Strollerderby : balance

Obama's Friday Schedule: Tackle Global Economic Crisis, Parent-Teacher Meetings

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 19:00:00 GMT

Michelle Obama wasn't kidding when she told Newsweek that her husband will continue to make his daughters, Sasha and Malia, a top priority, even as assumes the leadership of the free world. The Huffington Post has posted a copy of Obama's schedule for today, and the first item on the agenda is "parent teacher conferences at his daughters' school with his wife Michelle."

The schedule goes on to enumerate a list of duties that would make someone like, oh me, want to crawl into a hole and hibernate for the winter. In addition to a meeting with the Economic Advisory Board on today's dire economic news, Obama will hold a press conference, attend his daily intelligence briefing, make a slew of post-election political phone calls, and record the Democratic Radio Address. I have a feeling that those parent teacher conferences felt like a mini-vacation.

As any parent in a high stress job knows, taking time out to play with your kids or help with their homework is not only good for your children; it also keeps you grounded and happy. The Obamas seem to understand this more than anyone.

Photo: Celebrity Babies Blog

Balancing Work and Parenting--When You're the First Lady

Balancing Work and Parenting--When You're a Campaign Reporter

Balancing Work and Parenting—When You’re a Campaign Reporter

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 22:05:00 GMT

Anyone who has ever felt guilty about missing a child's bedtime because of work will benefit from Jodi Kantor’s reminiscences on covering the presidential campaign during the first two years of her daughter’s life.

Kantor’s honesty about her own guilt—and sometimes lack thereof—over her demanding work life offers a refreshing look at the myriad ways one can be a good mother. Kantor openly admits that, despite missing her daughter horribly, she loved campaign trips, when she could fully focus on her work—and on being an adult, doing such novel things as going for drinks with her colleagues.

Most importantly, Kantor writes, “[T]here is no maternally correct way to say this, but the things I saw on the road—Obama’s world, the Edwards family trying to hold it together, the Huckabee surge, Iowa, African American voters in South Carolina, Hillary Clinton’s last stand, Denver—were worth the hours away from my daughter.”

I would add that that time apart was probably justified for the daughter as well. Growing up with a parent who has such rich work experiences to share surely opens children up to the world in important ways. And the fact that Kantor is also a devoted, loving mother who is home most of the time can't hurt, either.

Related articles on Babble:

No Country for New Mothers: A war reporter's first post-baby trip to Iraq.

Photo: HBD Marketing

Five Motherhood Myths

SunnyChanel — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 18:22:00 GMT

Yup, everyone has mom guilt of some sort or another. Recently there have been myriad of lists, essays and blog posts on why us moms shouldn’t beat ourselves up. No one is perfect. And every now and then, it’s reassuring to be reminded of that fact. That’s when we can sit down, have a big sigh of relief and celebrate with a glass of wine, or two. This week, the Today Show with a guest from Woman’s Day had a countdown on five motherhood myths just so we can all feel a little bit better.

Here are their Five Motherhood Myths

"Myth 1: A good mom likes her children all the time"
Christine Nicholson, PhD says “Some days you just want to pack their bags, drop them off at the train station and drive away,…That’s normal. If you can find the caring, kind parts of you 75 percent of the time, you’re doing really well!”

"Myth 2: A good mom bonds with her children immediately"
They cited that your newborn may seem like a stranger at first, many new moms don’t feel that strong motherly bond until much later. “Like any relationship, your connection to your children develops over time,”

"Myth 3: A good mom balances it all"
“Everyone knows at least one “perfect” mom — the one with the always-sparkling kitchen, the well-behaved children and the exciting career. How does she do it? She doesn’t…at least, not without help.” There’s always at least one ball that falls during the juggling act that is a busy mother’s life. They say we shouldn’t try so hard to do it all, that just makes even more stress.

"Myth 4: A good mom spends a lot of time with her kids—and they like her because of it"
Basically quality reigns over quantity.

"Myth 5: A good mom belongs to one big, supportive Moms Club"
Yeah, no mom is an island. Having a support group to vent to, get advice from and just have playdates can be a great and a resourceful thing. But just because these women all joined the Moms Club because of their ability to obtain offsping doesn’t mean you’ll get along with them. Some just aren’t supportive, are critical of other folks and many moms cite that they feel “undermined by other parents”.

To read the entire Woman’s Day piece – click here.

(image via SFGATE.com)

Baby Planners: Who Needs 'Em?

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 20:58:00 GMT

During your pregnancy, would you have paid $250 to have someone walk you through Babies R’ Us, pointing out the must-have products? Or $500 to have someone plan your baby shower? How about $200 to have your home babyproofed?

These are just some of the services offered by baby coordinators, the latest advent in the commercialization of parenting. While I am all for easing the stress that can come with expecting a baby, I am definitely NOT for teaching mothers that having disposable income is the only way to do this. Shouldn’t friends or family be the ones helping parents-to-be make these important decisions? Or, perhaps more importantly, shouldn’t expectant parents learn to trust their own parenting instincts?

I worry that baby planning promises to be just one more trend that will make mothers feel not good enough—“You mean you didn’t hire a baby planner?!”

And in case the commercialization factor doesn’t bother you, perhaps the sexist element will: many baby planning companies also offer “daddy preparation.” Because those silly men don’t know a thing about babies!

Photo: The Boston Globe

Triplets Born to Family Who Lost Three Children a Year Ago

Cole Gamble — Sat, 10 May 2008 16:04:00 GMT

If you believe the universe is balanced, that tragedy and good fortune come in equal measure, here is news that will buoy you. Lori and Chris Coble welcomed a set of triplets into the world last Wednesday, almost a year to the day after their three children where taken in an automotive accident…

The newborns Ashley, Ellie and Jake, were delivered by c-section at the Children’s Hospital of Orange County and all, including mom Lori, are doing well.

I do not know what it would be like to have more kids after losing a child. It’s a kind of moving on that I know is healthy, but hard for me to imagine. If I were put in the situation however, I could see myself feeling very different over time.

Photo: CBS

What Does This Generation of Moms Want?

Kelly Mills — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 17:39:00 GMT

There's about a thousand headlines trying to define what moms of this generation want. Do we hope to return to the domestic spheres of the 1950's housewives (as has been reported), or are we career-minded? Do we care about our jobs or our kids? And one writer says we don't know what we want. When she works fulltime she can't wait to be home with family, but when she is on maternity leave she finds she hates staying at home. She gets a work-from-home freelance career but misses office action, and when she goes back to the office she chafes at the set hours that make her miss her kids. In short, women of this day and age have no idea what they want. What they really, really want.

I actually know what women want. Every woman really wants...A pony. Can I have a pony? A nice Shetland?

Sigh. If I had to hazard a crazy guess, I'd venture that women really want to feel fulfilled and satisfied at whatever they do whenever they are doing it, be it time with kids or the office grind or the freelance life. They'd also like financial security and crap like that. And that it's hard to balance many priorities, and the balance probably looks different for different people, making it impossible to (gasp) find one way to define an entire group of women, except with very broad strokes. I don't mean to Myspace the party here, but I'd also guess men want the same damn thing. It's a generation of people wanting to feel like they are engaged in meaningful things, which of course makes us sooooo very different from previous generations. It's just that our choices were more limited in the past, but I'd be surprised to find we have become suddenly impossible to please.