1.  To Express Your Thoughts and Opinions – You have something to say, and blogs provide a place to say it and be heard.  You can write without inhibitions.  Think of it as your journal.

2.  It’s Free – Create a blog here on Fellow Moms and it is completely FREE.  What better way to express your thoughts and experiences on motherhood, than with other moms?  All blogs on Fellow Moms are created by moms.  If you join our network, your blog will be easy for others to find and it won’t get lost out there in the internet.

3.  To Help People – Chances are, other people are going through the same experiences you are.  It is so rewarding to write a post and then have people comment that they have gone through the same thing, feel the same way, etc.  I recently wrote a post about needing a refresher.  I was getting so bogged down in the baby, I had lost my sense of self.  A friend commented and said she had been feeling the same way and that I had inspired her to take time for herself, too.  How cool is that?  It makes you feel so good that you can help other people!  Moms can really relate to what each other is going through.  No matter if you have 1 kid or 5, live in Raleigh, NC or London, England.  We all tend to go through the same things.

4.  It’s Therapeutic – There are therapeutic benefits of blogging and writing about personal experiences, thoughts and feelings. Expressive writing serves as a stress-coping mechanism.  Who doesn’t feel good after putting their thoughts down on paper?  I know I do!

5.  To Connect with People Like You – Blogging brings like-minded people together. Starting a blog can help you find those people and share your opinions and thoughts.  Like other moms! 

6.  Because it is Fun - Many people start a blog simply for fun. That’s why I started my blog.  First was to document my experiences of pregnancy and then it was talk about my daughter.  What Mom doesn’t like to brag talk about their children?  I would not expect most people to have as much fun blogging as I do, but I would bet that if you gave it a try it would be more fun than you thought! 

7.  To Make a Baby Book – My blog serves as a digital baby book.  I write posts about daily activities with my daughter, milestones she reaches, and I upload pictures of her.  So I can look back years from now and reminisce with all the memories I captured on my blog.

8.  To Stay Connected with Friends and Family – The world has shrunk since the internet has become more accessible. Blogs provide a simple way for family and friends to stay connected by sharing stories, photos, and videos.  If you are like me, you have family and friends that don’t get to see your children as regularly as they would like.  Blogging is a way for them to stay connected with your happenings and watch your children grow! 

9.  To Make $$$ - Yes, you can make money blogging!  The potential does exist to generate revenue from your blog with hard work and commitment. There are many bloggers who bring in big bucks. With patience and practice, you can make money through advertising and other income generating activities. 

10. Because I Said So - Why not?  Everyone is doing it.  Give in to the peer pressure and let your thoughts flow!  You give me a reason not to blog, and I’ll give you two reasons why you should blog.  I hear most people say they don’t have time.  You DO have time.  Just do a quick post while the baby is napping or the laundry is drying.  I do most of my blogging while I’m sitting on the floor playing with the baby or at night after she’s gone to bed.  It’s so easy and fun to do! 

Blogging is the wave of the future.  So what are you waiting for?  Start blogging today!  If you need help getting started, just shoot me an email.  I would be glad to help you!

Sign Up: http://fellowmoms.com/register
Create a blog: http://fellowmoms.com/blogs/create

There was a dessert and coffee bar, drinks, and beer/wine.  They had a social media avatar photo shoot and pampering station sponsored by Mary Kay.  Massage Envy was there giving free massages!  Oh, did that feel good!  One mom was picked for a makeover.    Moon and Lola had a booth selling beautiful jewelry and Digi Time Capsule was there.  The entire night was livestreamed on www.momtv.com.   Aside from meeting other moms, the highlight for me was the giveaways.  They had lots of awesome giveaways!  I won a BeaBa Babycook and Babycook Book and Jenn won a Baby Ktan Carrier.  

They haven’t posted the numbers yet, so I don’t know how many people were there or how much money was raised for Nancy’s Butterfly Fund.  But for me, the night was a success.  I made new friends, networked with other moms, and spread the word about Fellow Moms!  And to top it all off, I came home to a sleeping baby.  Well, not so much, but that sounded good didn’t it?

The National Mom’s Nite Out is the first nationally organized celebration of motherhood intended to bring together today’s moms, physically and virtually. It will unite over 150 social media groups, companies, local playgroups, mommy bloggers and mother social networks in giving moms a well deserved night off.

The RDU Mom’s Nite Out is scheduled for Thursday, May 6, 2010 from 6:30 – 9:30 p.m. at the Embassy Suites off Harrison Avenue in Cary, NC and includes entertainment, drinks, prizes and chocolate – lots and lots of chocolate. Moms are encouraged to come relax, put their feet up, grab a drink and celebrate all that is MOM!  The Triangle event is one of many across the country. And local moms will be able to connect with others through Twitter and Skype. The party will be among those broadcast live on MomTV.com.

All Fellow Moms attending the RDU Mom’s Nite Out event will receive a FREE t-shirt.  Please let us know by Monday, May 3, 2010 if you will be attending.  We would love to see you there!  If you are not in the RDU area, we encourage you to scout out a National Mom’s Nite Out event in your area and celebrate everything MOM! 

The event will feature pampering stations, fashion tips, amazing North Carolina focused giveaways and much more. And better yet, proceeds from the event benefit local charity, Nancy’s Butterfly Fund.  The fund honors Nancy Cooper, the Cary mom of two who was killed in 2008. Her husband is charged in her murder. All proceeds from the event will go to the group, which provides financial assistance to women and their children leaving abusive relationships.

Click here for details and to buy tickets, which are $20.

Fellow Moms has created a store using Cafe Press where you can purchase short sleeve t-shirts, long sleeve t-shirts, and infant bodysuits sporting the Fellow Moms logo!  There are also links to the store on our homepage.  We will be working on adding new products in the near future.  Let everyone know that you are part of the Fellow Moms network and get your merchandise today!

Create your free mom profile and add your favorite photo as your “Avatar”. Add personal information by editing your “Public Profile”. Connect with other moms by adding to your “Friends” list. Join a “Group” to discuss specific topics and communicate in the “Forums”.

For those looking to really have fun, create a “Blog”. These blogs are very powerful tools powered by Wordpress (the best web content management system available.) Create posts and pages using your own site “Dashboard”. Add images and files to the “Media” library. This is a great way to keep friends and family updated on the happenings with your little one(s).  Upload photos and tell everyone about your activities, your baby’s milestones, or just vent about your challenging day.  Create your own digital baby book!  As always, please contact us for free support to help get your site going.  If you already have a blog and would like to transfer it over to Fellow Moms, we can help with that, too!

Fellow Moms is run by a stay at home mom who enjoys blogging about life with her daughter and wanted to share her experience with other moms.  Many of us have family and friends that may not see our children as often as we would like.  Blogging is a great way to keep in touch and share new photos of your children.  Fellow Moms was created not only to assist other moms in the blogging world, but also as a place to network, provide support, and just do what moms like to do – talk about our kids!  It is geared for moms with children of all ages.

As founder of Fellow Moms, I understand all of the challenges and joys that come with parenthood.  It is certainly an experience like no other.  And I seem to learn something new every day!

We will be working to evolve this system to better meet the needs for all moms. We will do our best to map out new features and let folks know when they will be available via our blog.

Thanks and enjoy!