The time has come for this blog to give self-hosting a try.

Those of you who have been with me since the beginning of this crazy blogging experiment will remember I told you we’d overcome blogging together. Well, sharpen your pencils. School’s in session.

I adore WordPress; it will remain my blogging platform. But now instead of WordPress.com hosting and in a way owning my blog, I’ll pay a company called Bluehost $6.95 a month to host it for me on WordPress.org.

A WordPress Happiness Engineer will assist us starting at 5 a.m. tomorrow (eek!) in a 24-hour Guided Transfer process. Our engineer’s name is Hew. He’ll move everyday epistle from this site to the new, self-hosted site.

Everyone, please say hello to Hew in the comments. 

Tell Hew how important it is to you that nothing be lost in the transfer and that he has us up and running in no time flat. We wouldn’t want an unhappy blogger girl, now would we?

A few other things you might like to know:

1. The Guided Transfer is “transparent” to readers. I think that means you won’t feel a thing. Please let me know if anything seems out of the ordinary—apart from the regular out-of-the-ordinary you’ve come to expect here.

2. Parting is such sweet sorrow. I’m thankful for WordPress.com and recommend it to anyone who wants to start a blog. WordPress.com gave me the chance to write and a beautiful place to do it for free. It’s with much deliberation (months and months of it, ask my husband!) I make this transition.

3. The widgets made me do it. I’m excited to try self-hosting because there is much to learn and be gained—like additional widgets. Widgets are those cool plug-ins that will allow us to do all sorts of cool plug-in things. Self-hosting will give me access to Google Analytics and custom themes. I’ll have more choices if ever I acquire sponsors, allow advertising again, or create something to sell.

I can’t wait to test drive all the bells and whistles. But first we have to make it through the Guided Transfer in one piece.

Notice that Bluehost rhymes with Holy Ghost, another name for the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity. Reminds me of God’s care in all circumstances.

Calm me, Lord. Bless Hew as he works. Bless Bluehost as they do whatever it is they do. Go before this process and make ready the widgets. Amen.

See you on the other side.

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. Romans 8:26 NIV

Dare You to Move by Switchfoot.

Please give your comment love to our new friend and Happiness Engineer Hew.