Right off the bat, I tend to cringe at being referred to as a “dad blogger”, but I have learned to roll with it and even poke fun at myself. It’s the easiest way to sum it up to people as they lose interest if you try to explain any further. I mean being a blogger is about as interesting as telling your non-kid friends about the time your kid put on their own pants.
But, for this post, I wanted to talk about a definite problem I am having these days – dad blogger fatigue. No it’s not the flu or even a migraine, it’s me being so tired from being dad, that I have no gas left in the tank to focus on something I am good at, and have had a lot of success at.
There are 78,000 parent bloggers out there and most of the time I wonder to myself, who is taking care of their kids as they seem to be online all day long.
Back in my pre-kid days, I had a run where I did blogging full-time and I put together quite the following and traffic flow. It’s a grind, but when you have the time to do it, it is certainly possible. But now that I have less than a few hours in a day to do everything from cleaning, laundry, dinner planning, any freelance work I have and of course putting together a blog post someone will actually want to read.
I have a lot of good ideas and topics in my head from the day-to-day experiences of being home with the kids, but they don’t seem to make it to the computer. I wish I could download the wonderful paragraphs I put together in my head, then I would be set.
But no, sitting at the computer always takes a back seat to something else. Then in the evening when all is quiet and there is time, it is too easy to want to rest, watch TV and go to bed. Yes, that is where I need to push myself, but it is nice to actually hang out with my wife, even if it is watching Bobby Flay on the Food Network.
The art of staying home with our youngest and getting things done is tricky. It takes a lot of energy, and lately I just have not felt like I have it.
And as many point out who do the stay-at-home parenting thing, there is no time to recover.
I am by no means digging ditches, but I am more mentally exhausted than anything.
I am much more likely to do something on my phone these days than go sit at the computer. Writing any kind of content over 140 characters on my phone is not for me.
I guess the good news is I am busy and get to have a blast playing with my son. The down side is, there is not much energy left to continue growing this blog.
Right now it entertains a few of you, I get the odd product offering to review and I get to share dad stories with the world. But I know it could be a lot more. I know how to make it more, I just don’t have the energy and time. Maybe I am impatient?
When the kids are older, this blog will still be around and I should have more time to sit and write something.
Thank goodness for Twitter and Instagram. They allow me to share stuff, build brand and engage with other parents without being near a computer. They are perfect for those times you are afraid to step on the creeky floor near your son’s room during nap time.
Fatigue of any kind is usually just a short-term bump. I know it will change. It feels like the perfect storm for me. I am getting anxious to find full-time work, the days are getting shorter (darker), the new schedule does not all for a lot of kid free time and I just want to dominate at this blogging thing like I used to.
As Justin Timberlake would say, cry me a river.
I should focus on what I have. I have two great kids, an awesome wife, a home I am loving and very few negative things in my life.
So not being able to blog a lot, that is not that big a deal.
Plus when you are feeling something like dad blogger fatigue, it is the perfect topic to write about to help get out of the basement so to speak and back out on the street of life.
What is your fatigue of choice these days?
**Side note: Three times during the making of this post, I had to leave and help at least one child do something.**
Another Dad Blogger worth checking out
Dad and Buried – It is sold as the anti-parenting blog, and I find it very entertaining and my kind of writing.
