Blogger Spotlight on Amy Bellgardt of Mom Spark

Amy Bellgardt of Mom Spark

Amy Bellgardt is the founder and administrator of online magazine Mom Spark, a network of 17 moms who contribute advice, stories, and recipes online. She’s also worked with companies like Warner Bros., Ford, and Nestle. We caught up with Bellgardt and asked her what about blogging, social media, and why she never writes about her kids.

I originally created Mom Spark because I was an overwhelmed stay-at-home mom with a difficult newborn, a strong-willed eight year-old, and a husband who worked a lot. Need I say more? I needed the companionship, advice, and support from other moms, even if I had never met these moms in “real life.” Mom Spark became my therapy, my way of connecting with the world amidst the chaos in my head, home, and heart. Please let me note that I love my children and husband and want to stay home with them and never regret doing so at all, but when I started Mom Spark, I especially needed that extra boost of confidence, assurance, and hope.

Unlike most mommy bloggers, you deliberately don’t write about your children, at least not directly. How come?

Part of my hesitation is overall online safety. I like to trust that the internet is completely safe and harmless, but we all know that isn’t true.  I am also extremely paranoid.  If you worked in Corrections for six years, you’d be paranoid, too.  I try to remember that there are good, trusting people online, but nonetheless, I still get that bad feeling in my gut.

The other part is privacy.  I like keeping some things to myself.  Yes, I am a blogger who likes to keep some elements of my life private.  There, I’ve said that, too.  In addition to my kids, I also keep my religion, political views, and bra size to myself.  If an occasion ever arises where I feel compelled to share such information, I will, but for now, get used to the disappointment.

What other blogs do you read?

For the most part, I read my personal family and friend’s blogs, which are private, but I also enjoy reading Jessica Knows, Mom 101, Dooce, and Being Frugal.

Now that school’s starting again, what kind of back-to-school tips do you have for parents and kids?

I think the most important back-to-school tip is keeping a consistent schedule.  Wake your children at the same time each morning, serve a hearty, healthy breakfast, and repeat the same idea at nighttime.  Children will get so much more out of school when their schedule is regulated.

Parents seem to be getting a little more tech savvy these days — blogs, Facebook, Twitter — is it important for parents to be involved in social media?

I believe it is crucial for parents to be affluent in social media.  If we don’t understand the social media or online games our children participate in, we cannot keep them safe.  Parents must look at the internet as if it were a busy highway, and we wouldn’t leave our children alone in the middle of the highway.