2012: WMB Year in Review & Blogcation!

2012: WMB Year in Review & Blogcation!

At World Moms Blog we’ve been so “Go! Go! Go!” that I haven’t had time to reflect on our year, and now that I have, it was really “WOW!!” Here are some amazing and memorable highlights!

World Moms Blog contributors and editors met up for the first time in Washington, DC in January, around the UN Foundation’s Volunteer Summit for Shot@Life. I was also invited to speak at the event on grass-roots fundraising and party planning for social good during the summit.World Moms 2012 DC 500

In March, our Indonesian contributors, Maureen and Shaula Bellour, also met for the first time ever in Jakarta for coffee. (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.

More Posts - Website

Follow Me:
Twitter

ARKANSAS, USA: The Things That I Know For Certain

ARKANSAS, USA: The Things That I Know For Certain

In six months, I will celebrate my 40th birthday and as I grow older, there are things that I begin to know for certain. At the top of my list is the fact that it’s never too late to further your education. As you, dear reader, peruse this blog post, I will be graduating in the Fall Commencement at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. A journey that I started on four years ago will finally be reaching its destination.

As I have written about in previous blog posts, my life has been a rollercoaster journey of bad decisions. I trudged through my teens and early 20s in a fog of low self-esteem and insecurity. There was always a running monologue in my mind of why I just wasn’t good enough. Despite being a single mother to two children, I bounced from one low paying job to the next and was never sure of exactly where I would end up.

But then, five years ago, something miraculous occurred: my life completely and utterly fell apart and I was forced to rebuild from almost scratch. I can attest that hitting the utter rockiest of bottoms can be a lifesaving event. Somewhere in that process, I began to make valuable changes to how I thought of myself. (more…)

Margie Webb (USA)

Margie Webb is a forty-something, divorced mom of three biracial sons: Isaiah (25), Caleb (20), and Elijah (6/8/1997 - 7/2/1997) and two bonus sons: Malcolm (5/10/1992 - 10/9/2015) and Marcus (25). She lives in Lafayette, Louisiana by way of Little Rock, Arkansas, and enjoys traveling, attending the theater, cooking calling the Hogs during Arkansas Razorback football season, spending time with family and friends, and is a crazy cat lady. In addition to obtaining her Bachelors and Masters degree, she also has a Graduate Certificate in Online Writing Instruction and a National HR Certification through SHRM. She excels in her career as a Human Resources Management professional. Additionally, she has represented World Moms Network as a Digital Reporter at various conferences, including the United Nations Social Good Summit. Her life has been one big adventure in twists, turns ,extreme lows, and highs. After recently embracing her new lease on life and her identity in the LGBTQ community, she is excited about what is yet to come. She can be found on Twitter@TheHunnyB

More Posts

Saturday Sidebar: If the world were to end tomorrow…

This week’s Saturday Sidebar Question comes from World Moms Blog writer Purnima.  She asked our writers,

“What would you do today if the world ended tomorrow?”

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

Polish Mom Photographer skype'ing with her family in Poland.

Polish Mom Photographer skype’ing with her family in Poland.

Polish Mom Photographer of California, USA writes:
“I would bake a cheesecake for myself and an apple pie for my husband. Then I would call on skype my closest family in Poland. We would turn our cameras on and we would sit, and talk until the world would end.”

Jennifer Burden of New Jersey, USA writes:
“My husband, my kids and I would probably be working to the very last moment to prepare a time capsule to let those who come after us know what happened and what life was like on earth when the humans were here. And we’d probably all eat a lot of ice cream along the way!”

Kirsten Doyle of Ontario, Canada writes:
“I would Skype with my mom and some other loved ones. Then I would go for a good long run. After that I would soak in a hot bubble bath drinking wine and finishing whatever book I happened to be reading. The kids would be allowed to stay up late and we would all hang out on my bed playing.”

(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.

More Posts

Mothers Unite in the Face of Today’s Tragedies

“How?’ “Why?” “When will this stop?”  Today there was another school shooting, this time in Newtown, Connecticut in the USA.  Twenty children, aged 5-10, were among the 27 dead.  Also today, across the world in Chenpeng, China, there was a knife attack in China that wounded 22 children.

The hearts of our mothers around the world reach out to the parents suffering tonight over the sudden and tragic losses of their children in the USA.  Our hands reach around to China to wipe the tears from the children and parents affected by the attack there. We hope they will heal soon.

We can’t take this day away. Although, we wish we could.

World Moms Blog comes together in unity for the safety of the world’s children and to wish to ease the pain of those closest to them tonight. Please join us in prayer, positive energy, wishful thoughts, whatever it is you do. We band together tonight, for we know what it’s like to be a mother, no matter where we are, and we know the loss of a child is too great to suffer alone.

 

 

 

 

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.

More Posts

GUEST POST: Returning to the Work Force As a SAHM

GUEST POST: Returning to the Work Force As a SAHM

I’m a stay-at-home-Mama (SAHM) who recently found herself a job.

Two projects, actually.  They aren’t fulltime and they don’t take me out of my son’s playroom-home office very often.  But for the first time since our son Will was born, I’m once again accountable to people who do not routinely throw spaghetti on the floor.

I love being home with our son.  I love trips to the playground and post-nap snuggles.  I love not having to schedule our daily explorations of Delhi around a 40-hour workweek.  Having done two overseas moves now, I see the value in having one parent 100% available at home–at least for the first few months–to deal with all of the challenging transitions involved.

When my husband and I decided nearly 18 months ago that I would stay home to raise our son, I thought that decision hinged simply on whether I wanted to and whether we could afford it.  I didn’t realize then that it was possible to be blissfully happy as a stay-at-home-Mama and yet so darn conflicted about it at the same time.

Parenthood is hard work whether you are staying home, going to an office or any combination thereof.  And I’ve increasingly begun to wonder, just because I’m able to opt out of the workforce and stay home fulltime, does that really mean I should? (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.

More Posts

CANADA: Interview with Angela at halfpastnormal

CANADA: Interview with Angela at halfpastnormal

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

I live in Toronto, Ontario in Canada.  I love living here because it is one of the most ethnically diverse cities in the world.  There are countless shops and restaurants that reflect the many different people who live here.  I can find food from Ethiopia, Korea, and Peru by just walking down the street or hopping on a streetcar.  It is like traveling the globe without leaving your hometown.

 

What language(s) do you speak?

Embarrassingly, I only speak English.  I’ve always wanted to learn new languages and have a smattering of French.  I can ask for the washroom and count to ten, and that’s about it.

 

When did you first become a mother?

I first became a mother at the age of 32.  My oldest son (now five years old) was born and my world changed completely.  He was a jaundiced, colicky baby and I was head over heels in love with him.

I now have a three year old daughter and a one year old baby boy as well.  Our home is very busy, but it’s wonderful to have the children playing together.  Although it is challenging to have young children so close in age, I love (almost) every minute of it.

I was unprepared for how intense motherhood is, and I have made many changes in my life to spend more time with my children.  Before children I was very career focused, and it took a couple years of trying to juggle my children’s and work schedules for me to realize it is not working for me. I now choose positions that compliment my family life. (more…)

specialneedmom2

Angela is a Special Education teacher who blogs about her super-powered special needs family. She has a 3 year old with Prader-Willi Syndrome and a 5 year old with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and Sensory Processing Disorder. The odds of these random genetic events occurring at the same time are astronomical. "When you add our typically developing one year old baby boy to the mix, you have a very busy household!", she explains. Angela admits to having too many appointments, too many school problems, and being generally too busy as she tries to live life to the fullest. Please visit her family at Half Past Normal for more of their adventures! If you want to connect to chat, you can find her on Twitter @specialneedmom2 If you are interested in Special Education policies and procedures in Ontario – or just some excellent strategies and accommodations – please check out Angela's other site at Special Ed on the Bell Curve.

More Posts