Court records and Summer Pardi’s recent social media posts provide a clearer picture of the events leading up to the public announcement of her divorce from Jon Pardi. Continue reading…The Boot – Country Music News, Music Videos and Songs
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It’s quite surreal to type that WPBeginner turns 17 years old today!
I’m incredibly grateful to have the support of such an amazing community of website owners, small businesses, and web professionals. YOU are the best part of WPBeginner!
Like every year, I will take a few minutes to share all the major things that are happening in the business as well as my personal life.
But more importantly, to celebrate this big milestone, we’re doing a HUGE birthday giveaway with over $10,000+ in prizes!
Since this is a long article, you can easily skip to the section you’re most interested in:
My Personal Updates
If you’re new here, you might not know that I have been using WordPress since I was 16 years old, and I started WPBeginner in 2009 when I was in college at age 19.
Ever since then, WordPress community has played a huge role both in my life as well as my family’s life.
My son, Solomon is now 9 years old, and our baby girl, Aliyah, was born 6 months ago. Parenting is one of the wonderful gifts of life. We recently restarted our travels and took a trip to Mexico as well as Italy. I’ll be sharing more about these trips later in the year when I do my annual year end reviews.
If you didn’t get a chance to read my 2025 recap, I highly recommend checking it because I shared lessons learned from last year.
WPBeginner Updates
This year, Google’s algorithm updates and the rapidly changing A.I. landscape continued to impact our traffic.
The good news is that we’re fortunate to have an incredible community of readers and subscribers, and that’s what matters MOST.
Since starting WPBeginner, my focus has always been on creating helpful tutorials and resources for WordPress beginners, and that will never change. We’re already adapting how we create and share content for this new era, and we’re excited about what’s ahead.
I’m truly grateful for everything we’ve accomplished together this year.
As always, none of this would be possible without your continued support and trust. THANK YOU for being part of our journey!
Here are some of the big updates that happened on WPBeginner in the last 12 months:
1. New Product Launches
This past year, our team put their energy into building. Here are the new products we launched to help you get more done on WordPress:
- We launched WPVibe, a WordPress MCP server that lets your favorite AI tool, like Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor, manage your WordPress site directly. Our announcement video went viral on X and got over 440k views.
- We released ActiveLayer, an AI-powered spam protection tool that stops form, comment, and registration spam server-side in milliseconds without CAPTCHAs or puzzles. Here’s the full background story.
- We launched Universally, an AI website translation tool that automatically translates your site into 110+ languages in minutes without hiring professional translators. Here’s the full background story.
- My team at Uncanny Automator released Uncanny Agent, the first true AI assistant built natively for WordPress. You can ask any questions about your site or tell it what you need done…and it takes care of it for you. Here’s the full background story.
- We launched WPChat, a live-chat widget that lets you convert your visitors into paying customers by connecting them on WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, and Telegram. Here’s the full background story.
- MemberPress, one of my Growth Fund brands, launched the MemberPress AppKit addon. It transforms your membership site into a fully branded iOS and Android app. Here’s the full background story.
- My team at WPForms released the Quiz Addon. It lets you build interactive quizzes and graded assessments right inside the form builder you’re already familiar with. Here’s the full background story.
- My team at Duplicator released WP Media Cleanup, which enables you to reclaim disk space by identifying unused media files and removing them quickly and easily. Here’s the full background story.
- We released WPFilters, which helps you easily add Amazon-style search filters to your site and make your content easily discoverable. Here’s the full background story.
I’m really proud of what our team has built this year, and it’s amazing to see the impact these products are making across the WordPress ecosystem and the larger open web.
Want me to invest in your business? Learn more about the WPBeginner Growth Fund.
2. WPBeginner Workshop: Free Live Training
Our WPBeginner Workshop is going strong, and this year, we hosted workshops every month covering WordPress fundamentals, AI tips, privacy compliance, and much more.
Every workshop is led by our own team at WPBeginner, sharing the real-world lessons we learn every day. At the end of each session, we also hold a live Q&A where attendees get their WordPress questions answered in real time.
Best of all, it’s totally free to attend!
All you need to do is join our newsletter to stay up to date.
3. Broader Company Updates
WPBeginner is funded 100% through the support of our readers like you.
My various companies develop premium WordPress plugins to help you grow your website. These plugins are built with the same beginner-friendly approach you know and love from WPBeginner, and a large number of our product & feature ideas come from your feedback & suggestions.
When you buy a license for any of my premium plugins, you’re not only helping make your website better, but you’re also helping support WPBeginner and our mission.
My company, Awesome Motive, has over 300+ team members across the world, and all of us are committed to help you build a better website!
Here’s a list of our plugins that you should check out. Collectively, they’re being used on over 30 million websites. Your support means a lot to us whether you use the free version or purchase a premium license – we are here to serve.
- OptinMonster: Powerful conversion optimization software that helps convert abandoning visitors into subscribers & customers. Download for free
- WPForms: Drag & drop + AI form builder for WordPress. Create any type form with ease. Trusted by 5 million+ sites. Download for free
- Duplicator: Leading WordPress Backup and migration plugin. Protect your website with reliable backups. Download for free
- AIOSEO: The original and most powerful WordPress SEO plugin used by 3 million+ sites (now with AI). Download for free
- MonsterInsights: The most popular Google Analytics plugin that helps you make data-driven decisions. Download for free
- WP Mail SMTP: The #1 plugin that ensures your emails arrive safely in the recipient’s inbox, and not in the spam folder. Download for free
- WPConsent: Self-hosted privacy compliance & cookie banner plugin for WordPress. Trusted by 100k+ websites. Download for free
- SeedProd: The ultimate drag and drop website builder to create custom WordPress themes and landing pages. Download for free
- Smash Balloon: Seamlessly integrate your social media feeds with WordPress. Used by 1.75 million websites. Download for free
- PushEngage: Powerful push notification software. Add a new traffic & revenue channel to your site. Download for free
- SearchWP: SearchWP lets you customize WordPress search form and search results. Trusted by 50,000+ websites.
- Easy Digital Downloads: Top rated WordPress plugin for easily selling digital products and subscriptions. Download for free
- AffiliateWP: Launch your own self-hosted affiliate program in minutes to grow your eCommerce revenue.
- WP Simple Pay: Accept payments online without a shopping cart. Supports credit cards, ACH bank debit, Google Pay, Apple Pay, etc. Download for free
- Sugar Calendar: Powerful event calendar management plugin built for churches, conferences, and more. Download for free
- WP Charitable: WordPress donation and fundraising plugin that helps you raise more money. Trusted by 10,000+ non-profit orgs. Download for free
- WPCode: Add custom code to your site without editing your theme files. It can replace dozens of existing WordPress plugins. Download for free
- Thrive Themes: A powerful suite of conversion-focused tools that can transform your website into an online business platform.
- WPVibe: Connect Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor to your WordPress site and manage posts, media, themes, and more using plain English. Download for free
- BuddyBoss: Create a private community with social networking groups, forum discussions, online courses, and more.
- Uncanny Automator: The #1 no-code automation plugin for WordPress. Create powerful workflows to save time. Download for free
- Universally: Translate your website content into 110+ languages in minutes without hiring a professional translator. Download for free
- ActiveLayer: An AI-powered anti-spam service designed to protect WordPress forms and comments without CAPTCHA. Download for free
- Envira Gallery: Create beautiful photo and video galleries with this easy-to-use drag-and-drop gallery builder. Download for free
- Sydney: A great all-purpose free WordPress theme, used by over 100,000 websites. Download for free
- Botiga: A lightweight WooCommerce theme built for optimal performance while boosting conversions. Download for free
- aThemes Merchant: An all-in-one WooCommerce growth tool that lets you boost revenue, AOV, and retain customers. Download for free
WPBeginner 17th Birthday Giveaway
To celebrate the 17th birthday of WPBeginner, we’re running a HUGE giveaway!
We are giving away premium plugin licenses worth over $10,000 to 39 lucky winners.
So, what kind of goodies are we giving away? Here’s the complete list:
10 licenses of Universally, 5 licenses of Uncanny Agent, and 3 licenses each of the following products: WPConsent, ActiveLayer, AIOSEO, WPVibe, SeedProd, Duplicator, WPChat, and Sydney theme.
Thank You, Everyone
I want to say thank you to everyone who has supported us in this journey. I really do appreciate all of your retweets, personal emails, content suggestions, and the interactions at the events.
I also want to say special thank you to everyone who’s using our plugins because that enables us to keep bringing more free tutorials to WPBeginner.
You all are AMAZING and without you, there is no WPBeginner.
I look forward to another solid year ahead of us.
Syed Balkhi
Founder of WPBeginner
The post WPBeginner Turns 17 Years Old – We’re Doing a Giveaway ($10,000 in Prizes) first appeared on WPBeginner.
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SEATTLE — Surrounded by his U.S. men’s national team players, Mauricio Pochettino went right down the middle. On the eve of America’s 250th birthday, the Argentine-born coach celebrated America’s pastime by throwing out the first pitch at the Seattle Mariners game. The sold-out crowd, many wearing red-and-white striped USA soccer jerseys, cheered for both their coach and their team. “That sort of stuff can only happen in America,” a smiling Folarin Balogun said earlier on Friday. The U.S. squad has become a source of national pride as Americans gather to celebrate the Fourth of July. Its run so far at this World Cup on home soil — with Belgium waiting in the round of 16 here on Monday — has given supporters across the country something to rally around, a welcome contrast to the often-divisive news cycle. From fans all over the world learning about Waffle House and ranch dressing, to Scotland’s Tartan Army taking over Boston, to Pochettino joining his players in singing “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” this tournament has delivered plenty of memorable moments. “It’s a place that is exactly as advertised in a lot of ways — it’s free, it’s beautiful, the people are nice and kind,” U.S. goalkeeper Matt Turner told a small group of reporters after the victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina. “Of course, everywhere you go in the world, there are scary stories. But to actually have seen some people having the time of their lives in our country, it’s been amazing. “People are always saying, ‘What do you want from this World Cup?’ And I just say I want us to be gracious hosts and good stewards to people who come to the United States and really feel our culture, and I want us to welcome these people with open arms. I think we’ve done a great job. Lifelong memories for a lot of people.” There were questions entering this tournament about how Americans would receive the World Cup and whether soccer would capture everyone’s attention. The long-term impact won’t be known for years — advancing to the quarterfinals or further will help. But the short-term one is undeniable. Hotel guests in Seattle gathered in a lobby to watch Egypt outlast Australia in a penalty shootout. Dallas police officers greeted Norway by performing the “Viking Row” on the airport tarmac. Social media erupted as Cape Verde pushed defending champion Argentina to the brink of penalties. The U.S. players have felt that energy throughout the tournament and want to channel it on the field. “The fact that it’s here on our shores, the fan passion is coming to light, we’re creating our own new sort of things with ‘Country Roads’ after the game — it’s like the college football scene mixing with the U.S. [Soccer] scene,” Turner said. “And what I’ve loved about it is that it’s not like we’re trying to be that European culture. We’re not saying we need to chant like the English chant, or chant like the Germans chant. We’re taking on our own traditions and cultures, and I think that’s the way it should be. We really needed this tournament in order to find our identity alongside our fans.” Even Pochettino — who played with Diego Maradona and coached at Tottenham, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea — is having a ball. He’s become a fan of country music, specifically Ella Langley, as well as Teddy Swims. He’s leading crowds in “U-S-A” cheers and learning new words, too. “Sometimes someone will say something to him in a meeting, and it sounds super American slang, and he’s like, ‘Huh?’” Christian Pulisic joked earlier in the tournament. “And I just find it so funny. But it feels like he’s really in tune with it. Like, I’m in his office yesterday, and he’s listening to country music, and it’s just funny to see. But then he also brings his Argentinian culture and the staff and shows us things from there. It’s a unique bond with the group for sure.” Pochettino’s now-famous “Why not us?” mantra has seeped into the team, reflecting a belief that fits within the American sporting identity. “We’re American, we don’t take s—,” Sebastian Berhalter said a few weeks ago when asked what ideals Pochettino has brought to the group. “Even though he’s Argentinian, he has that mindset of like, ‘Look, this is what we do, and this is who we are, and this is what America is about.’ I think even from an outside perspective, he showed us Americans what we’re about, and he really drills that into us.” A win against Belgium on Monday would be historic, marking the first time the U.S. has ever won two knockout games at a World Cup. The program’s best finish in the modern era was the quarterfinals in 2002. This team embraces the responsibility of keeping this journey going. “I think it’s exciting,” Tyler Adams told reporters Friday ahead of training. “I think as a team, we want to leave our mark on the game and a legacy behind. I want it to be more than just what this moment has created and the hype around it. If we’re talking about the team and the success they’ve had two years from now, then we’ve done something right. “We want to have success, and we know the further that we go, the more success we’re going to have and the growth of the game is going to grow.”Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
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