The invasion of the ‘Blogger Mums’ Parents on the internet by Suzy Miller 

 I am a grown-up with young children and a business. I can’t possibly have time to ‘socialise’ or network online. So why is it I find myself interacting with people I have never met from all round the world, into the early hours, ‘poking’ on Facebook and ‘nudging’ on Twitter? God, I’ve even started my own blog and am in danger of transforming from a reasonably normal mother of three into a full-on geek!We have all at least heard of internet dating sites and online chat rooms, and Which? reports tell us that 75% of

UK internet shoppers who are women prefer buying online to going to the shops. Many of us use the internet for research and education, and for business networking. But what value can it possibly have for mothers of young children as a way to network socially?

US artist and avid social networker Susan Reynolds likens interacting on sites such as Facebook and Twitter to “an updated way of chatting over the fence while hanging clothes and getting personal insights which are better than search engine research”. In order to research this article, I myself dived into my online social networks and put out a call for information and suggestions. Within hours I had some quality links from @Rosevibe, @Cbensen and @Loudmouthman (‘Twitter’ names) and, more importantly, a group of peers interested in seeing and enjoying the final result. When you are working from home with young children, finding other people online who share your interests and help you to develop your own ideas and knowledge is a resource that I never dreamed of discovering a year ago.

One of my Facebook friends, Ann Handley, posted: “The real value of social networking for women is that they can seek and find like-minded individuals at all stages of their lives. When I was a young mother – a breastfeeding, cloth-diaper-using, attachment-parenting mom who was working (freelance writing) from home – I often felt pretty isolated, without a ‘network’, wondering if I was outright loony some days… I would have loved a blog like dooce.com, or a mother’s group on Facebook, to connect with other mothers like me.”

To read the rest of this article, check out the Winter 2008 Issue of WE Magazine for Women.

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