by Yolanda Gordon | Dec 2, 2016 | 2016, North America, The Americas, USA, World Interviews, World Moms Network, Yolanda Gordon
Where in the world do you live? And, are you from there?
I live in Fort Mill, SC. I am from South Carolina. I was born and raised here, and I attended public schools here.
What language(s) do you speak?
I speak English. I can understand Spanish, however, I can speak very little of it. I also know American Sign Language.
When did you first become a mother (year/age)?
I first became a mother at the age of 19 in 1999.
Are you a stay-at-home mom or do you work from home or away from home?
I work full time as a Licensed Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant. It’s a wonderful job.
Why do you blog/write?
I originally started a blog because I had all sort of ideas in my head that I wanted to share. Then it became more than that. I was able to share the day in and day out of being a mom of three children with different disabilities. It also turned into a place where I could share about social good and being a single mother.
What makes you unique as a mother?
What makes me unique is that I am the mom of two children on the Autism Spectrum. In addition, my oldest child was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder at the age of 13. In spite of these challenges, I advocate for those who have less than I, for children, and for a variety of other causes.
What do you view as the challenges of raising a child in today’s world?
One of the biggest challenges of raising children today is not knowing my neighbors. People are not concerned with creating lasting relationships with their neighbors these days like they did when I was a child. Everyone knew each other back then even if we didn’t live in the same neighborhood.
How did you find World Moms Network?
I found World Moms Network through Jen Burden and Shot@Life.
This is an original post to World Moms Network by World Mom, Yolanda Gordon in the USA. Welcome, Yolanda!
by World Moms Blog | Oct 10, 2016 | 2016, Asia and Oceania, Babies, Celebrations, Culture, Health, Maternal Health, Mission Motherhood, Multicultural, Sri Lanka
As part of World Moms Blog’s collaboration with BabyCenter’s Mission Motherhood®, our World Moms have been writing posts on maternal health around the world. We have made it to the finish line, and this is the last and 24th post in the incredible one-year series!
Orana Velarde in Srilanka interviewed 8 mothers in Sri Lanka and discovered a diversity of new baby traditions:
“Recently, my family and I moved to Sri Lanka, an island country in the Indian Ocean, off the southeastern coast of India. I know, not your everyday, run of the mill motherhood adventure, but that’s my life!
Once here, it was not long until I began to wonder about the customs and experiences of the local mothers. Sri Lanka has four official religions, Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam and Christianity. Every religion has different beliefs and ceremonies, which makes this land a very rich cultural experience. What was I missing out on? What would surprise me? So, I took to my local mother’s group to interview some moms, eight of them, in fact! The results were exciting…”
Read the full post, Sri Lankan baby traditions: Shaved heads, chanting and more!, over at BabyCenter’s Mission Motherhood®!
Thank you to BabyCenter for the opportunity to provide content on maternal health from around the world this past year, and thank you to all of our World Moms who participated in the series!
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 Jennifer Burden | Jun 6, 2016 | 2016, International, World Interviews, World Moms Blog, World Moms Network, World Motherhood
World Moms Blog will be launching as World Moms Network later this month!
Don’t fret — we’re keeping the same great content, and we’re under the same ownership! However, we have plans to add more exciting additions and include ways for our readers to join us in making an impact in the lives of women and children worldwide!
Why the name change? It has become clear that we have grown beyond the blog we set out to be back in 2010 when we first launched. After five years of working hard to find our tribe of over 70 contributors, receiving global recognition from various organizations, earning revenue from our writing and social media services to sustain our site, and expanding our desire to impact the world, we feel that “blog” is no longer the best way to define who we are, what we do, and what we plan to become.
Under World Moms Network we will continue to blog and provide a platform for the voices of women around the world, — that’s still so important to us and won’t change! — but blogging will not define our network alone as we grow. We are most motivated by our mission of “Connecting mothers; empowering women around the globe.” and our vision statement, “We envision a world of peace and equality, born through our common ground of motherhood.”
The first change you will notice will be when we launch the new look of our site this month. HINT: Check out our new logo above!! The artwork for our new site is gorgeous, and we’ve found a way to incorporate many of the women behind the scenes (you’ll just have to wait until we launch the new site to see how!). The updates will also make it easier to share our posts and sign up for our newsletter, which will go out more often. But, that is only the first step of our metamorphosis!
Second, we are working on plans to set up a market by year end 2016 to include survivor made goods. These are goods that will help provide a lifeline for women in the most dire global situations. Our team is currently picking out a handful of gorgeous items from a women’s cooperative in India to launch our market. This is another way we can make a direct impact to better the lives of women around the world!
In 2017 we plan to make it easier to alert our network to worldwide actions everyone can join us in taking for the many topics we are most passionate about — maternal health, the right to a universal education, newborn survival, violence against women, and more of the UN’s sustainable development goals. Having a separate team and newsletter for global action is our third goal. There is power in numbers when it comes to standing up for women, children and our planet, and we are already beginning to create a #WorldMoms Action Team to define these actions for the year to come!
As we work on the first three big steps as World Moms Network, we will also continue to offer and grow our writing and social media services (blog posts, twitter parties, attending live events, live tweeting, interviews, etc.), as we continue to make our site sustainable. More to come on that, too, in the future!
We are excited from all corners of the globe about the future of our site as World Moms Network, and we hope to provide our readers an even more exciting, thoughtful, world changing, and meaningful experience when they log on!
Cheers to all!
Jennifer Burden, Founder and CEO of WorldMomsBlog.com
(Soon to be WorldMomsNetwork.com!)
P.S. Let me know what you think of the new logo!
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 Karen Williams | Dec 16, 2015 | 2015, Middle East, UAE, World Interviews, World Moms Blog
Where in the world do you live? And, are you from there?
Home for the moment is Abu Dhabi, UAE. Our family (husband, 2.5 year-old and yours truly) just moved here six months ago for my husband’s job. Originally from the tiny city-state of Singapore, we have been living a transitory life and have resided in four countries since 2007.
What language(s) do you speak?
English and Mandarin, and such basic French that I wouldn’t even call it speaking! While the official language of Singapore is Malay, today it is mainly used by some of the older generation, the Malays and a minority of other Singaporeans. The business language in Singapore is English and all schools instruct in English so this was what I grew up reading and speaking. In schools, you also have to learn a second language and although I managed to scrape by in my exams, I still always feel a little nervous and panicky when someone speaks to me in Mandarin. I also understand some Hokkien (another Chinese dialect) from listening to my maternal grandmother when I was a child. I never practised it very much and needless to say, I had numerous moments when things were lost in translation with my grandmother!
When did you first become a mother (year/age)?
In 2013, three days before I turned 32, my daughter made an early entrance into our lives. Since then, we’ve never had a dull or quiet day.
Are you a stay-at-home mom or do you do other work in or outside the home?
By choice, I am a stay-at-home mom. Initially, I left my job to focus on conceiving. When my daughter was born, I didn’t have any help with her and was her main care-giver. And now, she is with us on her first overseas posting, and I’m happy to be at home with her to maintain some sort of consistency. I remember being a teenager and telling my teacher that I wanted to be a physical education teacher (I ended up teaching English Lit, but close enough) until I had a family and then I would stay home with my children. Somehow, things turned out the way I had dreamed, and I am so very thankful that I can make the choice to stay home with my daughter.
Why do you blog/write?
I’ve only started writing fairly recently, mostly as a means to keep my brain working especially when my days revolve around nursery rhymes and Disney songs on repeat. I’ve found it rather cathartic and calming, and it gives me a chance to stop and gather my thoughts. Blogging and reading other blogs also provides a platform for an exchange of ideas, different perspectives and very importantly, support between friends and fellow mums.
What makes you unique as a mother?
As a mother in the parenting game, I am like any other mother who wants the best for her child. My uniqueness lies in one fact, that I am my daughter’s mummy, that I know her better than anyone else, and that I love her differently from anyone else.
What do you view as the challenges of raising a child in today’s world?
Because we move from country to country ever 3-4 years, and we are away from our family a lot, I worry that my child will lack permanence, a connection with others and a sense of rootedness. “Where is home?” and “Where do I belong?” will be questions that she will need to find answers to. And hopefully, as parents, we will be able to provide safety and security at home, so that she can face other challenges as we move around.
How did you find World Moms Blog?
When I first started writing, we had just moved away from Singapore, and I was searching for other blogs for expat parents; I wanted to find some support from mums who were living abroad with their young kids. When I came across World Moms Blog, I was immediately drawn to it. Not only did it feature mothers from across the globe, it highlighted many inspirational issues and causes, and gave others a rare glimpse of mums living, working and parenting in different parts of the world. With each post I read, I learn something new and am spurred to want to do more than I am doing. There’s no better place to be inspired and uplifted by other mums!
This is an original post to World Moms Blog by KC in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Photo credits to the author.
Karen is a Singaporean with an 8 year-old daughter who’s a little fire-cracker version of herself. She’s spent the last 15 years in her various roles of supportive trailing spouse, mother, home-maker and educator. Having experienced six international moves alternating between overseas postings and her home country of Singapore, Karen considers herself a lover of diverse foods and culture, and reckons she qualifies as a semi-professional packer. She is deeply interested in intercultural and third-culture issues, and has grown immensely from her interactions with other World Mums.
Karen is currently living in Brunei with her family.
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by Piya Mukherjee | Aug 28, 2015 | 2015, India, Piya Mukherjee, World Interviews, World Moms Blog, World Moms Blog Writer Interview, World Motherhood
Where in the world do you live? And, are you from there?
I live in Mumbai, India and have lived here since birth. However, work and leisure have taken me to many different pockets of India and of the world. It’s a tad ironical that someone with “wanderlust” should also be a happy citizen of a single city for a long time!
What language(s) do you speak?
I speak English, Hindi (the national language), Bengali / Bangla (my mother tongue), some Marathi (the language of the state where I live) and a sprinkling of words in French remembered from my school and college days! 🙂
When did you first become a mother (year/age)?
I had just turned 26 when Abhishek was born.
Are you a stay-at-home mom or do you work inside or outside the home?
Surprisingly, the answer to this question is – both! When my son arrived, I moved into full-time parenting and slowly progressed to weaving my work around his schedules. Later, this took the form of freelance and flexi-time work. Over the years, my son grew – as did my work. However what remains constant is my “being there” when needed – exam study times, “I need to discuss with you” times, ill times, sad and happy times. So yes, I work, but if there is a toss-up between parenting and work, parenting would win hands-down! Hence I like to think of myself as a professional who also works with the mind-set of a stay at home mom.
Why do you blog/write?
Because the thoughts in my heart and mind wear the words of their choice and seek expression in my diaries, journals and laptop! Because they will not be denied. Because they echo my deepest, most sacred beliefs. And because I believe in the power of such words in forging and linking like-minded souls across the planet.
What makes you unique as a mother?
Every chuckle and laugh that motherhood has brought me, every tear I’ve shed, every epiphany that seemingly simple moments have brought me, every dream my heart has nurtured, every fear that has kept me awake and every hope that I’ve cherished – these have all contributed to the tapestry of this special, challenging, wondrous and joyous journey of motherhood. That makes me a unique mother – like the other mothers on this planet (no, that’s not a paradox!). Aren’t we then all unique mothers? 🙂
And oh, I must mention that over the past 18 years or so, I’ve been very active in the education domain. Being a teacher-trainer, allows me to bring some much-needed understanding into the classroom and some objectivity in terms of dealing with growing-up milestones, in my home! The cross-pollination of experiences and learnings helps!
What do you view as the challenges of raising a child in today’s world?
The world today probably offers more choices and faster time-buckets for changes and decision-making than ever before. The flipside is this: emotional resilience and intellectual maturity don’t quite grow at the same rate as techo-skills and expressions of individuality. Which leads to a world that teeters between the “I” and the “We” paradigms of identity. Raising a child to navigate this course is what makes parenting a challenging task today.
How did you find World Moms Blog?
I was searching for some “soul-food” for mothers on the Internet. Some random clicks brought me to this website, and I was interested…then intrigued…and then hooked. But then again, Vedanta (a school of philosophical thought of India) teaches us that nothing is truly random! So this was meant to be. 🙂
Do you you have any questions for Piya?
This is an original post to World Moms Blog by new contributors, Piya Mukherjee of India.
Photo credits to the author.
