by Eva Fannon (USA) | Mar 13, 2013 | 2012, Being Thankful, Death and Dying, Eva Fannon, Life Balance, Life Lesson, Motherhood, Tragedy, World Motherhood, Younger Children
It’s dark-thirty in the morning. The alarm goes off. It’s time to start the daily grind. I go into the bathroom, turn the faucet on, wet my toothbrush, spread some toothpaste on it and start brushing. I look up into the mirror. I look tired. I stare at the three white hairs that have started to grow along the part in my hair. All is quiet. Everyone is still sound asleep.
I start to wonder…what would be different if I were not here? It makes me sad to start thinking of not being around my girls and my husband. No more morning hellos with sleepy eyes peeking out from under disheveled bed head hair. No more bedtime stories and good-night snuggles. No more gentle kisses on warm sleeping heads as I watch my girls sleep before going to bed.
I get teary and have to stop thinking. I am thankful for this day. I will enjoy the day, be present in moments when I am interacting with those I care about, and at the end, reflect on the good things that have happened.
Why? Because life is fragile. We take it for granted. And the truth is we just never know when a lifetime will be cut short. (more…)
Eva Fannon is a working mom who lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her hubby and two girls. She was born and raised on the east coast and followed her husband out west when he got a job offer that he couldn't refuse. Eva has always been a planner, so it took her a while to accept that no matter how much you plan and prepare, being a mom means a new and different state of "normal".
Despite the craziness on most weekday mornings (getting a family of four out the door in time for work and school is no easy task!), she wouldn't trade being a mother for anything in the world. She and her husband are working on introducing the girls to the things they love - travel, the great outdoors, and enjoying time with family and friends. Eva can be found on Twitter @evafannon.
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by World Moms Blog | Mar 10, 2013 | Girls, Health, Kids, Older Children, Sex, Social Good, Womanhood, Women's Rights, World Voice, Younger Children
HIV/AIDS affects millions of women and girls in the United States, and many more across the world. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, almost one-quarter of the teens and adults diagnosed with HIV in the United States each year are women — yet many women and girls may not be aware of their risk of getting HIV.
That’s why the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health will sponsor the eighth annual National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on March 10, 2013. This year, participants are invited to “Share Knowledge. Take Action.”
National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day seeks to galvanize the women, public health advocates, and communities fighting this disease. By hosting the observance with partners across the country, the Office on Women’s Health aims to offer support and hope, reduce the stigma of HIV, and empower women and girls to take positive actions like getting tested, seeking treatment, educating their peers, and preventing new infections.
Below are a few ways that you can participate and make your voice heard. (more…)
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 Susie Newday (Israel) | Mar 7, 2013 | Communication, Eye on Culture, Family, Inspirational, Life Balance, Life Lesson, Motherhood, Parenting, Susie Newday, Working Mother, World Motherhood, Younger Children
I have to do this.
I have to do that.
I have to be there.
I have to be here.
How many times a day do you say, “I have to”?
I don’t know about anyone else but I know that I find myself saying the words “have to” way more times than I even notice.
Luckily I have my little six year old to call me out. If the “H” word happens to cross my mouth, she stops what she is doing, looks at me with an incredulous face and in one of her best imitations of me she emphatically says: “Eeeema (Hebrew for Mommmmy), you don’t HAVE to. You WANT to.” You got me kid. I don’t have to. I choose to. (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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by Jennifer Burden | Mar 5, 2013 | Inspirational, Social Good, Uncategorized, World Voice, Younger Children
Sometimes the best role models for kids are…other kids! I stumbled upon these two amazing young girls on the planet along the way so far. And, I’m curious to see what inspiring kids of all ages in the world that you’d add — let’s make a list!
1) Maddy in the USA
Hurricane Sandy came in and scooped up homes, businesses, boardwalks and even a beloved roller coaster and whipped them all into the sea. Many around the world watched footage of people in the aftermath who lost so much. One child in Florida, USA watched a video of a woman on the news from New Jersey who said she didn’t even have any dry socks. Like that, an idea was born…
Maddy is a 10-year old girl who instantly started laying plans for a sock drive for her home state of New Jersey. She had a meeting with her school’s principal, who allowed her to put a box she created in her school for sock donations. Over 600 pairs later, Maddy shipped three large boxes of socks up to New Jersey where they were sent to the children and adults who needed them most after Sandy!
All it takes is one kid to make a difference! Photo credit to Maddy’s mom.
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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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by hjunderway | Feb 27, 2013 | Competition, France, Running, Younger Children
When my legs felt like lead, I thought of them. When rain and snow pelted my face, I thought of them. When I closed my eyes and wished it was over, I thought of them. 13 charities. 13 reasons to keep on moving.
In September of 2012, still battling the war against the baby weight I had gained in pregnancy and losing (my own “baby” now three and a half), I decided that running seemed like a good idea. Except that in September, I had never successfully run a mile in my life, not even once. I needed a goal to keep me on track, a motivational tool to push me out the door before the sun rose on cold fall days in Paris. Armed with the idea that a half marathon was “completely possible,” I set out to find the most interesting, and difficult, half marathon I could find. A race at the Great Wall of China was first to leap out on the page, but as I scrolled down further, there it was: the 2013 Kilimanjaro Marathon in Tanzania.
Later that evening, I said to my husband, “I’m going to run the half portion of the Kili Marathon in March,” and my husband, slowly raising his eyebrow said, “That’s great, but shouldn’t you run a 5K first?” (more…)
Jacki, or “MommaExpat,” as she’s known in the Internet community, is a former family therapist turned stay-at-home mom in Paris, France. Jacki is passionate about issues as they relate to mothers and children on both domestic and international scenes, and is a Volunteer Ambassador for the Fistula Foundation. In addition to training for her first half marathon, Jacki can be found learning French in Paris and researching her next big trip. Jacki blogs at H J Underway, a chronicle of her daily life as a non-French speaking mom in France.
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by Kirsten Doyle (Canada) | Feb 25, 2013 | Canada, Kids, Life Balance, Life Lesson, Motherhood, Parenting, Toys, World Events, World Motherhood, Younger Children
It is a truth universally acknowledged that every parent has experienced the pain of stepping on a Lego. Some day, hundreds of thousands of years from now, archaeologists will discover our perfectly preserved bodies and wonder what those evenly spaced circular dents on the soles of our feet are.
The first time I had a serious run-in with one of my kids’ toys was when my younger son James was two. I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, and I walked smack-bang into a toy truck. If the truck had been made of plastic it wouldn’t have been so bad, but it was made of metal.
My foot connected with a sharp corner of the truck and I got a fair-sized gash. Because this happened during a rare moment in which both kids were asleep at the same time, I couldn’t howl in pain and hop around on one leg. I had to just stand there and bleed quietly.
Five years later, I still have a scar on my right foot. And James still has the offending truck. In fact, both of my boys still have just about every toy they have ever owned since the day they were born. My attempts to get rid of some of them have not gone well. (more…)
Kirsten Doyle was born in South Africa. After completing university, she drifted for a while and finally washed up in Canada in 2000. She is Mom to two boys who have reached the stage of eating everything in sight (but still remaining skinny).
Kirsten was a computer programmer for a while before migrating into I.T. project management. Eventually she tossed in the corporate life entirely in order to be a self-employed writer and editor. She is now living her best life writing about mental health and addictions, and posting videos to two YouTube channels.
When Kirsten is not wrestling with her kids or writing up a storm, she can be seen on Toronto's streets putting many miles onto her running shoes. Every year, she runs a half-marathon to benefit children with autism, inspired by her older son who lives life on the autism spectrum.
Final piece of information: Kirsten is lucky enough to be married to the funniest guy in the world.
Connect with her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Be sure to check out her YouTube channels at My Gen X Life and Word Salad With Coffee!
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