Eight Years and You’re Still Reading!

Way back in November 2005, I was a mom to one 14 month old girl. Due to work issues, I had switched to a part-time job just so our daughter wasn’t spending her entire time in daycare while we worked. I didn’t have a lot of friends with children, and most of the ones who did lived out of town.

It was because of this that I found support and community in online groups and blogs, nearly from the day she was born. My virtual moms groups helped me get through the early days of parenting without a breakdown. It was through reading the stories that others shared online that I learned important things like Hey, my kid drools like a fountain, too, it’s normal! and Colic gets to the best of us. I’ve felt like abandoning my baby in a cornfield, too. It’s fine as long as we don’t act on it.

The online moms (and a few dads) that I visited each week shared their stories with the world, and I was one of the new parents benefiting from their experience and their willingness to be candid and open in sharing their lives. They were my lifeline.

I was already documenting my life as a new mom online, only not in such a public way. I had a LiveJournal account, that I had opened years before 2005, and used it to write the everyday moments I was experiencing as a mom. But most of our friends weren’t parents, so there wasn’t much advice to be had in that small corner of the internet.

So on this day, eight years ago, I took a deep breath and started my own blog. I had to try a few different blog names before I found one that wasn’t already taken.

One of the earlier headers for my site, when Cordy was still the solo leading lady.

I made the decision to share my story for all. Of course, I figured “all” would be primarily my friends and family, and perhaps a few of the mom friends I had made online. Never did I guess that so many people would come to visit this site just to read about our life! But they have, and I truly appreciate those who stop by and take an interest in my story. Some of it is to help others know that they’re not alone in whatever funny, sad, heartwarming, difficult moments they’re going through, some of it is purely for discussion with the community or getting advice from others, some of it is sponsored to help with the costs of keeping the lights on (but always on topics I’m genuinely interested in).

And some of it is purely for me.  My space to let my thoughts be free on whatever topic is affecting me at that moment, or a way to remember certain milestones or events with Cordy and Mira. The topics have changed as they’ve grown older, and will likely continue to change and morph as we all grow and develop new interests. That’s the fun part of growing – you never stay the same, and growing doesn’t stop when you reach adulthood. In that same sense, this blog is alive and growing along with us, testing out new adventures and trying new things. It’s exciting.

Eight years ago, I could build a website in HTML, but my skills in blog design and coding were lousy. I’ve improved so much since then and even made my own transition from Blogger to WordPress without help, now helping others with basic code issues and changes. In those eight years, I also had a second child, got an autism diagnosis for my first child, picked up a degree and license in nursing, adopted a dog, went back into working in a technical field, where I first started, and celebrated ten years of marriage. It hasn’t been the most easy path, but it’s my path and, like many folks who have had a hard few years, I’ll continue doing the best I can to learn and grow from it.

I’m not sure if I’ll keep the name A Mommy Story forever, since I’m starting to outgrow the label of “mommy” with my own kids, but it’ll continue to be with me for the time being. Or at least until I can decide which name to switch to from the dozen or so domain names I have saved up. I may have a hoarding problem.

But what I appreciate the most about this blog is the community of friends and colleagues I’ve gained as a result. It’s not just a few virtual mom friends. I’ve met many of you in person now, chatted with others in long email threads and text chat, and still keep widening my circle of smart, talented people I’m proud to know. (And for some of you, work with!) I’m not a famous blogger with hundreds of thousands of pageviews each day (more like low hundreds only on an average day), but the people I’ve met as a result of this little blog are worth far more to me than fame.

Today’s my eight year anniversary of starting this blog, and I’d like to just say thank you for reading my often long, ADD-disorganized, not-always-eloquent thoughts. That anyone comes back repeatedly to read what I write (aside from Aaron, who I’m pretty sure is required to under the terms of our marriage vows) is a gift to me. I hope I’ll continue to write things you want to read, and that you’ll grow along with me.