GUEST POST: NEW JERSEY, USA: Losing My Mom While Pregnant

I will never forget the moment I walked through my mom’s door to see her sitting on the couch looking so scared, so frail and so child-like.

We looked at each other, tears streaming down both of our faces and we embraced.  She was shaking as she uttered one sentence that crosses my mind almost daily:

“Jeni, I will never get to meet your babies.”

It was like an arrow went through my heart at that exact moment.  (more…)

Wall Street Mama (USA)

Wall Street Mama was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago and moved to NJ when she was a teenager. She fell in love with New York City and set her mind to one thing after college – working on Wall Street. She has spent the last 16 years working on the trading floor at three major banks. As an Institutional Salesperson, she is responsible for helping large corporations and money funds invest their short term cash in the fixed income part of the market. She lives in the suburbs of central NJ with her husband of 11 years, their amazing 21 month old boy and their first baby – a very spoiled Maltese. She has baby #2 on the way and is expecting a little girl in June 2012. She is a full time working mother and struggles with “having it all” while wondering if that is even possible. Wall Street Mama was married at the age of 25 but waited to have children because she felt she was too focused on her career which required a lot of traveling and entertaining. When she was finally ready, she thought she could plan the exact month she was ready to have a child, like everything else she planned in her life. She was shocked and frustrated when things did not go according to her plan. Fast forward four years later, after a miscarriage and several rounds of failed fertility injections, her little miracle was conceived naturally. She never thought in a million years, that she and her husband would be in their late 30’s by the time they had their first child. Since the financial crisis of 2008, she has endured some of the most difficult years of her life. The stress of trying to conceive was combined with some of life’s biggest challenges. She and her husband, who is a trader, both lost their jobs on Wall Street the exact same month. Her mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer and she ended up passing away while she was 6 months pregnant. At times it didn’t seem like things would ever get better, but she has learned that life is cyclical and what comes down must again go up. Leaving her baby boy with a wonderful nanny each day is difficult, but at times it is easier than she would have expected. She still enjoys the seemingly addictive draw of working on Wall Street. The past few years have been dramatically different from the “good days” but she is focused on trying to achieve what she once had before. She is currently working on launching her own blog, Wall Street Mama, in an attempt to guide others who are focused on continuing their career, yet struggle with leaving their little ones at home. She is weathering the ups and downs of the market and motherhood, one day at a time.

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Friday Question: What recent journey have you helped your child(ren) take?

This week’s Friday Question comes from World Moms Blog writer, The Alchemist.  She asked our writers,

“What recent journey have you helped your child(ren) take?”

Check out what some of our World Moms had to say…

Maggie Ellison of South Carolina, USA writes:
“I taught my son to read before he went into kindergarten because he wanted to know how to do it.  I just followed his lead and guided him to the next level.  When he started kindergarten last year, he was on a 1st grade and 3 month level.  They had a 100 book challenge at school, so every school night we read at least 2 books.  By the end of the year, he wanted to reach his goal of 300 books.  He read over the 300 mark and was so proud of himself.  We celebrated with him!! What a huge accomplishment!!” (more…)

World Moms Blog

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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AUSTRALIA: Interview with Inspiration to Dream

AUSTRALIA: Interview with Inspiration to Dream

Where in the world do you live? And, are you from there?

I live in Adelaide, which is the capital city of South Australia. I was born in a small country town called Inverell in New South Wales, which is on the east coast of Australia. We moved around a lot when I was a child because of my father’s work, moving to Perth, the capital of Western Australia when I was 5 and then several years later to Kalgoorlie which is a mining town 700km north-east of Perth. From Kalgoorlie we moved to Adelaide when I was 13, and I’ve been here ever since.

I attended four different primary schools and two different high schools, yet in contrast, my children all live in the house they were born in. (more…)

Fiona Biedermann (Australia)

Fiona at Inspiration to Dream is a married mother of three amazing and talented MM’s (mere males, as she lovingly calls them) aged 13, 16 and 22, and she became a nana in 2011! She believes she’s more daunted by becoming a nana than she was about becoming a mother! This Aussie mother figures she will also be a relatively young nana and she’s not sure that she’s really ready for it yet, but then she asks, are we ever really ready for it? Motherhood or Nanahood. (Not really sure that’s a word, but she says it works for her.) Fiona likes to think of herself as honest and forthright and is generally not afraid to speak her mind, which she says sometimes gets her into trouble, but hey, it makes life interesting. She’s hoping to share with you her trials of being a working mother to three adventurous boys, the wife of a Mr Fix-it who is definitely a man’s man and not one of the ‘sensitive new age guy’ generation, as well as, providing her thoughts and views on making her way in the world. Since discovering that she’s the first blogger joining the team from Australia, she also plans to provide a little insight into the ‘Aussie’ life, as well. Additionally, Fiona can be found on her personal blog at Inspiration to Dream.

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ILLINOIS, USA: Little Things From Great Heights

My family has just settled back home after a 2,300 mile road trip from Illinois to Colorado, and back. Our primary destination was Rocky Mountain National Park, a most spectacular place composed of mountain elevations ranging from 8,000 to over 14,000 feet.  To place perspective on this height, our home in Illinois is at 600 feet. 

American citizens are blessed with a national park system. It is a collection of some of the most spectacular and varied natural places in the world, protected for all to experience, free from progress and destruction. It’s an understatement to call this a treasure, especially after you’ve experienced the indefinable thrill and beauty of such a stunning natural place. (more…)

Jill Barth

Jill Barth lives in Illinois with her husband and three kids. She reminds you to breathe. She is a freelance writer and consultant. Also, she is the green content Team Leader and columnist at elephantjournal.com and reads fiction for Delmarva Review. Jill's writing can be found on her blog, Small Things Honored.

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Friday Question: What is your biggest fear regarding your child(ren)’s future?

This week’s Friday Question comes from World Moms Blog writer Ambre French.  She asked our writers,

“What is your biggest fear regarding your child(ren)’s future?”

Check out what some of our World Moms had to say…

Ambre French of Norway writes:
“In the short term I was told that most of what you teach your children should be brought in by the time the kid reaches three, after that it’s just consolidation.  I’m scared to mess those years up! In the long term I am very afraid of drugs.” (more…)

World Moms Blog

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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CALIFORNIA, USA: I’m Nobody!

CALIFORNIA, USA: I’m Nobody!

Several years ago, when I was in college, my whole vision of my future was about making a career.

I wanted to be independent and free. I wanted to be free from my, at some point, pathological father and cold as a stone mother.

I wanted to achieve something on my own and be proud about it.

I went to London for a summer break and worked as a waitress 15 hours a day, barely knowing English. I went to Germany and worked installing hardwood floor. (I know!!!)

Very close to the last year at University, I already knew I was not going to use my degree, as it is useless. Mass Media Education. Go figure!

Anyway, I became involved in two radio stations. (more…)

Ewa Samples

Ewa was born, and raised in Poland. She graduated University with a master's degree in Mass-Media Education. This daring mom hitchhiked from Berlin, Germany through Switzerland and France to Barcelona, Spain and back again! She left Poland to become an Au Pair in California and looked after twins of gay parents for almost 2 years. There, she met her future husband through Couch Surfing, an international non-profit network that connects travelers with locals. Today she enjoys her life one picture at a time. She runs a photography business in sunny California and document her daughters life one picture at a time. You can find this artistic mom on her blog, Ewa Samples Photography, on Twitter @EwaSamples or on Facebook!

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