Navigating Parenting as an Influencer
My my, how time is flying…
It’s hard to believe that it’s already been over a week since we brought this sweet baby of ours home from the hospital. I know we’re just barely even started with our parenting journey, but I can already tell that all the cliche sayings about how fast it goes by are going to be true. We’ve been trying our best to soak up every moment and all the baby cuddles that he has to offer! As we’re nearing the end of Aaron’s paternity leave, we’ll be navigating what our life looks like being parents and both of us working full time.
But it’s time to get back to work…
My work on the other hand can be a little more complicated to navigate. Over the last several years, I’ve had the privilege of growing a career of sharing our life, our home, and products that we love with you! And it’s truly my dream job. Since my job as an influencer is so engrained with sharing our life, it’s hard to figure out the boundaries between my tendency to overshare (sometimes embarrassing) details of my life, and our family. I want to make sure to enjoy our family time and make memories that are personal to us, but I also want to share my life and experiences as a mom with you. I appreciate your patience SO MUCH as I figure out what it looks like to share AND protect our family’s privacy.
The public life of an influencer…
Being an influencer comes with its own challenges. It can be very hard to wake up every morning and get on camera and share. There’s an inherent lack of privacy that comes with that. Even though it can be difficult having people tell you their opinion about your life all the time, I love it. I love hearing feedback from my followers, the sweet messages, comments, and encouragement from my Instagram friends and community!
I know the public life that I signed up for, but what about our children? What if they don’t want their life to be so public?
This is new territory…
Being an influencer is still a pretty new career path. There isn’t a lot of information out there to guide parents how to navigate sharing their lives while protecting the privacy of their children. There isn’t a lot of information about the long term psychological effects on our kids if we overshare about them. Since that’s the case, we’ve been taking our time making decisions of what we want to share and what we want to keep private. Do we share his name? Do we share his face? His birth weight? And on and on the questions go.
We want to protect:
- His physical wellbeing
- His mental health
- His ability to become his own person
- His ability to create his own “digital footprint” and persona on social media
- His ability to decide what personal details are public
What we’ve decided so far:
- When I share him, it will be primarily from my perspective on our life as parents (since this is my career choice, not his!)
- I don’t want to share anything he would be embarrassed by as an adult
- We’ll call him by his first name only on my social media
- When he’s old enough to have an opinion, we’ll respect what he does/doesn’t want shared
- A portion of income from collaborations on products for him will be set aside for him
Thank you!!
I want to thank you so much for those who have been patient with us. I know many have been wondering what we decided to name him, details about his birth, etc. We’ve taken some time to decide what to share and really appreciate you hanging in there with us! This is new territory and we want what’s best for our son (doesn’t every parent??) and we can’t wait to share our parenting journey with you.
His name is…
Remington! My sister Kayla thought of his name, and we fell in love with how timeless and stately it sounds.
Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts, and for following along!!
Have a great week, from The Bowmans; Aaron, Karlee, and Remington!!
16 Comments
Lea Anna
His name is perfect! Thank you for sharing your heart. You are doing this Mom thing right. I love that you are protecting him and your family. Post what you feel comfortable with! Congratulations and now go love on that sweet boy!
Terry G
I am so proud of you and the decisions you are making for your family. Everyone must follow their hearts. It should be your decision and not your fillers decisions. You are an amazing family and I love his name! ♥️♥️♥️
Michelle
I LOVE ❤️ LOVE ❤️ LOVE ❤️ LOVE ❤️ LOVE ❤️
his name!!
Welcome to Parenting!! I have 22 year old twins and a 14 year old and I still wonder how to navigate parenting with their best interest in mind.. always growing and evolving, but the fact that you are so conscientious of all your decisions shows you are a great mama!! You got this!! Thanks for sharing!!!
Nadia
Beautifully said! 💛
Whit
Aww I love his name. There is nothing wrong with protecting your children. I think you have a great plan in place. Congratulations!!
Wendy
Congratulations again, Remington is a very timeless name!! I commend you in really taking your time on sharing personal things about him a parent honestly cannot be too careful these days! He is a precious baby!!
Donna
I love his name and I really commend you for your approach to protecting his privacy. Love your sweet family.
Gail
It is difficult terrain and I love that you all are being so deliberate in your decisions. Everyone should respect your privacy but I am always amazed (and appalled at times!) at what people will say or do on social media. Best of luck as you navigate this and stay true to your values and decisions. And I LOVE his name!!!
Mallory
What a darling name! He looks so much like a mix of both of you, so sweet! You are doing a fabulous job mama! Thank you for explaining your heart and thought process as you move forward in your work and as a mother. It’s so refreshing and inspiring and it gives good food for thought for the rest of us! I so appreciate your genuine presence online, and how you give so much to your audience. Your little Remington is going to be so blessed by that big giving heart you have! Thank you for giving us glimpses into your life!
Stacy Medendorp
What a beautiful family that you have. Enjoy every moment. They grow up so fast. My son will be 26 at the end of June and it feels like yesterday we brought him home. Every bump and scratch laugh and cry and tantrum take it all in. Love your family and hold them close. You are the mama trust your gut and love every second good and bad. Love the Baby’s name.
Take care and 😉😉😉😉
Sue Ellen Jacobs
So happy for you all!!! What an awesome name!!! I have loved following you and your stories so much!!! Whatever you share is from your heart and it shows!!! You are doing a great job momma!!! I will soon be a grandma for the first time!!! Babies are my business… I’m a nurse in labor and delivery, which I love with my whole being!!! Nothing better than those precious snuggles and being able to be with your blessing!!! I know there are emotions that are all over the place as a new momma. One day at a time… sleep does get better….. and you have the most wonderful job in the whole world and that is between you and your family!!! Love catching glimpses along your journey…. ❤️❤️❤️
Karen Dixon
You are making such wise decisions as parents. I truly admire you both deciding to keep details on Remington to a bare minimum
,,,keep him safe, there are details that other people really don’t need to know. Love his name, and wish all the best to you all.
Best wishes from a grandmother of 4 precious
smart young adults. ♥️
Linda Powell
Love , love , love his name! Awaiting grand baby number 7 (and a retired teacher) so I love hearing baby names. He’s precious and so lucky to have parents who consider every aspect that may effect him later❤️
Suzanne
Beautifully said! I respect your decisions and your protectiveness. You are a great Mama already! His name is precious! He is beautiful. Congratulations
Kelli
I love everything about this post! I love how you are taking your time to think about how much you want to expose your most prized possession. Also, how you are willing to stick with your instincts and not be influenced or bullied by the guilt vampires that try and make you believe your content should be an open book of your life! You and Aaron are going to be great parents!!
PS- Love his name, his room decor fits perfectly with the stately nature of his name!!
Annette
Your lil family is precious!! You do you!! What’s best for you and YOUR FAMILY!! I won’t lie and say I wasn’t waiting on pins and needles to know his lil name 😜 but I don’t know how would make that decision either so no judgment at all!! He’s precious, his name is precious and you and your hubby are precious!! Thank you for all you do!!