Being a Social Media Mom in Rural America

Living in a fairly secluded home in a relatively small town with two small children can make it difficult to make friends. Having little in common with the women who do live in your small town makes it just plain hard…and not having reliable transportation or any extra cash makes it darn near impossible. I don’t know about you, but the internet hasn’t exactly caught on for the most part out here. People still look at me I’ve grown a horn in the middle of my head when I tell them I’m a blogger or a social media consultant. They don’t “get” Twitter and don’t want to…they might have a Facebook page and use Google to search information. Might.

If it weren’t for Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, my blog) I would live a virtually isolated life. Programs like Skype, Google Talk, and even MSN Messenger keep me connected to long distance friends, family, and coworkers. Delicious and Stumble Upon, bookmarking websites, allow me to share my favorite websites with friends while also allowing me to have an always accessible (provided I can remember my password)tool for organizing my bookmarks. Without Social Media, I could not do my job from home…or at all. Social Media programs serve to remind me I am not alone, despite how things can sometimes feel. Social Media programs give me a connection, quite literally a world-wide connection of possibility I might otherwise not have.

Three years ago I started blogging as a way to simply document our life and my daughter’s milestones. It was a private blog, but because of it I did find, follow and comment on other blogs. During this time, I got to know other parents who thought like me, parents I looked up to, and I learned a lot about budgeting for a family. A year ago I decided to take my blog public, join Twitter, and actually use Facebook. I’ve never looked back. In the past year I have made more lasting friendships with like-minded men and women than I did the entire time I was in high school and college. Today, my personal blog has grown into so much more than I originally had planned…today, blogging gives me a platform to share not only stories about our crazy life and the milestones of now two daughters, but it also gives me an opportunity to raise the general awareness of issues that might otherwise go unnoticed in our busy day-to-day lives.

The Internet keeps me connected with like minds and interests; parents (and non-parents) who are just like me…or at least similar. I use the Internet not only for my business, but also to stay connected with the friends I’ve made. I am grateful for the friendships and opportunities Social Media networks has afforded me. I look forward to seeing how we move forward in this brave new world and what kind of networks are next.

Amanda is the proud mama of two and owner of High Impact Mom, a socially aware mom-blog. Amanda is also a contributing editor for Type A Mom and Food Mama and also a contributing author at Shamable, an up-coming no nonsense Social Media blog. While juggling the joys of parenthood and the demands of her career, Amanda also enjoys a healthy Twitter addiction and can usually be found there in her spare time.

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