by World Moms Blog | Nov 26, 2011 | Canada, Motherhood, Parent Care, Parenting, Ruth Wong, Saturday Sidebar, Singapore, South Africa, The Alchemist, Third Eye Mom, USA, WMB Saturday Layover, World Moms Blog, World Motherhood
This week’s Saturday Question comes from World Moms Blog writer Maggie Ellison. She asked our writers,
“What has been the best part of parenting so far?”
Check out what some of our World Moms had to say…
Dr. Lanham of Arizona, USA writes:
“The best part of parenting for me has been to hear my boys tell me they appreciate HOW I’ve raised them. Let’s me know they were listening! 🙂 ”
Maggie Ellison of South Carolina, USA writes: (more…)
World Moms Blog is an award winning website which writes from over 30 countries on the topics of motherhood, culture, human rights and social good. Over 70 international contributors share their stories from around the globe, bonded by the common thread of motherhood and wanting a better world for their children.
World Moms Blog was listed by Forbes Woman as one of the "Best 100 Websites for Women 2012 & 2013" and also called a "must read" by the NY Times Motherlode in 2013. Our Senior Editor in India, Purnima Ramakrishnan, was awarded the BlogHer International Activist Award in 2013.
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by Maureen | Nov 25, 2011 | Eye on Culture, Indonesia, Scoops of Joy, Toys
The November 19th Saturday Sidebar question was so interesting I couldn’t help but take a deeper look into the whole gender issue, especially from an Indonesian mother’s point of view.
(Disclaimer: it is not easy to characterize the existing patriarchy in Indonesia, as there are more than 200 ethnic groups organized along patrilineal and matrilineal lines. Also, I have no experience raising a girl here in Indonesia–-in fact, I had no experience in child rearing before my son was born. And finally, before I became a mother myself, I never paid much attention to how people raise children here.)
About two years ago, when my son was a toddler, who dearly loved stuffed animals, I took him to a store here in Jakarta. He immediately grabbed a stuffed pig off a bottom shelf and started loving it. The store attendant quickly made a comment that caused my defensive mama-bear mode to jump into action: (more…)
by Salma (Canada) | Nov 24, 2011 | Canada, Human Rights, Husband, Salma, World Moms Blog, World Voice
Do you want to know why I love my husband? Because he is the total opposite of EVERYTHING that I was told that an Arab man is. That, despite him being a member of the male sex, he doesn’t conform to ideas of masculinity. Because HE IS a man who keeps his word.
Now don’t get me wrong. He hates doing housework…he doesn’t cook…he believes deep down that his word is the final word; he apologizes before he knows what upsets me, and he rarely open doors for me.
BUT, he is also a man who does housework when I am ill, brings me surprises every month, laughs with me, sings with me and changes diapers. He praises me as a wife and mother and comes home everyday after work with a big smile. And his favorite past-time is sitting in our bed watching old movies.
My husband is not unique per se, but he has helped me through many storms. One of the biggest storms that I have faced is my past.
When we first married, my husband could not understand where I had been. How could he? He was East, and I was West. It was a little joke between us, but in essence it described us in every way. (more…)
An Imperfect Stepford Wife is what Salma describes herself as because she simply cannot get it right. She loves decorating, travelling, parenting,learning, writing, reading and cooking, She also delights in all things mischievous, simply because it drives her hubby crazy.
Salma has 2 daughters and a baby boy. The death of her first son in 2009 was very difficult, however, after the birth of her Rainbow baby in 2010 (one day after her birthday) she has made a commitment to laugh more and channel the innocence of youth through her children. She has blogged about her loss, her pregnancy with Rainbow, and Islamic life.
After relocating to Alberta with her husband in 2011 she has found new challenges and rewards- like buying their first house, and finding a rewarding career.
Her roots are tied to Jamaica, while her hubby is from Yemen. Their routes, however, have led them to Egypt and Canada, which is most interesting because their lives are filled with cultural and language barriers. Even though she earned a degree in Criminology, Salma's true passion is Social Work. She truly appreciates the beauty of the human race. She writes critical essays on topics such as feminism and the law, cultural relativity and the role of women in Islam and "the veil".
Salma works full-time, however, she believes that unless the imagination of a child is nourished, it will go to waste. She follows the philosophy of un-schooling and always finds time to teach and explore with her children. From this stance, she pushes her children to be passionate about every aspect of life, and to strive to be life-long learners and teachers. You can read about her at Chasing Rainbow.
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by Mama B (Saudi Arabia) | Nov 23, 2011 | Family, Life Lesson, Motherhood, Parenting, Saudi Arabia, World Motherhood
My eldest sister got married very young (18) and started having her children very young, as well. As a result, she has children ranging in age from 24 to 10.
I loved watching her children interact. My sister and her husband worked hard to raise these children to be educated, respectful, hardworking and just all around decent human beings. Their family vacations are truly family vacations where they go to some remote place to explore it together.
They spend weekends at their farm, just themselves, doing things like repainting the farm-house or helping build or design the stables. They depend on each other and are what a proper family should be.
This is not saying that they don’t fight. (more…)
Mama B’s a young mother of four beautiful children who leave her speechless in both, good ways and bad. She has been married for 9 years and has lived in London twice in her life. The first time was before marriage (for 4 years) and then again after marriage and kid number 2 (for almost 2 years). She is settled now in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (or as settled as one can be while renovating a house).
Mama B loves writing and has been doing it since she could pick up a crayon. Then, for reasons beyond her comprehension, she did not study to become a writer, but instead took graphic design courses. Mama B writes about the challenges of raising children in this world, as it is, who are happy, confident, self reliant and productive without driving them (or herself) insane in the process.
Mama B also sheds some light on the life of Saudi, Muslim children but does not claim to be the voice of all mothers or children in Saudi. Just her little "tribe." She has a huge, beautiful, loving family of brothers and sisters that make her feel like she wants to give her kids a huge, loving family of brothers and sisters, but then is snapped out of it by one of her three monkeys screaming “Ya Maamaa” (Ya being the arabic word for ‘hey’). You can find Mama B writing at her blog, Ya Maamaa . She's also on Twitter @YaMaamaa.
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by Ms. V. (South Korea) | Nov 22, 2011 | Motherhood, Parenting, Relocating, South Korea, Technology, World Interviews, World Moms Blog Writer Interview, World Motherhood, Writing
Where in the world do you live? And, are you from there?
I live in Seoul, South Korea currently, but I am from The States. My husband and I moved here for his job in May of 2011.
What language(s) do you speak?
English is my native tongue. I am also fluent in Spanish, and I am learning Korean. So far I have a grip on the basics: hello, goodbye, please, thank you, I’m sorry, excuse me, and (most importantly since it pertains to food) vegetarian. They say that Korean is the easiest of the Asian languages to learn due to its simple alphabet, Hangul. I have learned to read Hangul, which sounds more impressive than it is because I have no idea what any of it means. And, just to make things really interesting, Korean/Hangul sentences are written in syllables not words, so trying to figure out where one word ends and another begins feels impossible. It’s all very humbling.
When did you first become a mother?
I became a mother to our beautiful son in June 2011
Are you a stay-at-home mom or do you work?
I currently do not work outside of the home though that is set to change within the next few months. I am a Yoga teacher, (more…)
Ms. V returned from a 3-year stint in Seoul, South Korea and is now living in the US in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her partner, their two kids, three ferocious felines, and a dog named Avon Barksdale. She grew up all over the US, mostly along the east coast, but lived in New York City longer than anywhere else, so considers NYC “home.” Her love of travel has taken her all over the world and to all but four of the 50 states.
Ms. V is contemplative and sacred activist, exploring the intersection of yoga, new monasticism, feminism and social change. She is the co-director and co-founder of Samdhana-Karana Yoga: A Healing Arts Center, a non-profit yoga studio and the spiritual director for Hab Community. While not marveling at her beautiful children, she enjoys reading, cooking, and has dreams of one day sleeping again.
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