Mommy Blogs

I really like reading mommy blogs. I enjoy seeing what other kids Ander's age are doing, and I like knowing I'm facing similiar situations as others and seeing how they are facing them.

But I am noticing a real lack of moms like me in Bloghood. I'm a strong disciplinarian, a working mom, and I focus on practical considerations (like how to get Ander to clean his room) more than other moms who are out there blogging.

I think I sort of understand the trend. Strong disciplinarians, for the most part, don't spend a lot of time thinking about discipline. They expect obedience, and that is that. No need to blog about it. But I have a Master's degree in education, and for what it's worth, I think about discipline techniques all the time. I want Ander to learn how to act, and not just to obey. But it leaves me pretty alone in the blogosphere, because others don't stop and think about these things all day long. Or if they do, they don't write about it. They are focused on getting through the day without a tantrum (understandably), and I am focused on the choices Ander will make when he is sixteen (mostly because of my training and education).

Working moms, obviously, have less time to blog.

And most moms, nah - most people, are more into the emotional connection of parenting than I am. They breastfeed, find relaxation, and blog about the wonderful connection with their babies. I think, how can I feed the baby more efficiently so I can do it less. :/ They play with their babies and find it peaceful and blog about it. I think, is an hour enough playtime. Let's work on our ABC's. Or play the color game. How can I possibly give him all the information he needs to know before he turns 18? It's not that parenting isn't emotional for me. It's the most emotional thing I've ever done. It's that, for me, blogging is not usually about the emotion. It's about finding ways to deal with the practicalities of parenting and finding out how others deal.

I've been reading lots of mom blogs, and while the titles hint at such wonderful content (ie. Diary of a Playgroup Dropout, which is a great blog, but doesn't help me with practicalities), most of the content is about homeschooling (something I would only do in a very specific situation, such as if I was working for the State Department and traveling to foreign countries constantly), or cloth diapering (something I would likely only do if I had a full-time nanny and maid, and then only while nanny was in charge, like during the work day {blushing at own laziness} - totally because I'm lazy, since the environment impact really appeals to me), or baby-wearing (something I minimize for practicalities sake and to encourage independence, which is definitely not a popular way to parent right now).

Where's the "This Is How We Get Ready for Daycare in Ten Minutes or Less" blog? Or the "Preparing Healthy Snacks for Playdates"? Or the "List of Exercise With Your Baby DVDs"? I guess I should write those, huh? :) I'd love to hear that from others, and that just isn't what they talk about. And when I do talk about such things on my blgo, I always get a ton of sympathetic, "oh, Kristy, are you struggling/okay" comments, which are sweet, but miss the point. I'm THINKING about these things. Even if they aren't cool to think about.

I'm really thinking about writing a book. About the practicalities of parenting. If I just spent an hour or two a day writing...I have so much to say. And you might not be able to tell from my blog writing, which is like a stream of conscienceness, but I actually can write a grammatically correct sentence. It's sort of a requirement for being a lawyer.

Etcetera.