I first heard the term blog-at-home mom when I began my journey as a professional blogger in 2011. A mom at our homeschool co-op in Germany (we were stationed there with the military) told me that instead of just a stay-at-home homeschooling mom, I was now a blog-at-home homeschooling mom. Cute, right?

And now, here I am 6+ years later, still a blog-at-home homeschooling mom. And the funny thing? I love it more and more every day! And now I have a passion to share resources with other moms (homeschooling and non-homeschooling alike) to help them begin their blog-at-home mom journey!

I cannot count how many emails, messages, and texts I receive each week with blogging related questions. And it has only increased over the years. So as a result, I have compiled the ultimate guide to being a blog-at-home mom in hopes that it can help answer and direct those who want to start or grow their existing blogs. Let’s get to it!

Will I Have the Time?

I think time management is one of the major components that separate those of us who make it as a blog-at-home, and those who don’t. I also think this one simple thing is keeping a lot of moms in a state of feeling overwhelmed about adding blogging to their lives. But I am here to tell you that you can do it if you manage your time well and keep your priorities lined up. I don’t ever put my blogging ahead of my family’s needs, ever.

Here are some resources that can help you manage (even simplify) your time in all areas so that you can adding blogging to the daily routine:

• Meal Planning – this is a life-saver for my family and helps us save money, eat healthy, and provides time for other things (like blogging)
• Life Planning – you know, just having a plan for daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly stuff
• Homeschool Planning – for those of us that homeschool our children, this is a must! This is what I am currently using to plan my homeschool days.

Time Management

Here are two great books written by some of my blogging friends that will also help encourage you in the matter of managing time as you begin to blog from home.

Balanced: Finding Center as a Work-at-Home Mom

Blog at Home Mom: Balancing Blogging and Motherhood

First Things First, What Will You Blog About?

One of the best pieces of advice I can give you is that it is incredibly important that you decide what you are going to blog about before you start your blog. Can you change your mind? Sure. But honestly, it’s best to really sit and think clearly about this so that you don’t have to make the 595 mistakes (okay, maybe a slight exaggeration) that I did by not knowing what I was doing when I started this journey in 2011. This is especially true for those who want to blog for profit.

It is always good to see the bigger picture and how your niche can evolve as life changes. Because it will. But having a targeted audience is a good thing to start with so that your blog is more effective and your time spent is more productive.

Here are some resources that can help point you in the right direction when it comes to finding your blogging niche/voice:

Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us

How to Find Your Blog Niche over at Inspired Bloggers University

How to Decide What to Blog About by Amy Andrews

How to Choose a Profitable Blogging Niche by Copyblogger

Undestanding and Finding Your Niche at the Sits Girls

4 Tips for Finding Your Blogging Niche at Elle & Co

Blogging for Fun vs. Blogging for Profit

Another huge consideration is whether or not you will be blogging for fun and informative purposes or if you are looking to turn your blog into a profitable resource for your family. The great thing about blogging for profit is that you can still do what you love, pour into other people, and have fun; all while getting paid to do so. But it is not a get rich quick scheme. You need to make sure that you are genuine with your audience from the start – and they will appreciate you and support you in ways you never though possible!

And it is also important to gain an accurate picture of what blogging and motherhood look like together – so I chose books that will show that relationship and time-management intertwined.

Below are some are some great resources to help you determine which way you want to go.

How to Blog for Profit: without selling your soul

Blogging on the Side: Where Passion and Profit Meet

You Need to Stay Organized + Create a Plan

In order to succeed at anything in life, we must first create plan. Here are some free resources to help get you in planning mode and keep you organized while doing so. If you don’t have a plan and set goals, you won’t ever go anywhere. Ask me how I know. But I want you to be as prepared as possible on your new journey to blog-at-home mom, so here you go…

How to Start Your Blog from Scratch

There are many resources out there that talk about starting a blog, how do we know who to trust? Well I have been around the blogging block and have several great and reputable sources to share with you. I am sharing several because I know that sometimes even though the information may be the same, we tend to connect more with certain people. That’s my experience anyway. I know you will find one or more of these resources insightful!

But What About Social Media?

Yes, this is a thing that needs to be dealt with. I personally LOVE social media so I have no issue using it to connect with my readership and share what I am up to. However, I will say this: don’t try to tackle every social media platform because you will burn out. Rather, I chose a couple that I loved (for me this is Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook) and started off learning as much as I could about each. The goal is not to have the most followers, rather it is to enjoy social media and build an organic, engaged audience who appreciates what you have to offer.

Here are some great resources to help you tackle all-things social media!

UnMarketing: Stop Marketing. Start Engaging

Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World

Strategies Worth Sharing: How I Grew My Facebook Page from 2K to 100K in Five Months

The Sits Girls have this post that is full of great tips for several popular social media platforms.

There are several social media tools that will help you grow your reach with minimal effort. These are among my personal favorite:

Board Booster – If this tool isn’t genius, I don’t know what is. Board Booster does the following:

• Schedule pins
• Grow your audience
• Improve pin quality
• Clean up your boards
• Host top quality group boards
• Optimize your strategy

Tailwind – This is another great Pinterest tool if you are aren’t as interested in strategy but being able to save time on pinning.

Hootsuite – this social media scheduler has many things to help you gain more engagement and increase community and productivity.

You’re Off to a Great Start

With this information you are off to a great start! Once you have figured out what you are going to blog about, whether or not you are going to blog for profit, how to start your blog, which social media outlets you love and adore, how to connect and engage with your readers, and how to maximize your time management, you are off to the best possible start!

Next Steps

Now that you have a solid know-how of starting your blog, it’s time to take it a bit further. I would highly recommend learning all about email marketing and of course networking with other bloggers!

If you are going the professional blogger route – and that means earning income from your blog, then I would recommend taking a look at this…

And when you are ready to really invest in your “blogger” education, I would highly recommend taking Elite Blog Academy (you can read my reasons why here).

More to consider…

Encouragement from Moms who Have Been There

I started a blog several years ago, but did nothing with it. I regret those lost years, and wonder where I could be today if I would have just jumped in with both feet. If you are thinking about starting one, just do it. We seldom regret the chances that we do take!
Patty, A Mother’s Random Thoughts

Remember, there is enough room at the table for everyone. Just because an idea has been done before doesn’t mean that your take on it doesn’t have value. Put your unique spin on it and get it out there.
Stephanie, The Multi Taskin’ Mom

Juggling homeschooling and working from home can be hard, but so rewarding. You get to connect with other homeschooling moms, make amazing friendships online, and earn an extra income that your family might desperately need! While blogging takes time and patience, it can be a true blessing for many families!
Caroline Allen, The Modest Mom

Sitting at the pool watching my kids in their swimming lessons while working on my laptop at a job that I love and that makes a difference in the lives of other families was a turning point for me. It was when I decided that blogging was no longer just a way to make money and be able to stay at home with my kids. It had become a career that I loved.

Sharla Kostelyk, The Chaos and the Clutter

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