There are so many social media avenues, I do not possess the time or desire to explore all of them. Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram, Periscope, etc. I see the most value in Facebook but in the last year I’ve also been active on Instagram. I like Instagram for the following reasons:

• Pictures only – no one is posting articles on politics or vaccines or guns, etc. Just snapshots of life, staged to varying degrees depending on who you follow. ;)
• Short captions – only about three lines show up under the picture, so you could write an essay but generally captions are brief.
• Positive commenters – I have nothing scientific to back this, but in general comments seem more positive than other social media channels. Since comment replies aren’t divided into threads, arguments rarely happen and seem to be quickly dropped as they are hard to follow.
• Selective followers – I don’t have a public account, so I feel better about posting a lot of pics of the girls. I have much fewer “followers” than on Facebook which I like.
• Creative aspect – there are plenty of kid pics and selfies, but there’s more. I enjoy the artistic element of intentionally creating visually appealing photos. I also poke fun at it.

I also have several friends who are more active on Instagram than on Facebook, so it’s a good way to stay connected with them. And it’s just fun! I like the combination of day-to-day family stuff and an artistic element. It reminds me to look for the art in the everyday and to capture things even if they aren’t “perfect.”

I’m not unique or trendy to like IG, rather I’m behind the curve to embrace it, but if a picture is worth a thousand words, I’ve been mini-blogging on Instagram. #instablogging