I just finished reading two blog posts by MamaJenn (post#1) (post#2) that made me do a little thinking. She found herself questioning whether she was blogging for valid reasons or simply to impress her blog readers.
I read the post this morning before the day got busy - the boys & I were taking a walk, running errands in town, eating lunch, and reading naptime stories. Through it all, I had that post in my mind.
Am I sure that I am blogging for valid reasons? I do sometimes grab the camera simply because I know it will make for a cute story on the blog. Is that wrong? Are my posts bragging about being an amazing mommy? Knowing that I have to link up each week for Tot School does motivate me to keep the activities going each week, but am I doing these activities with Alex simply to impress others? I really do enjoy getting comments from readers. Is that a bad thing? Do these things that mean I am blogging for the wrong reasons? If it does, then my blog should return to private for only our immediate family to view.
Now that the boys are napping, I returned to the very first post I wrote on this blog, and here’s what I wrote:
| This blog is intended to be a journal of Alex's life. When Keith & I were going through marriage counseling with Dave, he told us how he & Karen have kept a written journal of their marriage/family from Day One. Their kids just love to look back through the journals and read the story of their family. I'd love for Alex & any future children to be able to do the same thing. So, while you may enjoy reading this & seeing Alex grow, this is also our own personal family journal. Knowing that you're reading it is just a way to hold myself accountable to keep it updated regularly. Thanks for caring & for being a part of our lives! |
I still agree with what I wrote two years ago. After thinking on that for a while, I came to the conclusion that I am blogging for the right reasons. The main purpose of this blog is still the same – to record our family’s story.
- I would still grab my camera all the time, even if I wasn’t blogging. (Just ask Keith, ha ha!) I just wouldn’t get the pictures into a paper scrapbook, because I’m a terrible procrastinator when it comes to “real” scrapbooking. So, blogging my stories is the equivalent of keeping a scrapbook.
- I may have fun with my boys, but I am DEFINITELY not an awesome mama. I make mistakes every day. I do selfish things every day. My house could be cleaner, I could spend more time actively playing with Alex, the list goes on. My blog definitely is not for bragging. That’s why I try to post about our messes and mistakes!
- Loving the comments is not a bad thing; it’s nice to know that people enjoy the blog. As long as I don’t find myself caught up in blogging just to get comments, there’s no harm in it.
- I do not do any Tot School activities to impress people. I do things that Alex will enjoy, and I do things that I find fun for me, too. If others find them fun or useful, that’s a GREAT side benefit! I love when I find good Tot School activities on other people’s blogs, so posting my own ideas here might be helpful to other readers. (Well, it’s true that posting Tot School does keep me accountable, so maybe there’s a bit of a motive to it… *Ü*)
Why am I posting this? I guess just so that my kids will someday know that this blog is mama’s way of recording our family events, sharing them with family and friends, and my own little “hobby” to enjoy while they are napping :)