This week’s Saturday Sidebar Question comes from Alison Lee of Writing, Wishing. She asked our writers,
“How can you tell someone you love them without using words?”
Check out what some of our World Moms had to say…
Ms. V of South Korea writes:
“By listening and being present, being willing to sit with their joy and their pain without trying to fix things.” (more…)
This post is the third installment by Kristyn Zalota, Founder of CleanBirth.org, about her work in Laos. To read the first post in the series,click here: “One Mom’s Mission to Save Lives in Laos”. To read the second post, click here: “Small Project Big Impact: Making Birth Safe in Laos”.
As you may know from my previous posts, I am a mom on a mission to make birth safer in Laos. This month my organization, , has the goal of raising enough funds to save 1,000 mothers and 1,000 babies.
I am a doula, Lamaze educator, and advocate for safe birth for impoverished women. I was drawn to work in Laos, because women there die at a higher rate than Afghani women and Lao babies die at a higher rate than babies in Sudan.
In November 2012, I traveled to southern Laos and, with my Lao partner organization, trained nurses in the use and distribution of Clean Birth Kits. When the nurses told me that women give birth alone, I agreed to fund community education about safe birthing practices
Having completed the nurses’ training, we went deep into the mountains to visit the clinics there. I immediately sensed the grinding poverty of the area. People live on $1 per day. The life expectancy of women is short, either due to childbirth (8-12 births) or disease. Most will lose several babies.
What do you see when you walk into the villages? Naked kids with runny noses. Mothers with babies in slings. Bamboo and wood one-room dwellings on stilts. No electricity, not a single store. While a new road connecting Thailand and Vietnam is bringing change, it is mostly in the form of human trafficking, HIV, and environmental degradation. (more…)
We live in New York City, in one of the busiest areas, mid-town Manhattan and there are many benefits to living in the city. The kids go, regularly, to museums. I walk 10 minutes to get to and from work. When the kids were babies, I was able to walk home and nurse them at lunch time, or we would meet in the park across the street if the weather was nice. I have a doorman who can accept any deliveries when I am not home. I can shop for my groceries on-line and schedule a delivery whenever I need to. On days where I am working late, I have hundreds of restaurants literally at my finger tips and can order any cuisine to be delivered.
There are also many cons to living in the city. We, the 4 of us, live in a 2 bedroom apartment, approximately 1100 square feet (102.2 square meters). I know in other countries this may seem like a rather large apartment, in fact, my cousin in France lives in smaller apartment than us with 2 boys. But in the US, where everything is bigger, such as the furniture, serving portions and cars, it feels small. Especially when I look at the house that I could buy, for the same price, in the suburbs. We don’t have much space for storage, which is probably not such a bad thing, since it gets me to purge lots of unused items.
The biggest downfall though, in regards to my children, is the lack of outdoor space. Sure, there are quite a few parks and playgrounds within walking distance, as well as the beautiful Central Park, which is either a short cab/bus ride away (or a long walk on a nice day). However, there is no backyard where the kids can play and run while I prepare dinner, or while I clean. So instead, I pop in a movie or turn on some favorite cartoons for the kids to watch while I do those things.
I have some ground rules set regarding TV watching: basically, no TV before 6 pm, and it is off when we start dinner. In the morning, they can watch something while I prepare breakfast, and on school days it’s off at 8am (on weekends, I allow it a little longer while we clean). The only exception to these rules are when there is a sporting event that my husband wants to watch during the weekend day, or if they are really too sick to do much else. (more…)
This week’s Saturday Sidebar Question comes from World Moms Blog Fan. She asked our writers,
“What are your best tips for balancing family life and career life? How do you make it work where you live?”
Check out what some of our World Moms had to say…
A working woman
Momma Expat of France writes:
“ When I was in the US, working full-time outside of the home, my husband always pitched in to help around the house and three
days a week made dinner. This allowed me to fulfill my work requirements and feel supported. Now that I’m working from home part-time, my husband is STILL continuing to support me by freeing me up to run in the morning while he takes my son to school. Since my sister-in-law is also here with me, she said, “Also making sure mom gets a full night of sleep! So important to face the next day! And lastly choosing to let certain things go and focusing on what’s more important. Lastly, parents should make time for one another. Both of us would pick one day a month and leave our kids in school or daycare to go out for lunch. Spending time for one another is really important!” (more…)
Something changes with that first cry, that first breath of air, that first glimpse. Something changes with that first realization that things will never ever be the same now that you have bought a life into this world.
I was a young mother, only twenty years old when I gave birth to the first of my five children. Young, but certain I knew everything and certain that my answers and solutions were always correct. I was so right and I was so very wrong. Life was indeed never the same once I became a parent.
Nothing prepares you for the love, the challenges, the joys and the worries that parenthood brings you. As far as being certain that I know everything and have all the answers, the only thing I am now certain of is that I definitely do NOT have all the answers.
Time changes us. Experience changes us. Being a parent definitely changes us.
Today, my eldest son is leaving home. It shouldn’t come as such a shock to me. I have known for 22 years that this day would eventually come. Yet somehow, in what seems like the blink of an eye, the years have flown by and this goodbye has managed to sneak up on me. My son has been growing up for years, slowly changing while growing more self-reliant and responsible. He has made friends, learned things and risen to challenges. (more…)
Susie Newday is a happily-married American-born Israeli mother of five. She is an oncology nurse, blogger and avid amateur photographer. Most importantly, Susie is a happily married mother of five amazing kids from age 8-24 and soon to be a mother in law. (Which also makes her a chef, maid, tutor, chauffeur, launderer...) Susie's blog, New Day, New Lesson, is her attempt to help others and herself view the lessons life hands all of us in a positive light. She will also be the first to admit that blogging is great free therapy as well. Susie's hope for the world? Increasing kindness, tolerance and love. You can also follow her Facebook page New Day, New Lesson where she posts her unique photos with quotes as well as gift ideas.
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This week’s Saturday Sidebar Question comes from World Moms Blog writer MamaMzungu. She asked our writers,
“How do you “kiss a boo-boo” in your country/ family?”
Check out what some of our World Moms had to say…
ALadyInFrance of France writes:
“In France we rub the affected area and say ‘aye-aye’.”
Carol @ If By Yes of British Columbia, Canada writes:
“We kiss things better, but my husband’s grandmother from Wisconsin rubs things better instead. ‘C’mere and let me rub it’ was a constant refrain when we stayed with her.”
Eva Fannon of Washington State, USA writes:
“I give them a big bear hug and kiss, and then gently rub the affected area and say “Sana, sana, colita de rana, si no sanas hoy, sanarás mañana”. That was what my mom always did for my brothers and I. It literally translates to “Heal, heal, little tail of the frog, if you don’t heal today, you’ll heal tomorrow.””
Hamakkomommy of Japan writes:
“In Japan, they put a hand over the ouchie and say “Itai no itai no, tonde ike!” Which means something like “Pain, pain, go away.” One version of this lets you command the pain to go to other people. Dad is the usual victim.”
