NEW JERSEY, USA: The C Word

Delivering my baby by C-section was, for me, something that would be only done in an emergency — if the baby’s heart rate was falling during labor or something else serious that would have threatened my baby or myself.

I delivered my first baby vaginally, and I intended to do the same for this one.  My due date is March 21, 2011, and I have already started reading my “Hypnobirthing” book that got me through the beginning of labor with my first.  I hadn’t ruled out having an epidural again, but if things happened too fast, I wanted to have some relaxation tricks up my sleeve.

At 35 weeks last week, I was already ½ centimeter dilated!  This didn’t alarm me because I walked around for the last two weeks being 3 centimeters dilated with my first child.  But, I was excited that things were happening.  My body was planning on birthing this baby!

But, things have recently taken a turn in a different direction… (more…)

Jennifer Burden

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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The Quest for a Second Child

Was it Tom Petty who said it?  Waiting is the hardest part.   I am quite good at waiting.  Waiting to get pregnant, that is.

The first time around it was over 2 years.  All of the failed attempts were so difficult; living life in two-week increments became the norm—first, waiting to ovulate and then waiting and hoping to see that elusive second line on the home pregnancy test.  I lived this way for nearly a year with no luck, and then pursued fertility treatments with a reproductive endocrinologist (RE) for a little more than the next year.

My husband and I learned all about the alphabet soup of making a baby: IUI, IVF (with or without ICSI) and PGD were all things we had to consider.  I have no problem speaking in acronyms with my RE or ObGyn anymore (see what I did there!?).  It seemed the whole world was getting pregnant, I couldn’t walk to the subway station in the morning without seeing at least 8-10 baby bumps (yes, I counted). (more…)

Allison Charleston (USA)

Allison is a 35-year-old attorney-turned stay at home mom. This New York City mom lives on the Upper East Side of Manhattan with her 2-year-old son, Chase, and her husband, Andy. She is also expecting baby #2! In her former life, she was an attorney practicing in a mega firm on NYC’s Park Avenue, putting in long hours, working hard and reveling in the fast pace of her life. She loved living in “the city”, and when she could, she took advantage of all it had to offer. But, when Chase was born over 2 years ago, that all changed. These days, the work has changed from writing legal briefs to changing diapers and the hours are longer, but she wouldn’t have it any other way! Allison is enjoying her adventures as a metropolitan mommy, raising Chase in New York City and has gained strength from her longer-than-she-wanted-to-wait journey getting pregnant with her second child.

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Travel Itinerary for the Week of December 27th!

Still going strong the last week of 2010!  Monday, we’re off to Toronto, Canada with Kirsten Jessiman, who is busy solving the conundrum of successfully planning her son’s birthday, which falls on a holiday!

Next, we take you south of the Canadian border to the city that never sleeps, where we find Allison Charleston in New York City.   Allison discusses her struggle with infertility and her quest for a second child.

Then, we’re out west for the remainder of the week!!  We’ve got our outdoorsy mothers of Washington state, USA, Eva Fannon and Tara B., back to back on Wednesday and Thursday!

On Friday you may be pondering what your New Year’s resolution is going to be.  So, why not log on to check out what our World Moms Blog writers will be aiming to resolve in 2011 in our Friday Question?

See you on Monday!

— World Moms Blog

Our World Moms Blog logo was designed by the creative Erica Joyner Designs in Virginia, USA.

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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Christmas Interrupted

I appreciate Christmas this year, I REALLY do, even if it’s more of the secular parts. Decorating the house and gathering with friends and family — I really look forward to these.  But, I couldn’t say the same for the past two Christmases, and there is more to why this year the holiday will be extra-special for me…

You see, the past two years at Christmas I was grieving, grieving the loss of numerous early pregnancies, and I was a little lost in the empty feeling inside of me.  It was really difficult to avoid the topic of baby when you’re celebrating a holiday that revolves around, well…the birth of a baby. (more…)

Jennifer Burden

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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