I started blogging well before “mommy blogging” was the “thing” to do. I began writing about my day to day life on an old-school platform called Teen Open Diary. Unfortunately, it no longer exists and I never saved my posts or did any sort of backup. That bums me out because for the a long time, that was the only way I recorded special events and things in my life. I also kept a paper diary (doesn’t every girl?), but some things would be in one and not the other.
Anyway. I’ve been around. Around Teen Open Diary, I opened a Xanga. It wasn’t even called a blog, you always referred to it as “Oh on my Xanga…”. I went through a couple different name changes, and even had “secret” ones where I would just vent. I would let all my secrets out, all my fears, all my worries. I either wouldn’t publish those posts, or they were all done in secret. Meaning no one knew it was me. I didn’t use names, I didn’t comment on other people’s posts, I didn’t follow or subscribe to anyone who might figure it out. It was that release – that way of being so teen-angry at the world that I just wanted to click away at the keyboard furiously until the tears hit the keys and I felt exhausted.
Writing has always been something I enjoy. I even wrote poems. Not, like, stuff that rhymes but silly little love poems. And darker stuff. When like felt overwhelming (and there have been many moments of such), I would write.
So starting a blog shortly after I became a mom seemed kind of natural.
If you’ve read this particular blog through the years, you’ll know that I began writing as a “coupon and deal” blogger. That meant I would share my grocery store trips and how much I saved, hot coupons to print out, and things like that. It wasn’t me though. I feel like I kind of made a fool of myself for wanting to do something but being so horrible at it.
So over time, Mandi Minding Money evolved and shifted away from money and coupons to family and life. Again, a natural fit and more relevant to what was going on in my world.
Blogging has always been fun. Sure, working with big name brands is great, but it’s also kind of stressful. Being a mom and trying to balance all of that with the deadlines of reviews and sponsored content, it’s tough. If you aren’t committed and truly in love with what you are doing, it’s easy to see why posts can slow and feel like a blogger has given up.
I started a blog because I wanted to connect. I love being a mom, I love working, but I want to connect. I want my readers to want to know more about me and my family, and to ask questions that help us better connect with each other.
It feels as if I’m at this point in my blogging career where a shift is coming. Moments With Mandi was the perfect name change – I can focus on the various areas of my life all on one spot. You want to talk food? Let’s do it. Maybe you want to know about working from home? Perfect. You want pictures and videos of my kids because they are damn adorable? You got it!
My blog is just that. It’s me. It’s everything I love. I started blogging because I wanted to share those things.
So if you have a blog — why did you start one?