Coast 2 Coast Mom

Relying on Each Other for Happiness

This post is inspired by Laura Munson's This Is Not The Story You Think It Is . . .A Season of Unlikely Happiness, this month's book club choice for the virtual book club From Left to Write. I received a copy of this book as a participant in the group.

We've lived far from family for over a decade now - not just a town or state away - but a necessary flight or full day's drive away. When we relocated from Michigan to California, my mom's words still echo in my mind that I shouldn't be too sad or anxious about the move, that it would be a good thing for my husband and me because it will bring us closer. That's we'd only have each other to rely on - in emergencies, for daily emotional support, as a spouse and also as best friends. We wouldn't have Desperate Housewives-like relationships with life-long friends we could pop-in on at a whim. We wouldn't have resources, and doctors and stores and babysitters we were familiar with or could find other friends to verify for us - we'd be exploring and testing them out ourselves. She was right of course, that we do have a different relationship than our married friends whom have not struck out completely alone. I don't know if that's better or worse, but it's definitely different. We've been each other's only cheerleaders, firestarters and celebratory partners for as long as I can remember. I don't really know "us" without this best friend-parent-lover mishmash that' we've become.

The Curse and Privilege of Having A Daughter

This post is inspired by this month's From Left to Write book club choice, If You Knew Suzy by Katherine Rosman. I received a copy of this book as a participant in the From Left to Write virtual club.

As with the majority of the books I purchase (or read for this book club), I pass them along to my mom, a sister, or friend - whomever I think would like it most. I have so many people whom I think would LOVE this book that I'm considering ordering a case.

Having JUST returned from the Metro Detroit area to visit my in-laws this weekend, I'm familiar with the locations and social norms that Rosman includes in the book. At least to this WASP-y outsider, the descriptions seemed spot-on and I giggled as I re-read some passages aloud to my husband to jog his memory, strictly from the novelty of having this geographic connection to the book. (I asked after reading about Franklin Village, "Hey - isn't that where we took Li'l Boo for doughnuts and apple cider at the Franklin Cider Mill?") Funny enough, my husband would have been bar mitzvahed the same year as the author and I'm sure that even if my in-laws don't know all of the people mentioned, that they have a friend who does. (I shouldn't be surprised each time I'm reminded how small of a world this is after all of our travels, yet I am.)

Some #SVMomsBitMoms Brand and Blogger Successes

With the imminent dissolution of Silicon Valley Moms Group, I've been reflecting on my experiences and opportunities with the group. Back in May, I attended the SVMoms NYC/NJ/Philly Moms brand and blogger event, sponsored by BitDefender, which brought in 50 local SVMoms bloggers and about 15 brands for a discussion on best practices, and to ask questions and chat about the opportunities for brands and bloggers to work together. I've had a couple of positive experiences as a result of that event that I thought I'd share to better explain ways I've interacted "organically" with brands, and some success stories as a result.

First, I have to give a major shout out to iGo Green for participating in the event as a brand. I received an iGo Charge Anywhere at the event, and was impressed that it serves the purpose of a backup charger for your phone or laptop, but doesn't have to be plugged into an outlet to work. It's a genius li'l device and I've used it nearly everyday since the event. I've even subsequently purchased two more to give away as gifts! Needless to say, my iGo Charge Anywhere has found its home in my purse, and has joined our leaving-the-house checklist of cell phone? Wallet? Keys? iGo? The Charge Anywhere has enabled me to work and be accessible while traveling around Manhattan for hours on end, while getting my hair done, while attending conferences, or on my recent trips to Boston and Los Angeles.

In the Midst of a Mom Blogger Evolution

It's something that's been whispered about at nearly every event or meeting I've attended in the last two weeks...the Silicon Valley Moms Blog network is dissolving as of July 1st. I first received the news while we were in Los Angeles recently. I read the email announcement with a lump in my throat, but as we were traveling, I didn't have the time for a thoughtful, passionate response myself, although I read through the dozens of others each day we were away.

The overall SVMoms network included some fantastic writers . . . witty wordsmiths...creative comediennes, some published authors and real life journalists and some lucky writers whom were chosen to participate - like me. I savored my involvement in the blogging group, considering myself fortunate to be in the same company as the other contributors, and grateful for the opportunities that presented themselves.

Math, Gilbert Gottfried, Big Apple Circus, Little Boy Voices and Me

Add to that mix: Britney Spears, Cyberchase and 45 weeks and you'll get a taste of the panel I was exposed to last weekend at Cyberchase Saturday. It was a quintessential New York experience, all thanks to PBS THIRTEEN WNET, Tribeca Cinemas and math. Yes, you read that right: MATH.

Saturday I had the pleasure of moderating a celebrity talkback panel with the cast of PBS's Cyberchase at the famous Tribeca Cinemas, as part of Tribeca Cinemas' Kids Club program. Cyberchase is one of the only children's programs where the heroes use "brain power" and math in everyday situations to save the day. It was a fantastic opportunity for fans of the series to see a sneak peek at episodes from the new season, meet some of their favorite stars and learn some behind-the-scenes secrets of the show. So much goes into the production of such a high quality show like this one, and as a PBS Kids Club 13 Ambassador, I was delighted to be asked to participate in the event, which featured:

Getting Married at 9 - Similar to Getting Married at 4? Ridiculous, right?

This post is inspired by the Silicon Valley Moms Group book club choice, I am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced. It tells the story of Nujood Ali's childhood marriage to a man three times her age, and her courage in becoming the first child bride in Yemen to win a divorce. . .she went on to become a Glamour Woman of the Year in 2008. I received a copy of the book as a participant in the book club.

The saga of Li'l Boo and his preschool girlfriend continues . . .

At dinner last night we were talking about this being Li'l Boo's last week of preschool this year. I told him that the bigger kids in his class were going on to kindergarten, and he would stay with his teacher and a couple of the other younger kids next year. I let him know that his "girlfriend" wouldn't be in his class next year. Li'l Boo surprised us by saying that he'll see her when they get married. It appears that they already have their wedding all planned out. Here's what he told us:

Volunteerism On The Rise: Yay! We're a Part of a Movement

This post is inspired by the Yahoo! Motherboard's topic of the month: volunteerism. Evidence points to an increase in volunteerism this past year, and while I can only guess as to why that is, I can say definitively that our family is a part of that upswing. Check out the site to read more posts by other Motherboard bloggers.

Our frequent moves have made me hyper-sensitive about raising our son with a connection to his family and community. It's important to me that he knows where he comes from, and feels a part of the world around him. So we walk around town completing errands and chatting with the store owners and workers we've come to know, we attend the local summer parades, and last year we started the habit of participating in charity walks and races in the greater NYC area as often as we can. This gives us the opportunity to explore and connect with our community as a family.

There are just so many different causes that we'd like to support, but we don't have the funds - or time - on one full salary to support 'em all, though we do as many as we can, usually two a month from spring to fall. I've written before about doing 5ks as a family and how we do it to instill a healthy lifestyle in the kiddo while getting us up early and moving so we're all outside breathing fresh air and circulating the endorphins for a great family day. I personally enjoy doing so many walks and races because it gives us the opportunity to explore the greater NYC area without traffic early in the morning, and we usually get some great views, photos and experiences out of it. ...plus those warm fuzzies for having done some "good."

Notes from The Sandbox Summit: For Today's Kids, the Medium Is As Important as the Message

Last Monday afternoon I hopped on the Acela and headed up to Boston (Cambridge) to attend The Sandbox Summit, iPlay, YouPlay, WiiPlay, a conference focused on "how play is changing media and media is changing play." It was one of the best conferences I've attended in that it lined up fascinating speakers, offered hands-on workshops, and was intimate in that it was a smaller summit and provided plenty of time for follow-up discussions and networking amongst academics, toy developers, researchers, publishers, marketers and media. It was a summit to share research, discussion, ideas and predictions.

I'll touch upon some of my favorite aspects of the summit that I was fortunate enough to attend (thanks to the team at 360 Public Relations) in various posts over the next few weeks. Though for now, I wanted to share some of what I learned at an interactive workshop led by Stacey Matthias, child development expert and founder and Co-CEO of Insight Kids and Insight Research Group, as an example of what the summit offered. Stacey's hands-on workshop explored the physical, cognitive and emotional development of kids at ages 4, 7 and 11 and which media has the most impact at which ages. Here's what I learned:

Moreso than any other generation, today's kids are living in a world driven by media and technology and this impacts how they communicate, think and play.  Stacey explained that there's no curriculum for integrating technology into young childrens' lives, so today's kids are vastly teaching themselves how to use the new technology, and in many cases teaching their teachers and parents how to use it. There's no 3rd grade curriculum for researching online virtual worlds and video games, or an 8th grade class about social media for kids like there's English and math curriculum, so kids are exploring the online virtual worlds and social media themselves - in a vacuum.

Cooking with My Kiddo

This post is inspired by the Silicon Valley Moms Blog monthly book club choice for March, Top 100 Finger Foods and Top 100 Baby Purees by Annabel Karmel. I received a copy of both books as a part of the book club.

I remember when the idea of cooking with Li'l Boo first came to me. I read in several parenting books when he was a baby that kids are more apt to try foods when they help prepare them. I made a mental note for when I deemed him old enough to assist me, and moved on. Then while living in Naperville, I saw a neighboring family of four kids from about ages 2-8 prepare dinner and a lightbulb went off.

There they were, standing around the counter in the kitchen on various step stools and chairs, each working on different stages of dinner prep. The oldest was chopping a carrot, two were ripping lettuce, another stirring something in a bowl near her mom at the sink. Aha! So THAT'S how she does it! That's how she doesn't lose her mind everyday during the late afternoon/early evening witching hour.  She's not breaking up wrestling matches and blowing up over crayon drawings on the walls upstairs or ushering wailing children indoors to check out a boo boo. She gives' em jobs and keeps 'em busy. These kids were focused and taking pride in what they're doing. . . and relatively happy and quiet. I vowed to copy her from that day forward.

Recovering from the Storm

Last Saturday night began innocently enough, putting Li'l Boo to bed and popping in a Netflix DVD as my hubby and I discussed the howling winds outside and I enlisted him to help me grab some hooded sweatshirts and candles together in case our power went out. I was concerned, watching the gigantic 150 year-old trees that line our street sway violently in the wind, and as they are nearly twice the height of the houses on our street, it was highly probable that if windy enough, they'd fall on a house. He begrudgingly obliged me and took the two minutes for us to pull a few emergency things together.