Blogger Behind the Blog {Mummy to Dex}
Here’s this week’s instalment of Blogger Behind the Blog where I interview a blogger all about their reasons for blogging and what it means to them. This week I’m joined by Nicola from Mummy to Dex.
Here’s Nicola with more about her blogging life:
Where did your blog name come from? Before I started blogging I was a huge lover of Instagram. Once Dex was born I changed my handle from hughsie86 to mummytodex and when I decided to give blogging a go, I used the same name.
When did you start your blog and why? I started my blog at the end of September 2016. A friend of mine who had a blog suggested I write a post on how I successfully managed to get Dex to nap FOUR TIMES a day (oh, the good old days!) and I just kept writing week after week. I found it very therapeutic and it kept my brain ticking over while I was bored.
What did you do before you blogged? I binge watched Grey’s Anatomy and played more Candy Crush Soda Saga than I care to admit.
What was your first post? It was ‘How I Got Naptimes to Work for Us’ which was a rundown of the routine we followed and little tips and tricks I used to get Dex to sleep independently. To be honest, I have just been super lucky in having a baby who loves to sleep!
What inspires you to blog? I enjoy sharing any little bits of knowledge I’ve picked up along the way and it makes me feel happy when I get comments and replies to my posts if I’ve helped someone on their journey. I’ve blogged so much about our baby-led weaning journey and it is nice to see people try that method of weaning themselves thanks to my posts which have given them the confidence they needed. I also love the fact that I will have this little online diary for years to come.
What post has had the best response, which post are you most proud of and which post did you enjoy writing the most? The post with the best response was ‘8 Must Have BLW Products’ which has been shared around the baby-led weaning Facebook groups numerous times. The post I’m most proud of is Prelude: Return to Work and the one I enjoyed writing the most is a guest post I did on Raising the Rings. This particular post made me feel like a weight was being lifted off my chest as the words flowed out of me.
Have any of your posts not had the response that you expected? I haven’t really had any negative comments yet although I don’t often write about controversial subjects!
Where do you see your blog in a year’s time? I hope that my blog is still active (at the moment everyday is a challenge with working full time) and that I am still posting frequently with good content.
What is your favourite thing about blogging? All the people I’ve got to meet. Shout out to Devon Mama and IamCrabstix who kept me sane during maternity leave and comment on every single one of my posts without fail!
…and your least favourite? The feeling that you can’t do right for doing wrong. I always feel like I am treading on eggshells, scared I may do or say something to alienate myself from the blogging community. Auto tweeting, link dumping, asking stupid questions, inadvertently taking inspiration from someone else’s post: there’s always an argument going on and it makes me feel uneasy.
What’s the best blog post you have ever read?
Devon Mama’s ‘Dear Husband, I’m Jealous‘. I was able to relate to every sentence.
What blog do you love to read and why? I love Katy Kicker‘s blog. I love how it’s a mixture of personal updates and money making tips. Daisy is so cute and I love seeing what they’ve been up to while learning about a new site where I can make a few extra pennies.
Do you do anything differently now to when you started blogging? I don’t auto tweet anymore, in fact I don’t do much promotion at all- I simply don’t have the time. I am lucky that I built up an engaged following and worked hard to build SEO and Pinterest while I was on maternity leave so the page views do keep ticking over despite my lack of promotion. I also try to take better pictures!!
Is blogging what you expected it to be? Not at all. I had no idea about making money from blogging or DA or working with brands. I thought it was just a hobby to keep my busy while my baby slept. I had no idea I’d meet so many lovely people either.
What’s been your favourite blog collaboration to date? I run a weekly series called Weaning Wisdom Wednesdays which has been incredible. I have loved reading and learning about other people’s experiences of weaning.
Are there any brands you would love to work with, why? Yes so many! I recently pitched to a particular brand who make the most amazing baby carriers and they agreed to work with me. I am so excited! I have worked with quite a few brands in the past but mainly on low value items so I am so psyched to make a good job of this particular collaboration so that I can show what I can do!
Have you had any blogging fails so far? I can’t think of anything off the top of my head, but there’s probably loads!
What is your biggest blogging hope, dream or ambition? I think most people want to make money from their blog and I am very lucky that less than a year in I am making a few quid each month. It’s not enough for me to give up the day job, but it helps with savings towards our dream home. I absolutely love my job so I don’t think I’d want to give it up to blog full time, but if I could make a steady income to drop a few hours- that would be incredible!
What do you do when you’re not blogging? Binge watch TV shows, play with my baby, work in a Post Office and scroll through Instagram endlessly.
and lastly, tell us all a random fact about yourself I support Bolton Wanderers football club, but my little boy will be an Evertonian thanks to his Dad.
Now that you know all about Nicola from Mummy to Dex, make sure you go and read her blog. You can follow her on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram – thanks so much Nicola for being involved!
