"Mommy Bloggers" and The Rest of Us

There was this article on cnn. com about "Mommy Bloggers" and whether or not they can be trusted. (http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/08/10/mommy.bloggers.ethics/index.html)

"Veteran Moms" think they know best, and they seem to think that new moms do not have any good advice for fellow new mothers. I call bullshit.

First of all, research has changed since our mothers became mothers, and the findings have resulted in new advice for new mothers. For example, my mother started us kids on cereal at around 3 months. Pediatricians say now to wait until ATLEAST 4 months, but prefer maybe 5 months or so. Being in the hospital for so long with Aeva taught Anthony and I lots of things that a baby care class or veteran mom wouldn't necessarily be able to teach us.

Do veteran moms warn younger mothers of signs of dehydration? Nope. Think about it: Do you know what they are?

Answer: As long as the infant's soft spot is not sunken in (you'll know), the skin doesn't tent (when you pinch it, does it stay up, or go right back down?), the baby makes 6-8 wet diapers a day, and the baby isn't lethargic (you'll know the different behavioral patterns), the baby is fine.

What about that putting vaseline on the baby's tushy will help prevent diaper rash? The vaseline keeps the moisture away from the butt, thus preventing rash. Awesome. Aeva is 6 months old, and has only had ONE diaper rash, and it was in the hospital. No rashes on my watch.

What veteran mom told us that? NONE OF THEM. The nurses did.

Veteran moms have good ideas, but let's face it, things have changed. When we hear what they "advise," a grain of salt and some modernization needs to be added.

As for these mommy sites, they suck. Momversation.com, TheMommyBlog.com, etc., are all reiterations of what news sites report, as well as what baby websites, like babycenter.com, say. They regurgiate information about breastfeeding, drowning, introducing solids, labor, etc. that other sites say. Do we really need 800 websites of the SAME THING?! Nope.

The Mommy blog sites also neglect mothers of premature infants. Babycenter.com and others, do not. Why do these Mommy Blogs neglect the hardest type of baby to care for? Term babies are not rocket science to care for. Have you ever fed a baby with a bottle aversion? A mother with a baby like that cannot just sit in front of the TV and feed her baby. Feeding now has become an artform.

Do these blog sites have mothers blog about preterm labor, pregnancy complications, post partum depression, or premature infants? Nope. Mothers interested in learning about, or having to deal with the above mentioned, must Google information for themselves.

If I only know how to get one going, as well as popular, I'd manage the blog site for mothers of Premature infants. There are mothers young and old out there who need to know about the genetic predispositions for prematurity and other complications, as well as signs of premature labor and whatnot.

Also, it seems to me that these "mothers" who run these sites are young, stay at home mothers, with nothing better to do. Since WHEN does a stay at home mom have NOTHING to do? I don't have anough hours in the day, between ONE graduate course, a PREEMIE baby, appointments, errands, and, oh yeah, HOUSEWORK. What's this "Alone time" or "me time" I keep hearing about? lol

Regardless of the stresses and bustle of each day, staying home with our baby is worth every single second. Besides, during burp sessions, I get to sit and blog about stupid annoyances.

Any other problemes are nothing that either a Xanax or an episode of Hannah Montana can't fix. LOL