Jen @ Musings of The Mom Jen

Our Mom Central VIP: Jen Andrade (the Mom Jen)
Kids: DQ (dancing queen/drama queen)-13, My Boy-10, K-5
Twitter: @themomjen
Your Blog URL: http://www.themomjen.com and the http://themomreviews.com
What Year Did Your Start Blogging? I started blogging in 2008 at Musings of The Mom Jen, and I started The Mom Reviews in 2009.

In addition to blogging and being a mother, what other jobs do you have?
Nothing paid, but I volunteer in my youngest’s Kindergarten class weekly and run the student store for my oldest’s school.

Why did you start your blog?
I loved scrapbooking and also needed a place to release my thoughts, I saw blogging as the best of both of those worlds allowing family and friends the chance to know what was going on in our lives and see our kids grow. The Mom Reviews was born after I was getting pitched for product reviews and the people on my main site weren’t looking for that type of thing. I needed a second venue to host giveaways and promote brands.

What advice do you have for those starting out?
Make your blog something you love and work hard on it, nothing that’s worth doing is easy!

Name a few challenges you see or have experienced in the blogosphere.
Most recently I moved from Blogger to WordPress and lost a lot of comments, RSS subscribers, and 2 pageranks. Things are slowly looking up, but that “lost in cyberspace” had me really down and like I was starting all over after all the work I’ve done.

What are your favorite and least favorite part(s) about blogging?
I’ve met so many wonderful people, the opportunities have been mind-boggling amazing, and I’ve had the chance to contribute to my family in so many ways. Often being a SAHM tends to leave me feeling unappreciated, but my blogging has turned that around. Least favorite…not having enough time in the day!

What is the wackiest opportunity you have gotten since you started your blog?
Wacky-cool…having the chance to visit 4 Hawaiian islands in under a year!

What are your top three blogging tips?

1. Your blog will produce what you put into it. Hard work pays off!
2. Be assertive with PR, they don’t work for free, you shouldn’t either.
3. Work and live with the utmost integrity.

What are you hoping will happen for you and your blog within the next year?
I would love to continue to travel, attend more conferences and meet great people, and continue to grow and learn as a blogger.

We love link back love! Please tell us 2 or 3 blogs you love, their URLs, and Twitter names.
Kelli of 3 Boys and a Dog / @Momof3Boys3702
Liz of A Nut in a Nutshell / @BlueViolet
Holly of June Cleaver Nirvana / @TexasHolly
I've met Kelli, Liz, and Holly in person and love them on and offline!

Thank you, Jen! We love working with you!