We caught up with Jill Asher, Beth Blecherman and Tekla Nee over margaritas one night at Compadres in Palo Alto - and this is what they had to say for themselves:

Mommybloggers: Tell us where you got the idea for SV Moms?

SV Moms: We had ten minutes of time one day in 2006 and thought, “Gee, we don’t know what to do with ALL this free time!.” Forget the fact that we ran PTA’s, work (and actually paid for the work we do) and chauffeur our kids from one activity to the next. We decided to create a collaborative blog and invite our friends. To our surprise and delight, it resonated with a lot of local silicon valley moms and quickly exceeded our expectations. We have connected with so many incredible women in Silicon Valley and beyond and are thrilled with how our adventure in blogging is turning out. We can’t wait to see what happens next……

Mommybloggers: Have you always been writers, or is blogging a new passion?

SV Moms: Tekla received her first rejection slip from Random House at age five. It did not dissuade her. She has been writing ever since and usually gets paid a lot more than she does for blogging.. Beth Blecherman is not a “real” writer and just likes playing with Typepad blogging technology. Jill Asher loves to write about her “perfect” parenting experiences and always enjoys venting on her daily posts. Pamela Hornik loves to blog about fashion, shopping and enjoys writing about her weekly trip to Anthropologie as blogging therapy.

Mommybloggers: What do you think of the term "mommyblogger" - are you mommybloggers?

SV Moms: You can call us whatever you want, as long as you read Silicon Valley Moms Blog.

Mommybloggers: SV Moms receives a lot of press - do you have any hints for bloggers who would like to become more media savvy?

SV Moms: Don’t be afraid to reach out to the press. Most people in the media are looking for a story. If a post is timely, forward it to your friends, email lists and local press. They want to hear from you.

Mommybloggers: Soapbox or sounding board? What impact do you want SV Moms to have?

SV Moms: Neither. We are more like a chick flick. We will make you laugh, cry and most of all, feel like you are not alone.

Mommybloggers: Tell us more about your writers. It seems like you've got quite a broad spectrum of experience and backgrounds.

SV Moms: We range in age from 20-something to the 60-plus. We have Ph.Ds, MD’s, MBA’s, MILFs, SAHMs, WAHMs and thank you mams! We have over educated chauffeurs, PTA leaders and PTA dropouts, crackberry addicts, ex-models , high power executives, Lawyers and even moms that make their own play-doh. How is that for an interesting mix?

Mommybloggers: Now that you've established yourselves in Silicon Valley, we hear that there are additional plans in the works. Anything you can share?

SV Moms: We are in the process of launching our first sister site, The Chicago Moms Blog in June 2007. Stay tuned! More cities to come shortly.

Mommybloggers: Where do you think blogging is headed? What's next?

SV Moms: Blogging is going to put a large number of therapists out of business in the near future as moms find each other through blogs and social network sites.

Mommybloggers: Tell us about this fantastic contest you've got going on SV Moms.

SV Moms: We have assembled over one thousand dollars worth of goods and services to makeover one lucky mom that lives in Silicon Valley. Moms tend to put themselves last and we want to put a mom first. (editor note: we'll update with the contest linkage and entry info as soon as we get it. MB)

What is your favorite parenting-related word?

Goodnight

What is your least favorite parenting-related word?

Perfect. (Our motto: If you think you are, keep it to yourself!)

What is your favorite creative censored curse word used around children?

WTF!

What is your favorite hiding place within your home when you need to get away from it all?

In Silicon Valley, there is no place to hide. We live in millions dollar shacks smaller than the typical midwest garage.

If Oprah exists, what would you like to hear her say when you arrive at the Oprah Winfrey show when she features the Mommybloggers?

These women will promise NOT to jump on my sofa.

We're continuing our celebration of the Silicon Valley Moms Blog all week - check back as we feature some of the great content that SV Moms is known for! Can't wait? Jump over to their site and say hello!

Posted by Jenny Lauck at 1:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Mommybloggers.com is thrilled to introduce a new feature of our site today. We're known for featuring outstanding individual bloggers, which we adore. Yet, there is a whole community of wonderful collaborative sites written by and for blogging parents that deserve kudos. We're kicking off our first collaborative blogging feature with the Silicon Valley Moms Blog.

Just over a year old, SV Moms Blog has already built an impressive readership and reputation as a go-to source for families in the Silicon Valley area. With over 40 fantastic contributors on board, founders Jill Asher, Tekla Nee, Pamela Miller-Hornik and Beth Blecherman have created an amazing site that has received enthusiastic press and attention, from the very first month.

We asked some of their many contributors to share why they love writing for SV Moms:

Thida, blogger at SVM and Water Owl's Movements finds it a safe haven:

I like blogging for Silicon Valley Moms Blog, because I feel any topic I want to blog about is okay. I can blog about American Idol, or my son's tumor. And yeah American Idol relates to my kids because my son is a big fan of Melinda. ;)

It also feels safe and nice to blog there. People read my posts and respond appropriately. Not always agreement but definitely on topic. I've been blogging for over five years. After my son was born and so sick, I had to stop blogging on Blogspot for months, because every time I'd post about my son's feeding issues, I'd get comment spam about dieting. So painful when your child is on a feeding tube.

Also if things get busy or rough and I stop writing posts, after a while, I get these sweet little email nudges from Jill. :) Are you still with us? Yes!

Stephanie fo Adventures In Babywearing, a new SVM contributor and soon to be Chicago Moms blog writer.

Everyone at SVM has been so welcoming and encouraging to us new soon-to-be Chicago Moms bloggers. We are excited to be part of the sister blog to SVMs.

Katie Roper loves the ease of participation:

Jill, Beth, Tekla, and Pamela make it so easy to contribute! They are a joy to work with - giving us just the right amount of both prodding and encouragement. I had always wondered about Blogging, and I'm so glad now I can do it, in a way that fits into my working & parenting schedule.

Jen at One Plus Two likes the local aspect:

I enjoy participating in the SVMoms blog because it offers a local perspective, well balanced in humor and honesty, reflecting personal challenges and rewards to parenting and living in the Silicon Valley. The diversity of voices makes it clear we are all not cut from the same cloth, but it's the fabric that binds us together as we all raise our kids in our community.

Glennia Campbell of The Silent I and Kimchi Mamas is NOT a sucker:

When Jill and Pamela asked if I wanted to write for the SV Moms Blog, I had no idea exactly what that meant, or how a collaborative blog worked. If you haven't had the pleasure of meeting them, just let me say that it is impossible to "just say no" to either one of them and when they team up, they are an unstoppable force of nature.
Ultimately, I guess you could say that I succumbed to peer pressure Next thing you know, the two of them will be egging me on to try Twitter or Facebook some other Web 2.0 crack. I am such a sucker.

I think the appeal of the blog is that we try to show our commonality as women and mothers, as people who think and dream and create. There are times when the blog is controversial and other times when we hit on truths that transcend our differences. There are stories that you can relate to and some things you just can't imagine. To paraphrase Forrest Gump, "[The Silicon Valley Moms Blog] is like a box of chocolates. You just never know what your gonna get." It's been a privilege to be a part of this group.

"I'm so happy to have had the opportunity to blog with SV Moms. It's not only given me something to do with all my free time as a working mommy, I can now fill my days reading other blogs as well. Actually, I am unbelievably impressed with how quickly this has taken off, thanks to the skills of Jill, Pam, Tekla and Beth, and I feel lucky to be part of all these hot mommy bloggers."

Check back with us this afternoon, as we sit down with the founders for a little Q&A! You won't want to miss this one!

Posted by Jenny Lauck at 11:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)