There’s a great story in the NY Times today about the ‘mommy-blogger’ phenomenon and two of the leading figures in the space, FM’s own Dooce and Pioneer Woman. From NY Times:

Heather Armstrong’s wickedly funny blog about motherhood, Dooce, is more than just an outlet for the creativity and frustrations of a modern mother. The site, chock full of advertising, is a moneymaking machine — so much so that Ms. Armstrong and her husband have both quit their regular jobs…
Other advertisers are taking a less direct approach. When the retailer J. C. Penney wanted to tell mothers about its Chris Madden bedding and furniture collection last fall, Federated Media built a Web site called Fall Shopping Guide, sponsored by the retailer, that placed ads for the new designs next to content about home decorating taken from 10 parenting bloggers in Federated’s advertising network…
J. C. Penney has since started a campaign with Federated for its Linden Street line. Ms. Armstrong of Dooce, Ms. Drummond of Pioneer Woman and others are writing blog posts about home décor for the site…
One reason was that brands that market to men, like car and technology companies, were the first to feel comfortable advertising online, said Chas Edwards, chief revenue officer and publisher of Federated Media. Brands that are aimed at women are now catching up.