Time Magazine: Define "Mom Enough" (Wordless Wednesday)

 

(source: BargainBriana's FB Page)

I know this is supposed to be WordLESS Wednesday, but this picture – really the picture it originated from which I'm not posting – makes me want to scream a thousand words!  I think this is a great comeback to the question of "Are You Mom Enough."

Of course, this whole thing is in response to the recent Time Magazine cover featuring a young mom breastfeeding her almost 4 year old son.  If you think about it, it’s not the first time this issue has been discussed pretty heavily.  I recall an old episode of Desperate Housewives where Lynette had a coworker still nursing her 6 y/o which had people talking.  Of course it was hilarious to discover that that mom was only doing it to keep from going to the gym.  This time, however, I think it’s being done just to stir up controversy and sell magazines.  Now, while I’ve made it a personal rule ever since I became a mother to try not to ever judge another woman’s parenting style (unless of course the child is blatantly being harmed), I will say that I was pretty disturbed and annoyed with both the cover itself and the concept behind it. Here’s why:

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Is Bullying OK for Adults?

Ok folks, I’m confused. We’ve heard the stories, we’ve read the stats, and we’ve spent the past however many months/years trying to put an end to BULLYING. We stress to our kids about the severity of it and just when I think we’ve made some headway, I realize that while we are telling our kids one thing, we in turn, not only accept it, but we GLORIFY the act when it’s happening with adults! Last night’s episode of Basketball Wives had me sick to my stomach! In case you missed it (lucky you!), here’s a recap.

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My Favorite Baby Keepsakes

I'm not sure if it's common knowledge or not, but since I'm finally getting around to doing these, I thought I'd go ahead and share my 2 favorite baby keepsakes - a letter from Mr. President and a Baby's First Circus certificate and voucher.
 
#1:  Greeting from the President

For those of you who don’t know, the White House has a Greetings Office that will send a welcome letter to your newborn, signed (or stamped) by the President and First Lady. Leila received a really nice one a few months after she was born.

You have 12 months from the date your child was born to request one. However, you can only request a greeting from the current administration. For example, if your child was born during the Bush Administration, you can no longer request one from Bush now that Obama is in office.

Here’s how to do it:

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Wordless Wednesday: Oh yes, this is my life!

How many moms/parents can relate to this?

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15 Random Things About Me

I saw this on a friend's blog and it reminded me of those MySpace chain posts people used to pass around. I always loved those, so here goes mine!

By the way, I finally updated my about me and about us posts, so you can also check those out! 

 Random things about me:

1. I am a first generation American. My family comes from Liberia  and Lebanon. Although I identify mostly with "my big fat African family", I still claim my Middle Eastern roots.
2. I was born in the same hospital now made famous by Blue Ivy Carter (JZ and Beyonce's kid if you've been under a rock).
3. I haven't been able to bond with a pet since my childhood cat.  I think her death has left me "emotionally unavailable" as they say. 
4. Beaches was the first movie I ever cried at.  I still cry every time I see it.
5. I've traveled to 4 of the 7 continents-Africa, Asia, Europe and of course North America.  I plan on adding Australia to that list in the next couple of years.
6. I still have the same 3 best friends I've had since junior high school. We all went to different high schools, colleges, and now live in different parts of the country and WORLD now(thanks to my Aussie buddy), but we are still as close as real sisters.  Skype is a great thing!
7. I was a really gullible kid.  I believed that Bloody Mary was real for way longer than I should have! There were lots of other really silly things I'm still just too ashamed to admit I fell for.
8. I don't really mind horror movies, but I hate psychological thrillers. I had nightmares after watching the first Saw movie!  I was less scared of the movie than I was at the fact that someone actually thought of it in the first place!
9. My favorite movie is The Five Heartbeats.  I can't really explain why, but there is just something about the scene where the group hears their song on the radio for the first time that just resonates with me. Maybe it's because my older brother was in a singing group back in the 90s and I probably felt that same way the first time I heard his song play.  Hmmm...I just figured it out while thinking out loud.
10. I got through my hardest breakup thanks to one line in Jewel's song "You were meant for me."  It goes, "...hearts are broken every day." Seriously, that was all I needed to hear in order to move on.
11. I was voted "most likely to succeed" in high school. I think I've done pretty well and I'm not done yet!
12. I love crossword puzzles, Word Mole, scrabble (ok...Words with Friends), basically all games that involve plays on words I excel at. I'm a writer, get it?
13. My hubby and I have become reality game show junkies!  Cooking ones, singing ones, fashion ones, weight loss, dating ones,  you name it, we watch it! I'm actually also just a game show junkie in general, especially the old ones.  It's not uncommon for you to find my TV stationed on The Game Show Network.
14. The top 3 people I want to meet before I die are  Michelle Obama, Oprah, and Ellen DeGeneres...in no particular order.  I put that on my Vision Board, so it has to happen!
15. Lastly, I am really the official "secret keeper" amongst almost all of my friends and family.  Even complete strangers love to just share the most personal things with me! I'm really not sure why, but I'm always honored at the fact that they trust and feel comfortable with me.    

Do you have a "random list?" I'd live to read it! Be sure to share your link here!

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The Ultimate Baby Shower - Win Your Nursery (ends 5/11)!

As I'm all too familiar, having a baby means a lot of joy and a lot of expense! A great group of bloggers and companies have come together to give away...everything!Between now and May 11th, sign up below to enter to win an entire nursery, valued at over $2,500!

Just check out this prize list! 

• Nursery Furniture: Crib and Dresser- Sponsored by your blogger hosts!
• Crib Bedding- Sponsored by your blogger hosts!
• High Chair- Sponsored by Joovy
• Stroller- Sponsored by Joovy
• Play Yard- Sponsored by Joovy
• Hand Made Quilt- Sponsored by Baby by Krista
• $200 Gift Certificate for Organic Baby Clothing- Sponsored by Baby Essentials
• $200 Gift Certificate for Organic Bathing Products- Sponsored by Happy Future USA
• 100 Keepsake Favor clips and Bows- Sponsored by Keepsake Bows
• Loaded Gift Basket- Sponsored by Bea's Gift Baskets
• Pampers Premium Diaper Cake- Sponsored by Cute-Ecakes 

Overall Retail Value: $2500.00!!!

Best part- you have so many ways to enter! Just fill out the Rafflecopter form below! Rafflecopter Code a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Back on the Blog

I was starting to think it had been months since I'd been on either one of my blogs, but now I see it's only been a couple of weeks. I would never  be so self righteous as to assume that everyone missed me, but as is the case with most bloggers/writers, this is my #1 outlet and I've missed it!

So babies #1 and 2 are still just as amazing as ever! I'm starting to get a little used to life with 2 babies...well, sometimes. I don't know if you ever get used to having to transform into an octopus at any given moment to tend to a crying infant and an attention seeking toddler...but I try!

Speaking of octopus, I had a "my kid is a genius" moment the other day. I asked Leila to get me a glass of water.  She responds, "Ok, I'm coming. I'm playing with my toys."  Then I repeated (in my grown up voice), "Leila, can you please get me a glass of water!"  She jumps up and says, "Ok, ok.  I'm coming. I'm not an octopus, you know."  As much as I wanted to get all, "Don't speak to your mother like that!" on her, I was just so impressed that my 3 year old actually knew how to use that phrase in context!

And in other big news...I started a new job recently! I can't say where, just because that would kind of make me a "social media representative" of the company and that is not at all the point of my blog.  Anyway, it was such an exciting and welcome change for me, but of course, change is never easy.  I'm about 3 weeks in now and starting to get the hang of everything - i.e. getting up early, rush hour traffic, you know, the daily grind. I do feel super blessed for this opportunity though and I plan to make the most of it.  I'll keep you all posted.

And sooo, back to blogging...

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Seventh Generation Diaper Review and Giveaway

The newest arrival of products from Seventh Generation that are gentle on baby, safe for the planet, and convenient for you, not to mention “Lorax approved!”

When my little one (Baby #2) was born, I was provided with a much appreciated package of Seventh Generation diapers in size Newborn. These were part of their limited edition Lorax print diapers, as part of their partnership with Universal Studios’ motion picture debut of Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax* also known as the “Speaker for the Trees” who brings environmental truth and ecological hope to all.

Of course with a brand new baby, you are always taking a risk trying something new, but I’d actually always heard pretty positive things about the brand, I felt pretty confident in trying them out and I was not disappointed at all. No allergies, no leaks, and no stress!

Here are just a few highlights about these diapers:

• NEW Overnight Diapers are absorbent enough to keep your baby and bedding dry through the night or during prolonged travel 
• Free & Clear diapers have improved more flexible tabs that provide even better fit 
• Free & Clear training pants have an absorbent core made with more renewable, plant-based materials. They also feature stretchy, tear away side panels for a better fit and added convenience, as well as inner leak barriers for superior leakage protection 
• Seventh Generation Free & Clear baby care products do not contain chlorine, fragrance, petroleum-based lotions or latex, and all Free & Clear products are also hypo-allergenic. 

 I won’t conduct a formal giveaway for this product, but if you’d like to try these out, shoot me an email and the first response I receive gets a FREE Pack of Diapers and a copy of Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax storybook!  Wow! That went quickly!  Congratulations, Kendal!

 “Disclosure: The Seventh Generation Diapers prize pack, product and information have been provided by Seventh Generation through MyBlogSpark.”

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