Thoughts on Facebook

lilweenie · May 2014

I'm not a huge Facebook person, yet I do still have an account. I rarely post, or comment on there, and I also find myself constantly deleting 'friends' bc of how annoying their posts are.

With that being said, is it weird that I have no desire to announce my pregnancy on there ever? I just feel that I will tell my family, real life friends, and coworkers in person, and if a 'Facebook friend' doesn't fall into one of those categories, they probably don't need to know.

Thoughts?

AlanaB2010 · May 2014

Completely agree. I think it falls into the 'you can always tell more people, but you can't pull the information back' category. I'm also thinking about using Flickr or similar for baby photos instead of FB albums? Anyone with thoughts on that?

Manateearmz · May 2014

It's your Facebook so you get to do what you want with it.

lilweenie · May 2014

Actually Flickr is a great idea, bc I also don't want to post pics on Facebook. Thanks for the suggestion!

GinnyJ2012 · May 2014

I didn't post my pregnancy on Facebook until after my a/s, and I haven't posted anything since. Just do what you're comfortable with.

AlanaB2010 · May 2014

lilweenie said:

Actually Flickr is a great idea, bc I also don't want to post pics on Facebook. Thanks for the suggestion!

In thinking about this I did some research and Flickr seemed like a great (best?) option in terms of the best intersection of ease of use, privacy, good interface with iPhone, etc. Seems like a lot of people also use Snapfish, Kodak. Also seems like fewer and fewer ppl using Picasa b/c Google is getting creepy (in a great way, but not so much if you're thinking about privacy).

I actually have really mixed feelings about keeping the child off FB altogether. It feels comfortable to me but so many people use FB as their main forum for baby photos that somehow NOT to do it (particularly in the case of being asked for photos from a fellow mum who DOES post pics of baby on FB) might come off as critical of their choice. Thoughts?

ILoveBoys · May 2014

We didn't put our kids on fb until they were over 1 year and asked family to do the same. It caused a problem with my grandma who "does what she wants". I basically told her if she couldn't respect it she couldn't use her camera at our kids birthday parties that year.

greeneyed_bride · May 2014

AlanaB2010 said:

lilweenie said:

Actually Flickr is a great idea, bc I also don't want to post pics on Facebook. Thanks for the suggestion!

In thinking about this I did some research and Flickr seemed like a great (best?) option in terms of the best intersection of ease of use, privacy, good interface with iPhone, etc. Seems like a lot of people also use Snapfish, Kodak. Also seems like fewer and fewer ppl using Picasa b/c Google is getting creepy (in a great way, but not so much if you're thinking about privacy).

I actually have really mixed feelings about keeping the child off FB altogether. It feels comfortable to me but so many people use FB as their main forum for baby photos that somehow NOT to do it (particularly in the case of being asked for photos from a fellow mum who DOES post pics of baby on FB) might come off as critical of their choice. Thoughts?

I put pictures of my son on Facebook (with good privacy settings,) but I wouldn't feel like you were being critical of me if you were my Facebook friend and chose not to. People have different comfort levels. I actually have three different Facebook friends who choose not to post any photos of their children online (other than one who uses a password-protected album.) It doesn't bother me or seem weird, although as a result, I've only ever seen two pictures of my cousin's daughter who is a year old now. But she lives far away, and she doesn't want any pictures online anywhere. Totally her prerogative.

I've uploaded pictures to Shutterfly, which is nice because they have unlimited storage, family members can easily order prints, and you can set it so that only people who have the direct link to the album can view the photos. Just another photo option.

(Eta - bolded the part I was responding to.)

myatala · May 2014

Share what you're comfortable sharing, with whom you're comfortable sharing, in the medium you like. Like PPs mentioned, there's lots of alternatives to sharing pics via FB.

KyMommy86 · May 2014

I don't think it's weird at all. If you aren't a big facebooker anyway then don't put it on there. It's up to you and your significant other who you share your news with. You don't have to go with the social norms of posting on facebook. If that's not you then it's not you.
When the time comes I will personally announce on there but I am from a very large military family and that is the best way to get in touch with some family members. That is right for me but it sounds like for you it isn't.

JMOphoto · May 2014

When we adopted our 3 boys it caused quite a ruckus in our small town. I purposely kept their photos off Facebook and the internet for a while just to maintain their privacy. once everything settled down i did post a couple of photos, but by then everyone already knew and it was old news, so the only people who really cared were family and close friends. I'll probably do the same with this baby. I just like to keep things low key.

Helenahhandbasket · May 2014

We didn't do a pregnancy announcement. I rarely post-- I will sometimes comment on other's posts or "like" something, so it would have been out of character for me to make an "announcment."

I did get tagged in a few pics from my baby shower. I didn't "un-tag" them, so I guess some people (that I am not close with) might have found out that way. Otherwise, I did call/ email all close friends with the news.

I did however, post a quick birth announcement when she was born. I figured it would be maybe a bit odd to not mention her birth and then to just start posting pics of her.

nolanova85 · May 2014

I don't think it's weird not to do it. It's also not weird to do it. Just do whatever feels right to you. I do think some people have a tendency to overshare, for sure.

DH and I have not decided how/if we'll announce on FB. We're thinking about never announcing on FB, but obviously people will figure it out as photos are posted over the next 7 months. IF we do decide to announce via FB, we'll probably just do a casual status around Father's Day - no extravagant pic or anything.

Once baby arrives, I am sure we will post photos, but we'll definitely keep them to a minimum. Don't want to end up on the STFU Parents blog!

FitmomJess · May 2014

Yeah, you don't have to announce your pregnancy on FB. I will later on when I'm further along. To each their own! :-)

rodiesmum · May 2014

I think you can choose whom u can read ur announcement. Anyway if u dnt feel like doing it thenn dont. Some people dnt even have an fb acct. i think instagram is better esp if u only share w real close friends.

brendisimma · May 2014

I wanted to share the news with some friends and family but didn't necessarily want to call each one..so I sent them a PRIVATE Group Message on FB.

PrimRoseMama · May 2014

I don't think it's a big deal either way. I post plenty of pix of the kids on FB, but my settings are tight. My family lives far away & it's easy. My foster mom & family are on there too as well as my birth family. If it wasn't for FB I might not have found some of my half-siblings.

That said, FB (like TB) is what you make it. If you want to be Super Secret Squirrel then do it. If you want to do a flashy AW then get on with your bad self.

What others choose to do on social media is no reflection on my choices. People will judge no matter what you choose (welcome to Parenting). So fuck it. Do what you want.

LimaD · May 2014

It's totally up to you.

I do find it odd/surprising/confusing when all of a sudden there's a pic of mom w/her new baby at the hospital-- when she has been posting on Facebook on a regular basis but never mentioned anything about being pregnant. It takes me a while to figure out whether it's a "throwback" from her older child's birth or if she's holding someone else's baby, etc. But if you don't do Facebook much anyway it wouldn't be strange at all to not include your pregnancy

amylou35 · May 2014

I have no intentions of posting my pregnancy on Facebook and had to tell my mother-in-law to remove her post about it. I know she is excited but I would like a little privacy.

A lot of my friends that have children had cousins/siblings/parents immediately post photos of said friends child on Facebook. Which I totally disagree with (my husband has never had a Facebook and is completely against it also). If the mother or father wants a photo of their child on Facebook then they will be the ones to post it. I actually talked to my entire family about this and strictly said at the hospital you can take photos of themselves with the child but it is not to be posted.

JunkieBrewster · May 2014

I do not allow people on my Facebook that I do not know or trust. No need to keep it hidden from those people.

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