When the Irish Blog Awards retired last year, we were sad as we felt they did an outstanding job of recognising and rewarding great blogs in Ireland. So we were excited to hear that Irish Parenting Bloggers had stepped into the breach to run the inaugural Irish Parenting Blog Awards this April 2015. And we are even more excited to be a Category (Best Writer) Sponsor! Here are 10 Reasons why we are delighted to be an IPBA Sponsor.

#1. We are Parents Too

Mykidstime is run by parents and we like to think of ourselves as being a super-blog for parents. As the IPB bloggers are all parents too it made sense to be involved.

We have a team of parents that write regularly for Mykidstime and it was a natural fit to sponsor the Best Writer award, to support those who write great content for parents.

#2. Judging Will Be Done By Peers

The beauty of the Irish Parenting Blog Awards 2015 is that they are peer reviewed and recognised awards. Finalists and winners will be judged and chosen by fellow bloggers registered with IrishParentingBloggers.com, a community of 80 and growing every day.

So fellow bloggers will judge the nominated blogs.

#3. There are 10 cool Categories

Naturally we think ours is the best, but here’s the full list of award categories:

• Parenting Blog of the Year
• Best Post of the Year
• Best Newcomer
• Best Homespun Blog
• Best Personal Blog
• Most Entertaining Blog
• Best Writer (sponsored by yours truly)
• Inspirational Blogger
• Most Beautiful Blog
• Best Special Interest Blog

#4. We Love IPBA and What They Stand For

We love that it is a growing and vibrant community of parents all blogging about their experiences.

We love that Irish Parenting Bloggers cover topical and trending parenting-related issues as well as advice, opinion pieces and lifestyle features, with biting humour and a nod to politics and more than a dollop of culture along the way.

We love that they embrace all forms of parenting and provide a safe place where parents of all walks of life can feel accepted for their choices.

We love that if you’re looking for an alternative view, not only will you find it on IrishParentingBloggers.com, you’ll find many more twists on topics you never even considered before.

#5. We Like Supporting Parent Initiatives

We like to give something back when we can and to support parent-led initiatives, from supporting our Charity of the Year, to giving organisations (many of which are run by parents) free listings on our Directory, to partnering with other companies and initiatives that are led by parents.

#6. The IPBA Sponsorship Pack was Cute

Only kidding, but we do love the way the IPBA promotes their Sponsors and makes them feel loved and included too. We’ve been part of many awards small and large and so far we’re blown away by the enthusiasm and support that we have had as a Sponsor.

#7. It Suits Our Marketing Perfectly

We are always looking for opportunities to get our Mykidstime Brand out there in Ireland and when we do marketing it has to be a good fit and help bring visits and parents to us. This was a perfect opportunity as parents write and read the IPBA blogs and we want parents to know about Mykidstime.

#8. It’s Fun To Be A Sponsor For A Change

Mykidstime has been nominated for an award every year since we’ve been around from Blog Writing to Social Media to Small Business awards. (We won last year’s OMIG Best Social Media Award and have been finalists 3 years at the Social Media Awards). So it’s really fun to be on the Sponsor side for a change!

#9. We Hope To Find Some Great New Writers

Sponsoring the Best Writer award gives us the opportunity to read great writing and maybe persuade them to write for Mykidstime too!

#10. We Get to Go on a Kid-free Night Out!

Great excuse to dust down the LBD and put on a bit of lippy and go and feel grown up for the evening :)

The inaugural Irish Parenting Blog Awards take place on Saturday April 25th, 2015 in Odessa Rooftop Terrace and Bar on Dame Court in Dublin City Centre. Covering ten categories across a range of diverse topics – all under the umbrella of Parenting – Irish Parenting Blog Awards 2015 will celebrate the best in Parenting Blogging in Ireland. From writing to design, food and craft to inspirational, there’s an award for all parenting bloggers to get on board with. Nominations open on March 1st 2015.