet. With drinks in hand, he set me up on WordPress and we purchased my current domain name (brentreser.com).

So while the destination to Don’t Blink has been the same for most of its existence, the primary goal has not. I started blogging as a cocky young 20-something who wanted to spout off his “insightful” hot takes. As my ego lessened (but just a bit) I started writing more to maintain a personal brand, strategically grow my digital footprint, and increase my professional prospects. These days, I am no longer writing solely for me. Rather, I put forth such an effort with this blog to chronicle memories. My posts have become dramatically more family-centered over the last several years. It is less about my opinion and more about lifestyle. My hope is that my writings will forever remind my family about these precious years and be something that my children will value decades down the road.

Call it perspective, I guess.

Cheers to 12 years of blogging, indeed (and cheers to my wife’s artistic skills).

I questioned the sustainability of this blog during my past several major life events, especially when I got married and when my children were born. But I have continued to write. And at this current point in my existence, I don’t see anything—including a major lack of sleep from writing late at night and early in the morning—preventing me from publishing blog posts. Besides, I just paid my annual hosting dues so you are stuck with me for at least another year.

Thank you to everyone who chooses to hang around. I have never suffered from a lack of reader support and for that I am grateful. For all my posts about silly TikTok trends and nerdy food reviews, I hope that every now and then I publish something that actually resonates with you. Again, thank you. Don’t Blink.