Thursday, May 26, 2011

For What It's Worth... I am not a fan of The Mommy Blog

Now to clarify, by "The Mommy Blog" I do not mean the blogs people keep that contain pictures and stories of their children as they get older.  I think of those as an appropriate way to chronicle a family as it grows, and in most cases the audiences for those are modest - limited to friends and family.  No, the blogs I am talking about are like the 'mega-churches' of the blog world.  They offer 'salvation' for the mother of today, and in return they ask for your attention, your money, and that you bring along a friend.  In my travels through the Internet, I have come across several variations on "The Mommy Blog".  Each has its own spin, but none of them speak to me.

"The Advertisemom Blog"
This is a version of "The Mommy Blog" in which there is so much blatant advertising that it is hard to discern where to even look for a blog post.  Instead, the reader is inundated with Freebee's! Giveaways! and Advertisements Disguised as Blog Posts!

"The Tips for Moms from Moms Blog"
These blogs are where I've discovered you can go to find mothers eager to share the obvious.  In them you will find revelations such as "sunscreen is a good thing to have on hand in the summertime", or "you may want to bring toys with you on a long car ride", or "freezing juice makes popcicles".  While I can appreciate a mother's need to share with other mothers, the blogs I have come across seem to contain very little helpful information.

"The Mommy in the Trenches Blog"
This is the one that I am most opposed to.  This is the blog of the mother that bemoans the children driving her crazy, blames her every shortcoming on being a mom, begs for a cocktail, and cheers when mommy finally gets a break.  I'm not buying it.  Certainly there are hard days, and of course kids don't always behave, but I don't buy the 'desperate situation' of these women.  I realize that every scenario is different (and yes, everyone deserves some time to themselves) but as a mother, I usually crave more time with my child - not less.  I don't for one second think of that child as a burden, and am not willing to blame my shortcomings (from not always keeping a clean house to forgetting to remember someone's birthday) on them.  And, in the future, I would never want my child to read a blog that ever insinuated I thought so.

And finally I wonder...when do we pass the plate to give credit to the dads?

2 comments:

  1. Adding to the last blog variety, I 100% agree, but I am inundated via Facebook. I have one particular facebook friend with two kids under two, and a 3rd on the way...she is CONSTANTLY b!tching about how stressful her life is, the terrors of toddlers while dealing with morning sickness... It is a rarity to see something positive posted. Honestly, if you hate it so much stop having kids. Period.

    There is a reason I stopped looking at "mommy" blogs...they overwhelmed me, and I basically ran out of time to read them!

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  2. Hey, don't forget the supermoms blogs. "Today I got my Starbucks while power walking with the most influential moms in the city, all while my youngest learned German, and my oldest got pre-pre-accepted into the best school in the state. Did I mention how rough my day was when the Mercedes broke down so I had to risk the leather interior of my hybrid to get my children to their nanny so the super weekend getaway could start!"

    That makes me want to start punching.

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