The Rise of the Expat Mummy Blogger

Yesterday in The London Evening Standard there was an incredible article about exercise shorts that help you lose weight. Zaggora HotPants have been on the market for just six months and their revenues are set to hit a staggering £10 million this year! With no advertising budget, Dessislava Bell, creator of the HotPants, attributes this amazing success to sending out a free pair of the shorts to each of 500 bloggers, many of whom where Mummy Bloggers.

From The Evening Standard

But where did these Mummy Bloggers come from? Dave Lee and Snezana Curcic, BBC World Service Reporters, say that, “For the mums, they provide a discussion and support network”.

Clearly, if this is the main reason for blogging, this can only be amplified for Mummy Bloggers living abroad where a support network may not be immediately underneath them in their expat posting. Writing a blog can be a way of connecting with people in a similar situation, although may not be in a similar geographical location.

So to celebrate all the wonderful Expat Mummy Blogs out there Expat Explorer has compiled an A-Z of the Top Ten Expat Mummy Bloggers.

4 kids, 20 suitcases and a beagle

In her own words: Kirsty is an Australian writer and Blogger currently living in Qatar. After calling 7 countries home over the past 11 years she's embarrassed to admit she still can't pack a suitcase properly. Kirsty is currently writing a book about having 4 children in 4 different countries while trying to remember her new telephone number and where she packed the can opener. You can catch Kirsty on twitter @shamozal

Bringing Up Brits

In her own words: Meghan Fenn is an American expat and mother who has lived in England since 1999. After graduating from university with a BA in English and Art, she became an English teacher and lived and worked in Prague for two years and then in Tokyo for two and a half years. She moved to England to complete her Masters degree in Design Studies and then worked as a web designer at a company in Nottinghamshire. After being made redundant whilst pregnant with her 2nd child, she set up her own web and graphic design company, White Ochre Design Ltd.

Meghan currently lives on the Southeast coast of England, is married to an English man and has 3 young children, all born in the UK.

Bringing Up Brits is her first book and she is currently working on another book about raising a family around a business (and vice versa!).

Dubai’s Desperate Housewife

In her own words: Dubai’s Desperate Housewife has lived in Dubai for 11 years. She quit her high-flying job to be a full-time mum to a 4-year-old and a small baby – something she wrestles with every day. Although she loves being there for her kids, she lives a parallel life in her head; one where her career continued its upward trajectory and her days are not spent on the school run and dangling rattles for a baby to swat.

Expat Mum

In her own words: Quite simply I'm a Brit who was whisked off by a knight in shining armour (well, an accountant) to live in the USA some twenty years ago. We now have three kiddy-winkies and a mutt with selective hearing.

My days are filled with writing for various things on the web (see next tab), finishing another book, running a charitable organisation to fund a school in Ghana, and of course, being a devoted wife and mother to my adorable family. (That would be British sarcasm in case anyone's now a little confused.)

I was brought up in the northeast of England (God's own country), went to university in Bristol and worked for the rest of the 80's in London. When I first moved to the States, I lived in Dallas, but the rest of the time has been spent trying to come to terms with the oppressively hot summers and unbearably frigid winters of Chicago.

Happy Homemaker UK

In her own words: Follow my journey as it unfolds as an American mom living in England. Often featuring local locations and tidbits, I love photography & a good story.

Note from Lapland

In her own words: Note From Lapland is where I write about whatever the hell is on my mind, whether that’s Finnish supermarkets selling vibrators or more serious posts about dealing with life after children and discovering who you are but hopefully always in an entertaining manner.  I swear, I rant and rave, I make you laugh and hopefully also make you think.

Mommy has a Headache

In her own words: Who am I? Displaced Londoner now living in the States with my two little girlies and long suffering husband. Co-author of hilarious parenting book Cocktails at Naptime www.cocktailsatnaptime.com My mom's an Austrian, my dad's a Brit, which makes me a Britaustrian, or possibly an Austrish?

The American Resident

In her own words: The American Resident is written by Michelle Garrett, an American expat making a home in Britain for over 20 years.

I am a freelance writer who enjoys being creative in an interactive way during my free time. That’s why, besides blogging, I also love cooking, gardening and hosting parties–all creativity enhanced by interaction with others. Sharing makes most things more fun.

As a freelance writer and professional blogger I have written for magazines, websites and larger projects. I am currently working on two eGuides for expats.

If you’re curious about my back story, click here: How I Got Where I am Today

If you would like one cool fact about me: I can do that thing where you run up to a chair, stand on it with one foot on the seat and one on the back, and slowly tip it over. Can you?

The New Diplomat’s Wife

In her own words: The plan was to become a diplomat myself, but I somehow ended up marrying one instead. We started out as a duet and recently became a trio, just to spice up the spirit of adventure. Previous post: Vienna, Austria Current post: Washington, DC

Vegemite Vix

In her own words: Well not all about me obviously, this is the internet.

I moved with my three kids, my dog, cat, a guitar and twenty boxes of books, from New Zealand to North Hampshire in the UK in August 2008. Why in God’s name did I swap beautiful beaches for Blighty, pavlova for pork pies and sand, surf, sun for …. snow… and sleet…

You’d be surprised how often I’m asked that question, but in truth, I did it for lots of reasons – work opportunities, opportunities for my kids, but mainly for the love of my Englishman this crazy man I met and fell in love with in Paris in June 2007.

This is the story of our experiences, of our brave adventure. Sometimes they’re funny, sometimes they’re sad, but always – at least I hope so – meaningful.

This is our story about how to really live – wet-paint-on-your-fingers-live – in another country as an expat, a long way from the places, the people and the land you call home.

And a final word for any aspiring bloggers out there (expat, mummy or other), here are 25 Top Tips for Bloggers from Expat Mummy Blogger, The American Resident, Michelle Garrett.

Are you an Expat Mummy Blogger? Get in touch and share your blog, tell us why you love blogging!