BlogHer - Tweet, Tweet: Mommy Play Date Calling - Comments

Check-in-kinda-tweeter

Ingrassiacmo — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 14:54:03 -0600

I can see how it could lose its appeal with too many followers etc. I find I only really talk to a handful of people (although I am still kinda new)... but I still go on every day to see what's going on in the twitter world.... although I dont know how some people keep up with convo all day long, my 2 little ones dont make that possible for me... I end up replying to tweets hours later

My link is http://twitter.com/complicatedmama

On guard against adiction

Nordette — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 13:47:43 -0600

Thanks, Susan. I'm on guard against becoming addicted. Been there done that elsewhere. :-)

Nordette is a Contributing Editor with BlogHer.com whose personal blog is WSATA, and she's finally taken the dive into Tw

Twitter names, anyone?

Nordette — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 13:46:14 -0600

Thanks for that suggestion, Stanford Wife. Mine is nordette_verite.

Nordette is a Contributing Editor with BlogHer.com whose personal blog is WSATA, and she's finally taken the dive into Tw

Poking Twittermoms a bit

Nordette — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 13:05:31 -0600

I'm poking Twittermoms a bit. Joined and already used something I found there for a short post at WSATA. Looking also at someone who makes her own laundry detergent to be frugal. I think that intrigues me because I'm not that industrious. LOL.

Nordette is a Contributing Editor with BlogHer.com whose personal blog is WSATA, and she's finally taken the dive into Tw

I am a former twitter addict

lilmommythatcould — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 10:47:13 -0600

I am a former twitter addict myself. Although I still use it for a website I work for I don't use it for myself.

Before The longest I went without a tweet was the 6 hours I slept. Now I can go days without a tweet. I guess with so many followers I lost the personalization that started my bloggy passion.

I won't deny the power of twitter. But,personally, in the end I rather have a few great Blogging friends then a whole lotta twitter followers.

~Susan

http://lilmomthatcould.com/

New to Twitter!

Stanford Wife — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:28:48 -0600

I started using Twitter about a week ago and I have to say that so far I love it. I'm new to the Bay Area, so it is a great way for me to learn about resources (a good breakfast spot, where to get blotting papers) in my area. Plus, I work at home (not a mom) so I'm always looking for ways to connect with folks.

That said, I'm only 100 tweets in and who knows I'll be able to keep doing this and blog at the same time?

So, what are people's Twitter names? Mine's @StanfordWife.

Sincerely,
Stanford Wife

Tweet Me Addicted

MiaHysteria — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 22:09:52 -0600

Ah yes. The site is so new and I'm one of the new members. Still though, I have no idea what I'm doing (as in most social networking sites). It was a well thought out idea and obviously a much needed one, as proven by such high numbers of members in such a short time. For me, as a stay at home mom, it's been a great way to reach out to other moms in my situation.

Love it. Addicted. Probably will need help getting away from it very soon.

~Mia.

My blog is General Hysteria~

Tweet, Tweet: Mommy Play Date Calling

Nordette — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 20:14:43 -0600

A badge on its website describes Twittermoms as "the online version of the three martini playdate," and I think that may be true in that you have to be there to catch the madness. This new group, and I do mean new, boasts more than 4900 members, and was started only a few months ago in September by young mom and Twitter fan Megan Calhoun.

When I say you have to be there to catch the madness, I mean that Twittermoms is like most other social media networking sites. Whether you're reading about Facebook or MySpace, you really can't grasp what either is until you join and mingle with its members. I haven't done that yet at Twittermoms, however.

Give me a break, please. I'm a middle-aged mom who has gotten behind on her mommy websites and keeping track of the Net's novae and suns. I caught up with MochaMoms, for instance, last week after reading what its founder had to say about Michelle Obama shaking up the June Cleaver myth. Is it any wonder I'm just getting to tweeting and Twittermoms?

I learned of the new site the old way, by reading a newspaper article. Online, yes. But newspaper nonetheless. Parenting "examiner" Tereece Clark of The Miami Examiner interviewed Calhoun, first mentioning that Twittermoms began in September, telling readers the site has already been featured elsewhere such as at Real Simple, AOL's Parent Dish, FastCompany, and at TechCrunch, where the writer attributes Twittermom's fast growth to Twitter needing groups and gives this description of the Twittermom site:

Twittermoms is not what you think. It isn’t a Twitter clone for mothers. Instead, it’s a site where moms who Twitter can come together and talk about being mothers. It is a perfect demographic for Twitter, filled with people who have lots of real opinions based on experience and like to share them. The site features discussion forums for those that want to chat about “The NEW Twitter” or “Pet Peeves” and offers groups based on interests. For example, some mothers choose to join the “Being Moms” group, while others joined the “Twins!” group. (TechCrunch)

The site also features a Twitter Mom of the Week, something I discovered while touring it.

Calhoun explained to The Examiner why she started Twittermoms:

As a stay at home mom, you sometimes don’t get enough adult interaction during the day. My husband suggested I check out Twitter to connect with other moms, and I just loved it. Twitter provides a fun way for staying connected with people, and I noticed a lot of moms on it – but there was no easy way to learn more about them, or make decisions about who would be really interesting to follow on Twitter.

That’s what gave me the idea to start a site where moms who are on Twitter could meet and have more in-depth conversations. On Sept. 2, I launched TwitterMoms.com. I added the URL to my Twitter.com profile and the next morning we had four members. Now, at twelve weeks old, membership rushed past 4,600 active members. A new mom joins every few minutes. It’s been quite a rush! (Calhoun's interview)

Members of the Twittermom group aren't the only mothers who've discovered tweeting's parental perks. I learned through a "Twitter 101" post at Charlotte-Anne Lucas's blog of Michelle Slatalla's amusing essay at The New York Times, "If You Can't Let Go, Twitter," telling how she pushed her family to use the microblogging/group-messaging site:

Some day these people will get their own lives, and I’ll be able to pop out to buy ballet flats whenever I want. But until they do, I figured there had to be a more efficient way for me to keep in touch with all of them at once.

This was how I ended up signing up for a free account from Twitter ...

To get things rolling, I sent my daughters and husband standard Twitter e-mail invitations ("slatalla wants to keep up with you on twitter") that contained a link to the service’s home page. Then, while I sat in my car in front of my youngest daughter’s school, I sent an update on my whereabouts: “car pool dilemma will French horn and trombone both fit in a mini” Then?

Nothing.

"hello" I typed. Three minutes passed. Four. Still nothing. For the first time in the nearly 19 years since I first gave birth, no one wanted to keep tabs on me.Then suddenly my cellphone buzzed. It was my first Twitter — a text message from Zoe, my 18-year-old daughter, how exciting — and so I eagerly opened it onscreen.

It said, "twitter?? what the hell is this?" (NYT)

After joining Twitter today, I sent Twitter invites to my two children, one a teen who will be 18 this month and the other 27. So far, no response. However, I did get a text message from one asking me what I wanted from the store and a phone call from the other informing me of his whereabouts.

I doubt they'll join me in my brave new tweeting adventure. The teen informed me last night, for instance, that he would never friend me on Facebook. "Mom, all you'll do is question why I'm friends with certain people."

What! Do I really do that? O.K. Maybe. Sometimes.

The adult child may be kind enough to come along after she mulls over it for a while and complains that it's probably a time waster. Ah, the things we do to grow.

As I try to figure out Twitter.com and a few other social networking tools I've neglected, I'm checking out resources such as Charlotte-Ann Lucas's posts as well as Top 10 Twitter Hacks and SheGeeks.net. I'm used to being schooled by people like Charlotte, but being shown the ropes by a youngster, the 21-year-old Cordiva who started SheGeeks, I feel old and rusty.

I've also surfed BlogHer for more on tweeting and enjoyed these posts: "You're Twittering Me From Where?, "Laura Ingles Wilder: From Prairie, to TV, to Twitter?," "Tweet, Tweet, Follow Me! (Is this Thing On?)," "Twitter Museums," and "Twitter Tweaker to Twitter Quitter: Confessions of a Former Twitter Addict."

That last post in the list is by SuperJive, former Twitter addict. I guess, like my children, she won't be following me on Twitter either. :-)

Note to self: Join a Twitter group.

Nordette is a BlogHer.com contributing editor shoes personal blog is WSATA.