Archive for the 'mom' Category

Haven’t posted in a month, thank you

Published
by
RBM
on May 1, 2009
in mom
. 0 Comments

bumble_beeIt’s May now and April went by in a blinding, toxic-yellow blur. Normally, in this situation, I would find myself apologizing for the lag between my last post and this one.  But tonight, no apologies. 

It was a busy month at work, and thank goodness.

1. Because I even HAVE work. I just had a friend land a contract gig today that had been out of work for just about a full year.  So, yea, I’m thankful that work has me busy. 

2. I learned a lot. I’ve been working from RedBullMom and my former blogger account,  Double Life of the Red Bull Mom, but it’s mine and minimalist on purpose. However, this past month we pushed a client live with a community site and blog and each time you do this it’s a unique and incredible learning experience. It’s great to be waist-deep in a career and still feel stimulated.

3. The people. While I obviously love my family and would love to have an infinite amount of time to spend with them, when I have to immerse myself into work I feel like I’m with my second family. The support, dedication, brainy brawn and humor chops on my trenchmates is just another reason to be thankful. 

But watch out…I’m back.

Women, guilt and being a mom part 2: Choosing peace

Published
by
RBM
on April 17, 2008
in GFM, SAHM, guilt, mom, mommy and working moms against guilt
. 0 Comments

The other day, umm I mean last month, I posted a few initial assumptions that I felt in my heart (and gut) based on a post aimed towards SAHMs on the Silicon Valley Moms Blog.

Assertions aside now, and back to the specifics of the post, I wanted to take a moment to admit a few personal things here…

One, I have never stayed home with my kids full time more than five months at a time (at the birth of my second child) so I can’t claim to have ever been a committed SAHM in the real sense because I always knew I would be going back to work after my leave. And of course, I feel guilty about that. But I re-make my choice to work every day. And, there’s a “support group” of sorts for this, Working Moms Against Guilt (WMAG) so I know I’m not alone.

Second, I am guilty of making a remark on at least one occasion that was called out in the comments section as being hurtful towards SAHMs. (Cue the Homer Simpson DOH! to echo in my mind as I read the comments on the post.) And, again, of course I feel very guilty about this too.

Now, I will say that I am more a social idiot sometimes than I am judgmental. The comment was made out of ignorance and not judgment. I have several friends that stay at home with their kid(s) full time. I have friends that have kids and full time jobs. And, I have friends that have done both. And I respect each of them all the same. Everyone needs to make their own decisions based on the circumstances and – if you’re lucky – choices offered to their family. And because we are all not cookie cutter images of one another (how boring would that be?) everyone’s decision is as unique as we all are as moms, wives, colleagues and people.

I believe it’s only hurtful to women as a gender for these “Mommy Wars”, as the friction has been dubbed, to rage on. We all need to support one another, support each others’ children. For my part, I choose to really think before I speak to SAHMs to avoid saying silly things that may be construed as hurtful because I simply don’t know better without their valuable perspective.

I also choose to acknowledge that I am lucky enough to have a choice. I choose to be the best mom I can be, however that may come to be based on my own personality, dreams and ideas of how to raise our children. With that freedom of choice, I choose to work. Finally, I also choose to accept all moms as VIPs and aspire to be the “anti guilt advocate” for all, no matter the “label”. How about GFM (Guilt Free Mom), does that exist? ;)

The one boob wonder

Published
by
RBM
on November 30, 2007
in breast cancer, masectomy and mom
. 1 Comment

My mom is the strongest, most amazing woman I know. She endured hours of surgery yesterday (masectomy, if you couldn’t guess by the title) and still managed to call last night to let us know she was doing well and feeling good. She was even cracking jokes and asking for more pics of the grandkids so she could check them out online.

I hope I am even half as strong a woman as she is when I’m old enough to be known as “Grandma”.
Two battles down, one more to go.
A special thanks also goes out to “Nurse Grandpa”, who has been taking good care of our VIP patient.

reason #1,097,923 why my mom rocks

Published
by
RBM
on February 7, 2007
in mom, roe v wade and sarah weddington
. 0 Comments

My mom has always set a good example for me to follow in regards to paying attention (to many things in life). Example number 1,097,923 follows in the form of an email I received from my mom the other day.

I had the opportunity to attend a NARAL luncheon in Napa and hear Sarah Weddington, the lady who argued the winning side of the landmark case Roe v. Wade before the Supreme Court which gave women the right to chose whether or not they wanted an abortion. It was like seeing and touching a part of history. She told how when she graduated with her law class she was one of 5 women and couldn’t find a job. Going before the Supreme Court was actually her first case! She was such a good speaker, setting the scene for going into the Supreme Court and giving the background. She also was a close friend and colleague of Ann Richardson, deceased ex-governer of Texas and Molly Ivens who just passed away. She was awesome!!

No matter which side of the Pro Choice/Pro Life fence you prefer to reside on there is one common denominator — we should all pay attention to the issues facing us today. And, we could all learn a little something by paying attention to the past. Anyway… I think my mom rocks. I love that she is so involved and is passionate about the issues that matter to her.