me: I don’t really think of myself as a mommy blogger.Scott: What are you talking about? You have a drawing of you and the kids in your blog header. Of course you’re a mommy blogger.
me: But I think I’m more than just a mommy blogger. I mean, I right about depression, and autism and quilting too…
Scott: What’s so bad about being labeled a mommy blogger anyway? It’s the "in" thing right now.
me: Harrumph.
I’m not sure why I take issue with the label “mommy blogger”. Perhaps it is because I feel like there is something dismissive about it. It’s a term that casts a wide net that supposedly captures all women bloggers who happen to have children. I feel like the term implies that all I do is talk about having children and about being a “mommy”. Maybe this really goes deeper though. The root of this is that as a society, we undervalue the role of the mother. Calling an adult woman a “mommy”, adult to adult, is completely condescending. I can’t imagine being in a meeting at work and having someone say “well Katrina, since you’re a mommy, why don’t you weigh in on this issue”. Say what? Not cool. Also, men who blog, and also happen to have kids, aren’t called “daddy bloggers”. They are just bloggers. Nobody would call Drew Magary a “daddy blogger”, but he writes about his kids all the time.
I consider myself a:
- mental health blogger
- autism blogger
- quilt blogger
- social media blogger
- travel blogger
- reality tv blogger
- live blogger
- humour blogger
- weight loss blogger
- consumer blogger
- feminist blogger
- procreating blogger
How do all of those things roll up into the catch-all term “mommy blogger”?
Warning: Kat and I both have a twisted sense of humor and think Drew Magary is a hilarious writer. However, many people find him crude and misogynistic. Follow that link and read his stuff only if you're not easily offended.
ReplyDeleteScott
Kat: Perhaps this mommy label comes from what people blog ABOUT. There are not many dudes who solely blog about their kids. When I first started blogging, everyone thought it was Becca who was writing. When I brought Alanna in for testing the staff assumed if Dad couldn't calm her down, then Mom must have the "touch". It's pervasive - society says men don't know how to take care of children. There are only two other guys I know who blog on autism, and with all the respect due them, they often focus on the bigger picture rather than the day to day I see on many women's blogs (I too am guilty of this).
ReplyDeleteMost women's blogs are not about issues, technology, sports, or ideas. They are about relationships, and often their kids. Hence the mommy blog term. Sorry. FWIW, if I want to learn about quilting I can also come here (note: I would rather walk barefoot over broken glass watching Sense and Sensibility than quilt).
@Scott: If you have that kind of humour you may enjoy - http://maddox.xmission.com/ ... but warning, this guy is very crude, you have to like this kind of thing.
Totally off topic but I have to ask what kind and colour of lipstick are you wearing - have admired it over many posts.
ReplyDeleteI wondered why Scott looked familiar - think we may have gone to the same high school.
@Anon - I'm not 100% sure, but I think it's Covergirl outlast lipstain 450 topped off with Estee Lauder High Gloss lip gloss in #10 Rose.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah, and Scott went to high school in Burlington, so that may help you figure out if you know him or not ;-)
ReplyDeleteperhaps the annoyance is with being "just a mommy blogger" - because nowadays being just a mommy is ocnsidered monotonous and boring.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy everything you write because you are an honest-real-life-blogger.
Maybe because 'mommy' is not who you are. It's just one of the things you do. I completely empathize with your original post and would have issues with being labeled that as well.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't take offence to being called a mommy blogger. There's nothing to be ashamed of. Being a mommy is a serious role and motherhood is an important topic that permeates many of the other blogger labels you have listed.
ReplyDeleteM.M. Robinson - I think he was a year older - gotta love yearbooks ;0)
ReplyDeleteI consider you a blogger, period. The fact that I don't have kids has not stopped me from reading your blog or any other blogs written by mothers and fathers. It's one part of you, and a very important role.
ReplyDelete@Anon - I'm not ashamed of it at all, I just question the blanket term used to describe all women bloggers who have kids.
ReplyDeletehow 'bout just "blogger"? You are so far beyond "just" a mom (although I say that "Mum")Let people draw their own conclusions after reading a few blog entries.
ReplyDelete