Mom Trusted Blog

My picks for the top 20ish mom (+1 dad) blogs in Ohio.  They are all a little different, so I like them for different reasons.

Stop, Drop, and Blog – Fun theme, beautiful pictures, down to earth posts

Classy Chaos – Fun and sophisticated

Mommy Bits – Writings about family, life, and tech

Ms. Single Mama – Packed with tons of great content and videos

Mom of 2 Peas – This blog makes me smile

Working Moms Against Guilt – 4 moms write about working, kids, and guilt

Classic Ivory – Cute blog about Lindsey and her family

The Life of Dad – Humorous writings about parenting and fatherhood

Paper Glue Etc. – Eclectic and thoughtful

The Bird’s Nest – Lots of fun stuff packed in this blog

The Tomecko Echo – Just an honest look at life

Mom Going Green – Going green for a healthy family and earth

Mommin’ It Up – 2 moms writing about life with kids

Starr Family Blog – Lovely designed blog with lovely photos of life

Family Friendly Cincinnati – Family friendly dining, events, and attractions in Cincinnati

Akron Ohio Moms – Giveaways, Food, and Reviews

Being Mom2Amara – Just feels real…Like a close friend

So This Is Life – Blog about life + cute crafts

Mandi Minding Money – Deals and money saving tips

Bullfrogs and Butterflies Baby – Product Reviews

A Busy Mom of Two – Who can’t relate to a busy mom? :)

DustinNikki Mommy of Three – Giveaways and Products

Know any other really great Ohio parent blogs?  Post your top pick here in the comments! :)

Attention Ohio Parents:

We now have all licensed child care centers in Ohio on MomTrusted.com! 

Now find:

- Akron Child Care, Akron Inhome Centers, Akron Preschools, Akron Nannies, and Akron Babysitters.

- Cincinnati Child Care, Cincinnati Inhome Centers, Cincinnati Preschools, Cincinnati Nannies, and Cincinnati Babysitters.

- Cleveland Child Care, Cleveland Inhome Centers, Cleveland Preschools, Cleveland Nannies, and Cleveland Babysitters.

- Columbus Child Care, Columbus Inhome Centers, Columbus Preschools, Columbus Nannies, and Columbus Babysitters.

- Dayton Child Care, Dayton Inhome Centers, Dayton Preschools, Dayton Nannies, and Dayton Babysitters.

- Toledo Child Care, Toledo Inhome Centers, Toledo Preschools, Toledo Nannies, and Toledo Babysitters.

and ALL Ohio Child Care, Ohio Inhome Centers, Ohio Preschools, Ohio Nannies, and Ohio Babysitters.

It’s about creating a safe environment to find child care.

249smiles was created with the backdrop of random Craigslist posts and people telling us to look in the phone book for centers.  What can you learn from the phone book besides for a name and address?  How scary is it to talk to people about caring for your child who have no photo, no information, no parent references?  And why are these the only resources to find care for our dearest loved ones?

With 249smiles the search is safer and just makes more sense!  Our providers can upload photos of themselves, their employees, or facilities, they can give you important (need to know) information, you can get a sense of their philosophies, other parents can leave comments and ratings of the providers, and most importantly, you can contact those parents to ask specific questions about their experiences with the babysitter, nanny, or daycare provider.

It’s about making the important connections with other parents.

We found (in our own experience and in research) that parents don’t generally make the child care decision alone or based on an advertisement…they decide to entrust their child with someone because another parent told them about their great experience with them.  The got a good recommendation from someone they trusted.  They heard it from the mouth of another mother “yeah, my child went there and we all loved it!”  We base our decisions on other people experiences and 249smiles supports that!

It’s about finding the best child care.

There are many different types, styles, and philosophies of child care and that’s great!  There’s no universal ‘good’…we know different characteristics are good for different families.   That’s why 249smiles believes transparency and sharing are key in this process.  Child care providers have the opportunity to really show what they’re all about and give you the information you need.  Learn from what they tell you and from what they don’t.  Ask them questions in the comment section of their profile so you can help other parents in the process.  When you see a child care provider doing something you love, make sure you’re asking other providers if their doing it too!  This is the only way child care providers know what’s important to parents.

Cool things child care providers are doing now:

- Step Up to Quality (for Ohio child care centers)

- Stars for Kids Now (for Kentucky child care centers)

- American Red Cross CPR and First Aid courses

- American Red Cross Babysitter’s Training