This week I had the pleasure of interviewing Tiffany Merritt.  Tiffany runs a blog called Stuff Parents Need, which hosts amazing giveaways and stories from her fun filled life. In addition she is a busy mom of two girls.  Recently Tiffany was selected as one of Reynold’s Real Moms. I had the opportunity to delve into the life of this local celeb and share her personal story with you:

When did you start blogging?:

I started 7 weeks after my daughter Darah was born,in September of 2009. I was on maternity leave and I had still had energy at that time. I was ready to share my parenting expertise with the blogging world. It was like I had two babies two weeks apart, Darah and the blog.

What is the most difficult thing about blogging for you?:

I think the most difficult thing is getting readers to engage, typically about 3% of readers will respond. Bloggers crave comments, they are like the gifts of the blogging world. It’s nice when people reach out to you and connect. It’s also my own business and so sometimes it’s hard to be your own boss and stay motivated.

What is the biggest recent event in your blogging life?:

I was recently selected to be a spokeperson for the Reynold’s company. I will be a Reynold’s real mom. I have filmed 9 demonstration videos. I will do post and videos throughout the year and I will be in three national magazines. It’s a wonderful opportunity and it’s wonderful that Reynold’s  is hiring real moms. They are taking an exciting approach with great ideas on how to help women and men use their products to improve their dishes.

How do you balance blogging with home life?:

I need to make peace with the fact that I will never perfectly balance anything on any given day. I wake up between 3:30-4 am everyday so that I can have peaceful quiet writing time while the kids sleep.  I have to carve out the hours of quiet time, some days the blog suffers more and sometimes the house cleaning suffers. However, I never take my time with my daughters for granted because I understand that they are growing up and that I can’t get that time back. I really have to prioritize my time and make sure that I get my blogging requirements finished.

Did you take a break from blogging when your second daughter, Layah,  was born?:

Not really, I had some guest post which helped. I may have a had a week off but that’s it because it’s incredibly difficult to stop blogging and for the blog to stay alive. Social media is a fast and vast river and if you don’t have something in the current then people won’t have anything to cling onto.

You went on trip for Reynold’s recently, how did manage your blog while doing that?

I planned ahead and I had every post while I was gone, scheduled.

Is there anything else that you would like to share with our readers?:

I’m so flattered and honored to have folks get to know me, thankyou! I just want bloggers to know it’s not easy but please don’t give up on this. Especially when people tell you that your time isn’t important, because it is. There are so many opportunities and relationships available in the blogging world.  You can’t buy the kind of publicity that these communities offer. It’s a copacetic relationship with companies because they
are really listening and responding to their costumers and it’s a very exciting time for bloggers.

Thankyou so much to Tiffany Merritt! Please visit her blog and keep your eye out for her appearances on television as a Reynold’s Real Mom.

The Domestic FruitLoop