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Strollerderby
We worry. We worry about the bills we have to pay. About whether our kids are talking soon enough. About who will be elected president and whether or not we should order dessert.
For some of us, the day-to-day worries that crowd our minds take on the character of monsters, seizing control and paralyzing us against other action. Nearly 20 percent of Americans suffers from an anxiety disorder. Xanax is the leading psychiatric medication in the country, with over 46 million prescriptions written each year.
Are we an anxious generation? Or simply a better medicated one? The New York Times explored this question recently in an interesting essay about the history of anxiety.
My sweet boy, from a few years ago, clowning as ever.
I got an important lesson today. A life lesson in motherhood.
I had a teacher-parent conference for my fourth-grader. I sat with all four of his teachers, got his report card and learned how he’s doing in class. His report card was, as always, fantastic. He got straight As, with a low of 92 and a high of 99. Awesome. Then we talked about his behavior, and though he’s a fantastic kid, he’s been goofing off in class entirely too much.
This is something he and I have talked about before. We have a silly family and we’re big fans of wit and humor. His dad was voted the Class Clown of his senior class. He comes by these things honestly. At the same time, it’s important to understand when and where it is and isn’t appropriate to be silly. Why did his behavior get worse this quarter instead of better? Continue reading »
Weinstein's work ranges from touching to hilarious.
It’s trite and a huge understatement to say that your life changes when you have a child, and yet how else can one succinctly explain what it feels like, for example, to have your writing interrupted by, let’s say, a 6-year-old staying home from school because last night she had a fever of 102.2 (but now she’s wearing her new favorite lip gloss at a tea party with her dolls and stuffed animals and asking to have a playdate this afternoon) looking up at you with a mouth full of bagel, mumbling, “Mommy, by accident my bagel got crusty again.” So you microwave the bagel she’s been nursing since morning for 10 seconds so it will be soft again, and you sit down at your laptop hoping to be able to finish recounting the incident before another interruption comes your way?
Yeah. Motherhood changes your life. But does it change you, fundamentally? Motherhood has cajoled me into making choices I wouldn’t otherwise be forced to make, and the result of those choices have been beneficial for both my daughter and I. But there are paradoxical feelings that come with the accommodation of a child. In some ways I feel like a smarter, faster, wiser, better version of my old self, yet I also feel sluggish, run-down and slow. For example: My brain is mush, but I know how to prioritize now in a way that I didn’t before. Or, I still want to party, but my body won’t let me stay awake past 1 am. That sort of thing.
It’s difficult to convey these ideas in a concise format, but somehow Lauren Weinstein has done so in her somewhat dark and often hilarious cartoons. Weinstein’s books include Girl Stories, The Goddess of War and Inside Vineyland. Her work has been published in An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, The Best American Comics of 2007 and 2010, and Glamour. She used to live in Brooklyn and “is still recovering from having a baby and moving to the suburbs of New Jersey (it’s been two years).” To keep herself amused during her child’s naps, she draws comics about motherhood and has agreed to share some of them here. Her style is raw, her commentary is real, and her work is full of heart: Continue reading »
Does watching the clock for the moment I can enjoy an adult beverage mean I have a problem or make me a bad mom? I say it makes me a better mom!
I enjoy a cold beer or three in the evenings. I do! And I daresay it makes me a better parent.
Now, I know a bunch of you are going to immediately assume I have an alcohol problem, just because that seems to be the nature of things within the online parenting community – a lot of finger pointing and judgment. But I’m going to assert that if you think I have a problem, you’re the one with the problem.
I wrote about this on my personal blog, The Girl Who, yesterday and received a lot of interesting comments. I’m actually surprised by the comments, which are much more supportive than I thought they’d be.
Bring on the compliments!
Compliments are accepted differently in the heart of each receiver.
Yesterday we wrote about 5 ways to show kindness to a mom (because every mom needs to receive in addition to give!).
And now Babble readers have responded with ideas of their own. Here are some of they ways you like (or would like) to be complimented:
Every mom should be made to feel as special as the Queen Mum (just don't mention the wrinkles)
It’s a new year, and although you’ve probably already broken all of your resolutions, you can still redeem yourself — by complimenting a mom.
If you know a woman who’s a mom, whether she’s your mom, your wife, a friend, co-worker or acquaintance, chances are, she doesn’t hear enough how fabulous she is. Here’s your chance. (MadeMan.com recently posted on the best ways to compliment a woman, so try out these tips for the non-mom in your life.)
However, be warned that all compliments are not created equal (telling a mom how much character and charm her messy house contains, for instance, will likely not get you sent home with a plate of freshly baked brownies). Here are the 5 best ways to compliment a mom:
"Giving Mother's Day a Microphone"
For the past two years, women in select cities around the U.S. have been celebrating Mother’s Day by heading to a theater to share the joys, trials, and occasional absurdities of motherhood with local writers at Listen To Your Mother shows.
Created by Ann Imig, a writer, blogger, and former social worker and musical theater actress, the Listen to Your Mother (LTYM) show’s mission is ”to take the audience on a well-crafted journey that celebrates and validates mothering through giving voice to motherhood — in all of its complexity, diversity, and humor.”
After a successful first showing in Imig’s hometown of Madison, Wisc. in 2010, LTYM expanded to five cities in 2o11, and has just announced that it will be mounting shows in ten cities next year. Each local show is directed by a writer or blogger that is passionate about bringing the show to their community and shares Imig’s aspiration to “provide an opportunity for local writers to spring their literal voice into a microphone from their literary voice on the page.” Continue reading »
Joslyn Gray 
Amber Doty 
Julianna Miner 
Monica Bielanko 
Sierra Black 
Meredith Carroll 
Carolyn Castiglia 
Sunny Chanel 
Madeline Holler 
Wendy Michaels 
Rebecca Odes 
Danielle Smith 
Danielle Sullivan 
Katherine Stone 
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