by Dr. Jeanelle Marshawn Lanham (USA) | Jul 14, 2011 | Being Thankful, Communication, Family, Health, Husband, Kids, Language, Motherhood, Parenting, USA, Writing
Where do you live? And are you from there?
I live in beautiful Arizona, North Glendale to be exact. Whenever anyone asks me about Arizona I tell them that it’s one of God’s best kept secrets. Yes, it gets hot here, and today it’ll be 115F and for most of the summer BUT that’s nothing since I get to enjoy the beautiful sky every night. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else!
Like most of us I am not a native of where I currently live; I am originally from Indiana moved to Atlanta in 1993 and then moved to Arizona in 2004. I lived in Atlanta for a lot of years but had to move away due to leaving an abusive relationship and life. I wanted better for my boys and me so I got out of Atlanta and moved here to Arizona. It’s one of the best moves I’ve ever made especially since I met my awesome husband here! (more…)

Dr. Jeanelle Marshawn Lanham is an Indiana native now living in Arizona, USA. She’s the Founder of the 501(c)(3) nonprofit Teen Center – Hodge Podge the Teen Cafè™ (http://www.HdgPdg.com), CEO of Iron WoMan Inc™ (http://www.IronWoManInc.com), a writer, is known to teens all over the world as the S.W.A.G Doc™ (http://www.TheSWAGDoc.com), a wife and most importantly a mom to two awesome boys. She joined the Army when she was a senior in high school because she did exceptionally well on the testing and was involved in the Gulf War. She served 8 years and is now a disabled Vet but that doesn’t get her down, nor stop her. Dr. Jeanelle Marshawn Lanham loves to write and help teenagers feel better about themselves. She knows ASL and signs with her deaf friends when she can. She’s always busy writing and building her Brand and found it great when she was given the opportunity to write for World’s Mom Blog. She has many goals on her bucket list and once her business has grown to her satisfaction, her goal is to own her own bull(s) (yes, real bulls!) and have them participate in the PBR (Professional Bull Riding). Traveling is a love of hers and one day she will visit Italy! You can find Dr. Jeanelle Marshawn Lanham on FaceBook at http://www.FaceBook.com/theSWAGDoc or Twitter @JeanelleLanham – Her heart is true to Rehabilitating Teens, Coaching Moms & Encouraging others.
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by Robin Farr | Jul 13, 2011 | Canada, Post Partum Depression
“You get a year of maternity leave?!”
Her tone, and rightly so, was incredulous. I – a Canadian – was in Washington, DC, speaking at a conference. I was six months pregnant and the topic of maternity leave, for some reason I no longer recall, came up during the Q&A.
In the hall afterwards I ran into one of the women who had attended my session, and, as she was a new mom, we got on to the topic of babies and maternity leave in Canada versus the US.
I didn’t know anything then about what having a newborn was like. I dreaded sleep deprivation (oh, how little I knew how much I should dread it) and was in awe that this new mom, her baby only six weeks old, was already back at work. After she described her new routine – sleepless nights, pumping at work, and all that fun stuff – I had to ask.
“How do you cope?!” (more…)
by World Moms Blog | Jul 10, 2011 | Canada, Oceania, Saudi Arabia, Third Eye Mom, USA, World Moms Blog Itinerary
This week we will be reading some first-time posts from new writers who we have recently gotten to know through the interview questions. We will also meet a new writer for the first time, as well as welcoming back a beloved writer who had to take a break as a result of a personal tragedy.
On Monday we be in Saudi Arabia with Mama B. She talks about the fine line that divides spanking and child abuse, and gives us a glimpse into her own views on this controversial topic.
On Tuesday, we head to Minneapolis, where Third Eye Mom gives us a candid and very brave account of her experiences with post partum depression. This is an important topic that is not talked about enough, despite its frequency.
On Wednesday, we fly north of the US border to beautiful BC, Canada. MamaRobinJ, who we met last week, talks about a subject that many of us have had to deal with: maternity leave! What is maternity leave like in Canada compared to everywhere else? Read this post and find out!
And on Thursday, we are off to Australia, where Inspiration To Dream tells us about one of her more memorable vacations. After reading this story, I think we will all be able to agree that this holiday was definitely memorable, though not necessarily for the right reasons!
On Friday Eva Fannon leads us in the Friday Question. Be sure to check it out and chime in with your answers!
In writer interviews, we meet one new writer and one returning writer. On Tuesday we welcome back Amy Hillis from Ohio. Amy took a break following the illness and passing of her son. She has constantly been in our thoughts, and we are thrilled to hear from her again. On Thursday we will head to Arizona to meet Dr. Jeanelle Marshawn Lanham, who has created a center for helping teens.
— World Moms Blog
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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 Robin Farr | Jul 5, 2011 | Canada, Communication, Motherhood, Post Partum Depression, Working Mother
Where in the world do you live? And, are you from there?
I live in Canada – in Victoria, BC. I’ve lived in Victoria most of my life but was born in Calgary, Alberta, home of the 1988 Winter Olympics and the Calgary Stampede. If you ask me where I’m from, I still say Calgary even though we moved to Victoria when I was 5.
What language(s) do you speak?
English is my first language and I’m fairly fluent in toddlerese. I studied French and German in school, and studied in Germany for a few months as well. (more…)
by Tara Bergman (USA) | Jul 5, 2011 | Childhood, Family, International, Life Lesson, Motherhood, Parenting, USA, World Moms Blog
This morning felt like it came directly from a typical family sitcom. It was a school morning, which meant I needed to have both my sons, ages 5 1/2 years and 14 months, up, fed, dressed, and out the door in time for the 40 minute drive to my older son’s preschool. (We recently moved, but are letting him finish out the school year).
We were in good shape. Come 1 hour before departure time, both boys (as well as myself) were fed. My husband was helping to get my toddler dressed.
My 5 year old called me to help him clean up after his morning constitutional, and I left him standing at the bathroom sink ready to complete his morning chores, which include brushing his teeth, getting dressed, making his bed, and shutting off his bedroom lights.
He is perfectly capable of independently completing these tasks and has done so many mornings. Some mornings, however, require much prompting.
Let’s back up to where I left him: standing at the sink ready to brush his teeth. (more…)
Tara is a native Pennsylvanian who moved to the Seattle area in 1998 (sight unseen) with her husband to start their grand life adventure together. Despite the difficult fact that their family is a plane ride away, the couple fell in love with the Pacific Northwest and have put down roots. They have 2 super charged little boys and recently moved out of the Seattle suburbs further east into the country, trading in a Starbucks on every corner for coyotes in the backyard. Tara loves the outdoors (hiking, biking, camping). And, when her family isn't out in nature, they are hunkered down at home with friends, sharing a meal, playing games, and generally having fun. She loves being a stay-at-home mom and sharing her experiences on World Moms Network!
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by Jennifer Burden | Jul 4, 2011 | Childhood, Culture, Eye on Culture, Family, Holiday, Motherhood, Parenting, USA, World Moms Blog
Growing up, my best memories of July 4th, the U.S. Independence Day, were picking out my clothes in shades of red, white and blue, helping my mom put our U.S. flag outside our house and getting to run around with fire sparklers around our backyard at night.
Sparklers were for the younger kids (say 8 years old and up), while the big kids were helping the adults set off fireworks on our side yard. You’re not allowed to light off your own fireworks now in NJ for safety reasons, come to think about it, I’m pretty sure that you weren’t allowed to back then either.
I can still smell the savory scents of the day: hotdogs, sauerkraut, hamburgers, sausage, peppers and onions coming from the grill, and the aroma of mom’s potato salad, barbecue chicken and corn on the cob coming from the kitchen. We barbecued all day in our backyard, and my parents would have their friends over. And, everyone brought their kids, so the kids were always off playing on their own.
My mom would also make a U.S. flag cake, decorated with blueberries, strawberries and whipped cream, and my dad would stand over the grill until everyone had their fill. I can still hear him calling me his “bicentennial baby” because I was born in the year of my nation’s bicentennial, 1976. (more…)

Jennifer Burden is the Founder and CEO of World Moms Network, an award winning website on global motherhood, culture, human rights and social good. World Moms Network writes from over 30 countries, has over 70 contributors and was listed by Forbes as one of the “Best 100 Websites for Women”, named a “must read” by The New York Times, and was recommended by The Times of India.
She was also invited to Uganda to view UNICEF’s family health programs with Shot@Life and was previously named a “Global Influencer Fellow” and “Social Media Fellow” by the UN Foundation. Jennifer was invited to the White House twice, including as a nominated "Changemaker" for the State of the World Women Summit. She also participated in the One Campaign’s first AYA Summit on the topic of women and girl empowerment and organized and spoke on an international panel at the World Bank in Washington, DC on the importance of a universal education for all girls. Her writing has been featured by Baby Center, Huffington Post, ONE.org, the UN Foundation’s Shot@Life, and The Gates Foundation’s “Impatient Optimists.” She is currently a candidate in Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs in the Executive Masters of Public Affairs program, where she hopes to further her study of global policies affecting women and girls.
Jennifer can be found on Twitter @JenniferBurden.
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