The term "mommyblogger" has been deconstructed at length in the parenting blogosphere and beyond.  Some think the term fits, and others don't.  Either way, it seems to be a loaded word likely to generate more discussion.

"I cannot say with certainty which of my motives are the strongest, but I know which of them deserve to be followed." -George Orwell: Why I Write, 1946

My heart sank when this morning's segment on the Today Show started off with Hoda Kotb announcing "... the growing popularity of... 'mommy blogs.'" She used air quotes, and everything. You could've substituted anything bizarre and mystifying in the quotations, actually. "Alien bloodsuckers," or "giant pink sea monsters," for example. I turned to my husband. "This is not going to end well," I said. But first, let me back up.

Mommybloggers. We have been called everything from narcissistic naval gazers to the holy grail of the marketing world. When I started blogging over 5 years ago, there were not a lot of mommybloggers out there. In fact, most of us who were writing frequently either knew each other or knew of each other. It was a small community. Today? Today there are roughly 200,000-plus bloggers who are blogging on the topic of parenting and family. Each day a new mom or family blog pops up with fresh stories, experiences and points of view. The focus ranges from the mundane of motherhood to politics to the harsh realities that come with being a parent. You would think that with a name that sounds so sweet-- "mommyblogger"-- that it would be all sunshine and roses among this vast group of women. Sometimes it is. But do not think for one moment that this genre of blogging is not filled with competitiveness and politics.

It has been one of those weeks. A week that slams you against a wall. Needless to say, I fell behind in my blog reading. What is an editor to do? Why she just hops onto Twitter to find the latest buzz. And, oh, there has been buzz! Take for instance the newest addition to the Urban Dictionary. When Jenny of The Bloggess found her group blog Mama Drama on Alltop.com, she emailed Guy Kawasaki (the creator of the list) to thank him. From there, the hilarity ensued. In a must read exchange between Guy and Jenny, she found herself the topic of a Tweet.

I was at a little social gathering last night where the conversation turned to blogs, and so I joined the fray and mentioned that I'm a blogger. In no time at all a new acquaintance and I were comparing notes on who we read and love. And when another woman joined the conversation, the first woman responded to the "What sorts of blogs do you read?" question with "Well, I know it's awful to put it this way and people hate being called this, but what I really love are the mommyblogs."