Monday
Mar292010
Delurk! (or in other words...please say hello)
Monday, March 29, 2010 
I have some post ideas percolating in my mind. But I've also been busy and haven't had a ton of time to write. Last year at this time, I did a delurking and open thread post and encouraged people who read the blog, but don't get around to commenting, to come out and say hello. So, I've decided to do it again.
Last year I wrote:
You see, every day hundreds of people visit my blog. Sure, many of them come in from search engines and only look at the one post they landed on and then never come back. But a lot of people do come back, over and over again, and I really appreciate that. But most of them never leave a comment. And that’s fine. I know not everyone wants to jump in and comment. But I’m curious. Will you satisfy my curiosity for me, just this once? Pretty please?
And 33 people left me comments, including people like Tamara from Parenting by Nature, , Desiree Fawn from So Fawned, Shannon from a Crafty Mom, Heather from the bee in your bonnet, Anji from ghostlove, VDog from Room704, Tara from Feels Like Home, The Noble Savage, Amanda from Family Nature, Loukia from Loulou's Views, Jessica from This is Worthwhile, and many more. I've gotten to know these fine bloggers of the course of the year and would like to get to know many more of you.
If you are a regular reader and you haven't commented before or haven't commented in a while, would you drop me a comment to say hello? If you need a topic to write on, tell me what you would like to see me write about in the future. Or just write whatever you like.
No more new posts until enough new people fess up to reading this blog and say hello! :) Let's aim for at least the 33 comments I got last year.
Ready...set....go!
Image credit: miuenski on flickr
Reader Comments (192)
Thank you so much for dropping by Kristine.
Thanks for sharing things on facebook Ameya. I really appreciate it. Facebook has become a great source of new fans and visits for me.
Anjie: I'm sure anything you would like to contribute would be worthwhile. I'd love to hear your thoughts more often!
No need to feel left out Sarah. Blogging is wonderful and I think we need more doula bloggers out there (there are a lot already, but more doulas is always better!), but reading, commenting and contributing on other blogs is extremely valuable too. Thank you for taking the time to comment here.
You're on my Google Reader. I think I found you through Twitter and conversations with @helpamotherout. I may have left a comment or two, but mainly I just read along.
hello! I think I've commented once or twice, but tend not to since you always have so many very pertinent comments. I like your energy and passiom for the things you believe in, and though I don't always agree entirely with everything you say, I admire your clarity of voice, your feminism and the love you have for parenting and for your kids that comes through in your writing.
I don't think this counts as de-lurking, but I'm here!
really enjoy your blog! Love to lurk... but I'll try to comment more often!
Cheers!
Hi!
I just love your voice / writing! We need your confident loving words to keep us 'like minded' Moms going... so lovely to know I'm not alone.
Hi Amber!
I am mother to two boys who have speech delays. My oldest didn't speak until he was four, after two years of therapy. We later found out he is missing the speech center of his brain. When I had my second boy (third baby) we found out his speech is delayed too--but not to the same extent. My doc sent us to the developmental pediatrician for a screening and he is now on the waiting list for therapy.
Don't fear these things. A developmental assessment is play-based, non-invasive and very informative. If you choose to seek it out, you might be able to confirm your suspicions that your boy will be fine, or you might find out he needs therapy, which is also not a big deal.
I am not a professional, but I am very experienced with little boys with delayed speech. Please feel free to contact me through my blog (or even type the word "apraxia" into the blog search at my site) if you want to ask me any questions.
Hello,
I have been following you for a little while now. I think I stumbled onto your blog somewhere in the past year through facebook share, but I only recently 'followed' your blog and put it on my blog's blogroll. I'm not sure if I commented before, so I put in the effort to do that now.
Usually I am a big commenter, because I feel the same as you when I'm over at my blog, so I figure I can at least do the favor to others I expect them to do to me.
Not NAKing so very often any more, she became too big for that.
Hello Annie!
I read your blog regularly, but don't reply because I don't have anything new to say. All I could say is I agree. lol I am commenting now, because I'd like to get another post from you. :-) You are doing a wonderful job at educating people on AP . Thank you for that.
Hi - yes I am officially a lurker as well. I found your blog a few months ago when my babe was just a few months old. I discovered the world blogging and have enjoyed reading yours very much. I follow through Google Reader so don't often click to comment. Plus I feel I don't have much to contribute - or time to do so holding a wiggling babe - I am not a blogger myself. However, reading first hand experiences and getting information on AP has been so important to me - I feel like I am not alone at this mothering thing and have found reinforcement for what I instinctualy feel is right for us. I even purchased some books you recommended from Amazon - your library suggestions are fantastic! Thanks for all you do.
Hey thanks for the mention! Thought I'd comment since I haven't in a while. Life is busy, busy. I struggle with it all -- kids, school, reading blogs that I love, writing on my own blog, keeping the house in order, volunteering, and everything else. Quiet as I may be, I'm still here, still reading. Even when I'm not on the computer much, yours is one of the few blogs I read religiously.
I've been following you for a bit now... usually on the blog feed. I'm a breastfeeding, home-birthing librarian, usually reading if there's a few slow minutes on the reference desk. Just recently thinking I should go back to your post on tracking blog stats, as I just found out that my little book blog, Librarymama, has readers outside of my friends list. Honestly, I had no idea.
Hi! I have been reading...I think I have even commented a couple of times. The blog world is pretty new to me...and your blog seems SO professional...so I guess, even though I have a background in higher ed. I get a little intimidated.
Hi; I used to be a rabid Attachment Parent, lost my religion when my second kid was born, and have been happily "detachment parenting" my little brood of four since then.
I'm here because I'd like to recapture just a little of my youthful idealism about motherhood. LOL. And because I find it interesting to reflect on the cultural/class issues that intersect with ideals about motherhood. Blue-collar families out here in the boondocks have an entirely different vision about childrearing than the academic types did back home, that is for sure. The hubris of the latter type both attracts and repulses me in a totally dysfunctional way, so blogs like this satisfy a pretty messed up sort of voyeurism on my part.
In some ways I find myself a fish out of water in both camps. :)
Howdy!
I've commented before, but a while ago and not very often - so hello!! :)
I still really enjoy reading your blog and your views, even if I'm quiet ;-)
Johanne from formerly Chatter-Box Joe, although I'm currently blog-less.
I wanted to say THANK YOU to everyone who delurked. I had wanted to respond to each comment individually, but there are so many and I know you all want me working on more original content, right? :)
I did read them all and I'm going to go through again and answer any more that have specific questions, but otherwise consider this a general reply and big THANK YOU to all of you. It is so nice to see you come out of hiding.
Where are those e-mails Dionna? I'm still waiting. Breathless with anticipation. ;)
Amanda: Please don't be afraid to comment due to clashing views. I enjoy respectful dialogue. It is also harder to change people's minds when I don't know what their reasons are for not agreeing with me! ;)
Guess you have several more hundreds of daily visits this year...
I wanna delurk too. I'm from Chile, mom to a special need girl, and I have no idea how I found your blog but I really enjoy it. Keep u the good work :)
Hi,
I stumbled across your blog quite a while ago, before I was even pregnant possibly. I now have a one month old son and am reading many parenting blogs, including yours, usually while breastfeeding (constantly at the moment!).
Alice
Hello! New reader here. =) Thanks for your thoughtful blogs and helpful articles.
Hi! I found your blog through a blog carnival we both did. I'm a somewhat new mom (8 months) and a very new blogger ( 2 months) and am still discovering all the best parenting blogs, like this one :)
I think I've commented a couple times. I'm very conservative both politically and religiously, so I often feel out of place in the attachment parenting community. Interestingly, it was hardcore Catholic Republicans who got me into AP in the first place! My degree is in political science though so I love a good debate, even if I feel like I'm the only one on my side!
sphinkx:
Je parle francais aussi. Tu peux toujours laissez tes commentaires en francais! :)
Hi Nicole,
Thank you for your detailed comment.
I actually have written a few things on those topics:
http://www.canadianfamily.ca/blog/familyjewels/guest-blogger/2009/07/15/guest-post-reconsidering-the-11-month-wean/" rel="nofollow">
Reconsidering the 11 month wean
http://www.phdinparenting.com/2008/10/09/sah-or-woh-how-can-we-stop-restricting-mothers-choices/" rel="nofollow">SAH or WOH? How can we stop restricting mothers’ choices?
Hi Karen,
I haven't written a lot about that topic before. Perhaps I will one day! Our son goes to an alternative language-focused school. Here is one post I wrote about schools:
http://www.phdinparenting.com/2008/07/06/we-need-bilingual-schools/" rel="nofollow">We need bilingual schools
Hi Kate,
Thank you so much for linking to me in your Friday Favorites. I hadn't seen that previously. I think that is because the url you gave isn't direct to my blog (seems to be a feedproxy URL), so it didn't show up anywhere in my trackbacks or web analytics.
I'm a newcomer to your blog, having tracked it down from reading several posts on crying it out. I was feeling pretty desperate with my 6 month old and her sleep patterns (nursing all night, every night, while we co-slept). I had vowed never to let her CIO, but was beginning to feel pressure from family and friends to try it. However, after reading your blog and lots of others I held out. I have now managed to get her to sleep by rubbing her back. She still nurses several times through the night, but is no longer permanently attached to the nipple. So that's how I got hear, and now I really enjoy checking in. Oh, I especially like that you're Canadian. It's nice to see some great Canadian content!
Fiona (Vancouver)
Hi,
Just thought I'd say hello. Tracked down your blog, and wow, what a great resource of info! Looks like you've definately beaten the 33 comments in last years post!
Thanks! I will bookmark these ones for the next time someone asks me "how do I do it?"
I knew that I didn't want to recommend the way I did it.
I find it particularly interesting that the daycare at 9 or 18 months is better for starting. I suspect a huge part of my daughter's angst was the daytime weaning on my days at work, since the bottle did not do the trick! My son went to a daycare provider he already knew and I had a much more peaceful work schedule from 12-18 months, giving me more flexibility to leave early if needed.
Nicole :)
Hi,
I have been reading for a while. I have also been blogging for about six months, a blog about vegetables, but I am newly pregnant and not even able to look at a vegetable right now, so have stopped blogging for a bit. Otherwise I'd use this opportunity to whore out my own blog! :)
Hopefully I'll be back in the saddle soon. I enjoy reading your blog and often discuss your posts with my friends. Though you obviously don't know this, you and I have worked really hard together to help my friends understand more about cosleeping/attachment parenting/breastfeeding past six months, etc. I send them links all the time--I just sent a friend your saggy boobs post because she is convinced that her boobs are for her husband and will be destroyed if she nurses. So thanks!
Hi! I don't honestly know if I've commented here before or not, but I read your blog regularly and link to you over at my green-mom blog frequently...My kids are now 5 and 7, so I'm not breastfeeding any more, but I'm trying to stay aware of what's going on. Love what you do, and what you write about!
--Jenn the Greenmom
Hi! I am a newish reader and infrequent blogger but I enjoy your posts tremendously. I have a 4 year old spirited daughter whom I adore, but who requires the patience of Job, the strength of Samson and the wisdom of Solomon - none of which I have. I am in the midst of seeking a developmental/psychological evaluation for her to determine if there is more that my husband and I can be doing to to help her. I have known she was different from birth and enjoy reading what you and others have to say about child development. - Kats
I've been reading your blog irregularly (mainly following links from other parenting blogs) for the last couple of years, but only recently subscribed... Recovering from doing a PhD and finding a way to balance professional life with parenting, I like what you write here, but I particularly enjoy how you do it - putting together emotions and references to existing research.
I hardly comment, not only here, but also in other parenting blogs. Partly because lurking works well enough for me - I learn a lot, make my own choices and usually don't have a need to discuss it further. Partly since I don't have an online identity as a parent - it feels strange to link back to my professional blog here, but not linking to anything feels even worse - I blog and research blogging practices long enough to know how important it is.
I had followed links to posts in the past, but will now become a regular reader since I have a 10 week old boy and want to be the best parent I can be. I love your approach to discussing issues based on lots of research, and not just on opinion as is much more common.
I just found your blog...I love your rigorous, intellectual approach to parenting issues and your passionate activism. Keep it up!
I've seen your blog before, but just started reading it a few days ago. It seems like we agree on many things! I don't tend to comment on blog posts very much just because normally there are other people who have already said what I was thinking. Plus I don't have a lot of "internet time" and prefer to use my time reading more material instead of forming comments. Thanks for writing! I think you will help a lot of people in raising their children.
Your blog, Annie, is one of the first I followed after getting active on Twitter a couple of years ago. The topics you discuss and the way that you present them have always appealed to me. Though I don't always hold the same views, I've never felt that I couldn't respectfully share my opinion. Frankly, I've learned so much through you that I wish I had known so long ago.
So, even though I've been more of a lurker more recently, I hope you know that I really value what you do.
No one has commented to say hello here in awhile but I came across this post and wanted to say hi! I stumbled upon your blog a few weeks back and I don't post comments here (or anywhere else) very much, but I do love reading it! The posts I've read, along with the comments, have made me think and so I've learned something new from you or learned to think about other points of view. Thank you for such thought provoking information!!