One wonderful aspect of rearing children in the 21^st century is the emergence of social media. Mums are no longer suffering in silence!

While many girls dream of growing up and starting a family with their Prince Charming, their fantasies are often a little idealistic. In our dreams, we picture perfectly behaved cherubs with adorable habits and predictable sleep patterns.

For most mothers, the reality is rather different.The first months of motherhood, while beautiful, are absolutely terrifying. No matter how many antenatal classes we attend or parenting books we read during pregnancy, we don’t get a real sense of how stressful it can be until after the midwife hands us a little bundle in the delivery room and we finally realise that we are responsible for another human being…for the rest of our lives and theirs.

Mom blogs and parenting related social media pages are a vastly popular method of escapism for exhausted parents and there are many pages that are doing an exceptional job of entertaining us.

Here are 5 awesome facebook pages that every Mum should follow:

5. Insane In The Mom-Brain

Insane In The Mom-Brain is a hub of fun, laughter and lighthearted parenting. The author is a quirky, happy-go-lucky talkaholic who loves to share her thoughts and ideas about being a mother.

The concept of the blog may sound a bit simple and predictable but for some reason, her posts will have you howling with laughter and begging for more.

Although Insane In The Mom-Brain boasts almost a quarter of a million followers and has enjoyed worldwide success, the author is extremely responsive to messages and is revered for her approachability and down to earth attitude.

Insane In The Mom-Brain publishes concise, engaging reading material which is an ideal companion for tired mums in need of a giggle.

4. Emma Lou Harris Blog

Emma Lou Harris is an Irish writer based in Limerick, Ireland. She openly admits that humour is her strong point but grammar is a struggle. Emma’s posts are laden with spelling and grammatical errors, she frequently uses profanity and is unapologetically honest which gives readers a genuine sense of who she is and how she is feeling.

A born storyteller, Emma has been blessed with the Irish ‘gift of the gab’ and her content is highly relatable. The Emma Lou Harris Blog is packed with hilarious stories involving her children who are both under 3 years old and her struggle to maintain a perfect routine.

Emma is very open about her personal battle with postnatal depression and regularly expresses her fears and concerns to her readers.

While the writing in this blog is far from perfect, the author’s heart and honesty are present in every post and she is clearly devoted to her followers and doesn’t try to patronise them with tales of her maternal perfection.

3. Modern Mommy Madness

The theme of this page is beautifully summed up in the tagline, “Honesty and insanity in one fell swoop”. Modern Mommy Madness is written by a South Louisiana based mum. Harmony is a self confessed addict who bravely opens her heart on her Facebook page.

This is an incredibly empowering page for any woman who struggles with addiction or emotional health. Harmony discusses the difficulty she has in her relationships following a devastating trauma in her past.

The author of this page inspires women battling past demons to stay positive and engage in healthy pursuits in order to maintain their physical and mental well-being. Followers can observe Harmony leading by example as she regularly updates her page with pictures and stories of her journey.

What makes this page so relatable is the author’s honesty in relation to mothering after a major trauma. Harmony talks about the negative impact that her past now has on her children. She opens up about how difficult it is to be consistently calm and positive around the children when she is trying to heal herself. Modern Mommy Madness offers a very real perspective on parenting during emotional times.

While the subjects that arise in Harmony’s posts are often grave and serious, she somehow manages to keep her blog funny and engaging, which would explain its popularity.

2. The Bloggess

Every mother experiences at least one horrific day a month, whether it was a public wrestling match with a stroller, your kid’s teacher predicting that he is going to be incarcerated before he reaches his 18^th birthday or you’ve made five separate meal options and the little reprobates are still asking what else is on the menu. Some days we just need a glass of wine and a bit of light entertainment to take the edge off the day.

If your day has been massacred by motherhood, The Bloggess page is just the ticket to improving your mood. The author Jenny Lawson claims that The Bloggess offers “irreverent humour for intellectual misfits”.

After 10 years of posting, Jenny Lawson’s whacky wit and dark humour has earned her the title of New York Times #1 Bestselling Author and her books have been a huge success.  The Bloggess is not your typical soccer Mom, nor does she aspire to be.

Jenny Lawson recounts her most shameful moments using her trademark sardonic style and unique perspective. The Bloggess is a great page to peruse if you are feeling embarrassed or ashamed of some nutty thing you did in a moment of weakness. Jenny manages to find humour in the most catastrophic situations.

1. I Love My Family (FamilyShare.com)

I Love My Family is an affiliate page of www.familyshare.com. The page regularly posts informative articles which address a whole plethora of family related issues, such as product reviews, medical complaints, relationship and marriage advice and party planning.

I Love My Family encourage their followers to get in touch with the page, to pose family related questions and they promise to offer positive and non-judgemental advice.

I Love My Family is a serious page but while it isn’t as humourous and gripping as some of the personal blog pages on Facebook, it does offer really good advice which is well presented and genuinely helpful.

With nearly 10,000,000 Facebook followers, one can assume that they are doing something right.

We are not alone!

Mom blogs are the perfect accompaniment to a glass of wine and a roaring fire at the end of a busy day of working, cooking, laundering, counselling and general mumming. Check out how these amazing bloggers put a hilarious spin on their disastrous days and remind yourself that we are all in this crazy trip together.