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Lauren

I am a Work-At-Home-Mom new to the Jacksonville area. Originally from Texas, my husband and I have lived and worked all over the country and I am excited to explore my new hometown. I am the author of the book "Zen and the Art of Housekeeping: The Path to Finding Meaning in Your Cleaning" (www.zen...

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Girls Who Blog: Like Mother Like Daughter?

Lauren Cassel Brownell

An Associated Press article ran recently in my local newspaper with the headline “Girls who blog:  Are they at risk?”  This is apparently the next phase of children’s fascination with the internet – creating their own blogs on a wide variety of topics.  This article focused primarily on young girls creating blogs about fashion, posting pictures of themselves in cool clothes and hip outfits and opening a discussion with other fashion savvy youth.  Of course, the risky part comes in that there are predators out there along with teen and preteen cyber bullies whose intentions in turning to these blogs are less than honorable.  What a shame that the bad apples of the barrel have to spoil the fun for the rest of us! 

Because ideally, I think this is an awesome trend.  How many of you out there can honestly say that you didn’t go through a phase where you felt you were destined to become a fashion designer?  Did you draw outfits and ensembles (and of course design your own wedding dress for some future day down the road)?  Did you follow trends like a Yellow Brick Road leading to coolness?  Well, I know I did.  And this trend in fashion blogging is a normal part of that continuum, except for the inherent risks.

It also seems to make sense that as mom bloggers begin to take over cybersapce, our daughters would also want to claim a portion of the world wide web for themselves.  They are, after all, little women, or women in training if you will.  They are younger, smaller versions of us, but they still have some of the same wiring don’t they?  So why do they want to blog so badly?  And why are their moms turning mom blogging into a social movement?

Yes.  I have my suspicions.  All women, but I think more specifically mothers, want to find a way to express themselves.  They want an outlet for their creativity.  They want their voices to be heard.  Their opinions to be valued.  They want evidence that they do exist as people with passions and problems that don’t all revolve around burping, diaper changing and carpool routines.  The “tween” females of the world are trying to flex the same muscles I believe.  They are trying to figure out who they are, what they think, what their true authentic voice is.  And sadly, thier voices cannot ring free and clear because it could put them in danger with some criminal lurking in cyberland.  “Friends” from school could ridicule them for their unique style and courage to express themselves.  It’s a crying shame. 

But while I do feel that MySpace is the scourge of modern civilization, I am, at heart, a “Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater” type of gal.  Creative expression is critical and vigilance is the key word if your children are going to utilize the internet.  Some suggestions from this article included not posting your real name or personal information on a blog and fuzzying the faces of folks in photos ( a lot of alliteration!).  If we as adult women find freedom and fulfillment in blogging, shouldn’t we allow our maturing daughters to have the same opportunity?  It’s worth a little investment of your time to ensure your children can have a safe and satisfying experience in the blogosphere.

Love, Lauren

Hangin’ Out at The Momerama