EDITOR'S NOTEBOOK: Happy Birthday, Waukee Patch!

Wow, where do I even begin?

First of all, happy birthday Waukee Patch! On Thursday, this little website will turn 1 and I'm so insanely proud of how far we've come together. Honestly, I could never have imagined we'd end up anywhere near where we are today.

See, until the time I was hired to work for Patch, I was just a stay-at-home mom of three who occasionally wrote an article or two while juggling naptimes, playdates and the usual rigmarole of being a housewife. It was fine, I don't regret a minute of the five years I stayed at home with the kids but I wanted something more. I wanted a challenge. 

That challenge presented itself in April last year when a good friend called to tell me that Patch was moving into Iowa. He said, "They're hiring editors." I said, "Where do I sign up?"

I'll be honest, I knew very little about Patch. I knew it was community news, delivered entirely online. I knew that it would allow me to work from home for the community I already lived in. What I didn't know, I learned at training and on the job. It felt like a whirlwind.

I remember my first days on the job. I won't lie - they were tough. I felt like an intruder as I walked into some of the businesses and public offices to introduce myself. There was skepticism, of course. I was, after all, the new kid in town.

After a few weeks on the job, I started to get to know people and they, me. One of the first people I sat down to interview was Waukee Mayor Bill Peard. He didn't know me from from the Tooth Fairy but he was gracious with his conversation and he told me so much about the city that I never knew. I wanted to know more.

Just look at where we are just one year later. It's crazy. More than 2,300 articles, 400 plus blog posts and other miscellaneous events and calendar items have been published here. And it's new every day. No kidding.

I'd be remiss if I didn't say thank you for all the support from you, the readers, over the past 12 months. I seriously couldn't do this without you.

I hope you'll join me this Friday, Aug. 3 at Mickey's Irish Pub for Waukee Patch's first birthday celebration. We'll have snacks, cake, Patch swag, you know, everything that makes a party. The action begins at 5 p.m.

The rest of the week, I'll be posting a few of my favorite Top 5 lists, in celebration of our first birthday. I hope you enjoy them.

So, please join me in wishing Waukee Patch a very happy birthday and thanks, all of you, for your continued support and encouragement. I couldn't have asked for a better Patch town or better Patch people.