Meet the blogger – Kids Days Out Reviews

Here at BlogOn we like nothing more than showcasing different bloggers and their wonderful blogs. This week’s blogger is Joanne from Kids Days Out Reviews. If you fancy being featured on Meet the blogger then please email laura@blogonconference.com

Kids Days Out Reviews

Name – Joanne Brady

Blog URL – http://kidsdaysoutreviews.co.uk/

Twitter – www.twitter.com/daysoutblog

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/KidsDaysOutReviewsBlog/

Instagram – www.instagram.com/daysoutblog

How long have you been blogging and what made you start?

I started in 2011 as a twin mum blogger. I was making the jump overnight from two children to four. I was going a bit insane at home, and thought it would be a bit of a laugh. I didn’t know that parent blogs existed before I started. Blogs, yes, but a whole community of parent bloggers, no. My current blog, about days out and family travel, followed in the summer of 2012.

What do you wish you had known before you started?

How consuming it can get. You say you’re not going to get drawn in, and will only blog when you’ve got time and something to say, and there you are at 2am writing guff about your favourite kids’ TV show or about your love for Cadbury’s Minstrels.

What one tip would you give to a new blogger?

Start slow. Find your feet, and your voice. Yes, some new bloggers grow fast and have a huge fan base seemingly overnight. Many more don’t, and those that do risk burnout. If you want longevity, then it needs to be sustainable.

What is the most surprising thing you have learned since you started blogging?

Not much surprises me anymore to be honest. I think I’m getting too old to find much of anything a surprise, and I’ve always been an unimpressible cynic, which I’m still not sure is a good thing or a bad thing. Anyway, probably I’m surprised I’ve stuck blogging out. I get itchy if I do something for too long and am always looking for the next move. I think it’s because I’m definitely in the ‘slow blogging’ movement and haven’t yet reached burnout or gotten fed up of the blogging itself. It proves I can stick something out as long as it’s something I want to be a part of.

What is the best thing about blogging?

The community, no question. I have times when I don’t write at all as I’ve nothing much to write about, particularly in the winter. I get fed up of some of the politics sometimes, and my time to write anything and do seemingly endless promotion on social media is dwindling as the children get older and my business takes a little more priority. I consider jacking it in almost on a daily basis. It’s the community that keeps me here. I’d miss all my friends who live in my computer and phone if I didn’t blog anymore. If I hadn’t found the parent blogging community when I first started a blog, I know I wouldn’t be here now.

What new skills have you learned since you started blogging?

Countless skills – working with PRs, social media, video editing, WordPress development, and photography (though it’s still more of a ‘keeping it real’ style).

What is the most unusual thing you have done/received because of blogging?

Probably when I got to interview Sir Ranulph Fiennes for Marie Curie about one of his challenges. He came to Yorkshire for a fundraising event and myself and Helpful Mum Sian went to meet him. I took my eldest who had no clue who he was, and when she told them at school the next day, I don’t think they believed her until they saw the blog post and our pics with him. I certainly wouldn’t have done that without the blog. And it was good to have done something tangible for a charity with which our family have had personal dealings.

What has been your proudest blogging achievement so far?

I won the MADs Best Family Travel Blog in 2014, which was unexpected. The blog had been around about two years before then, which isn’t lots, but at the time, there weren’t many people doing family travel as a niche. I was up against some established and well-known travel bloggers, but I won. I got a holiday voucher, and a trophy which lives in my office.

What is your blogging goal for the next year?

To still be here. The business is getting busier and busier and I find it hard to find the time to do too much, but we have a couple of trips booked in already, so you’re not getting rid of me that easily. You’ll be removing me from the parent blogging community only if you can un-grip my clammy hands.

What will you be doing in 5 years time?

Yeah, I’ll still be blogging. It might look a bit different. By then I’ll have an 18 year old, a 15 year old, and 12 year old twins, so there will certainly be less of a focus on tots’ days out and probably more video footage of me on roller coasters.

Will we see you at a BlogOn event this year?

Of course. Don’t think I’ve missed a May one yet. And I might be able to do my first Christmas one this year too.

If Yes, What do you hope to learn more about at BlogOn?

I could do with learning what to do with my ‘big’ camera a little more. Composition I can do. Editing is fine. I have NO clue what any of the buttons do and need to learn as I do think the quality of the image can be better. Other than that, I’m going to learn how many bottles of wine I can get in my pockets and bags before Alice notices.

If you liked this make sure you check out last weeks Meet the Blogger.