Why blogging?

 

I have been slowly telling friends and family that I have been writing a blog- it's a bit of a weird concept. Hey! Come and read all about my funny little life! pry into my thoughts! It's interesting, I promise!! It's kind of like writing a journal and then wanting people to read it. 

Most people have been super enthusiastic ( although they comment in person instead of on the blog! Hint hint Amazing Sister....) Well, at least they have only said nice things to my face, who knows what they really think. I came across a funny situation the other day where my sister in law was having a wee rant about why on earth you would want to read someone else's blog, not knowing I had recently begun mine- cue red faces from both of us! 

I have been reading other people's blogs for a while now- you can see some of my faves in the gadget column to your right if you are on the full web version. I find it really interesting reading into other people's lives and especially people who are in similar situations to me- Kiwi mums, some of who are crafty, some who tell funny stories about their kids, some who review products and some who seem to be able to put into words exactly how I feel. I have found that reading blogs is like when you join a new coffee group- you lurk in the background for a while before making a few comments and hoping that someone will reply!  I find myself reading blogs when I can't sleep, when I am having a coffee or when Miss Muffet is happily playing independently. Most posts are short and you can read them in one sitting- no story lines and characters to remember for this sleep deprived Mumma! 

After reading blogs for about a year, the idea of starting my own emerged. I found that I would think about things- usually at stupid times like 2am, and clearly they were genius so I wanted to share them. Social etiquette deems calling people or texting at that hour kind of rude so writing them down serves to get my thoughts out of my head so they can stop whirling round and round and I can focus on other things- like remembering to buy rubbish bags. 

A bonus is that my blog serves as a way of almost scrapbooking some of my family's moments- I never get around to printing photos and I worry that I will forget the funny things that happen so my blog acts as a kind of time capsule as well.

I read a post by Happy Mum Happy Child the other day, which was coincidentally about starting a blog. She wrote about making sure you write for yourself and having your own voice instead of for an audience, especially when your blog is so new. I find it hard to manage my expectations about who will read what I write- I figure when it comes down to it, you write because you have something to say, and you want someone to hear it .