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Mommy Blogger's Irreverent Observations

Heather Armstrong's Popular, Controversial Blog Pokes Fun at Everyday Life

The advertising revenue didn't cause her to censor her content. "The only thing that has led me to self-censor is the knowledge that my father is reading my Web site," she said.

Heather Armstong
Heather Armstrong, 32, created dooce.com in 2001.
(Courtesy of Heather Armstong )

Armstrong wasn't always so thoughtful. She painfully recalls one incident early in her blogging career that hurt her family, in particular her father.

"When my family discovered my Web site it was the day after I had written a martini-fueled diatribe against religion, and it was devastating to them. My father didn't speak to me for three months," Armstrong said.

After that she developed some rules for what she would and would not write about her family. Despite having lost an advertiser or two, Armstrong hasn't lost her edge.

"After I started running ads someone sent me a hate mail and said your Web site now sucks sweaty goat balls. And I knew right then that had to be my next tag line," she said. "Two advertisers pulled out. An ad company called to say, 'You might want to warn us.' But, you know, I think they understand now that's why people come to my Web site."

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Balancing Family and Blog

Armstrong said her audience is mostly young mothers looking for a friend. But there are other fans.

"I get a lot of e-mail from college aged boys who say, 'I'm disgusted with myself, but I love your Web site.'"

Her bold blogs have been so successful that Jon quit his job to work alongside his wife, managing the Web site's money and providing content every now and then.

He used to be nervous and uncomfortable about his wife discussing her private life online.

One of her most controversial blogs was a post called "Have You Reconvened the Procedure?"

"It was a post about my husband and I resuming having sex after giving birth," Armstrong said.

But now Jon thinks her blog, and his new role, is the perfect job. Plus, he said, "I get to sleep with the boss."

Critics Can Be Harsh

As one of the most successful and uninhibited women on the Web, Armstrong has been hit with her share of criticism.

"I got an e-mail this morning that said, 'You can just go ahead and do your blogging and your husband can mooch off of you and play golf with doctors,'" she said.

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