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Making A Difference In Our Own Ways

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010

Volunteerism. The word inspires some people to take action and makes others run and hide. These days, it seems, it’s doing more of the former. One year after President Obama signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, Yahoo! uncovered some pretty amazing stats about the increase in online searches for volunteering. In fact, from May 2008 to April 2009, searches for “volunteer work” had a 653% spike on Yahoo! Search. Perhaps it’s an online Obama effect, unemployment freeing up people’s time or even the Web and social media making volunteer opportunities more accessible. Whatever the case, it’s good news.

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We asked the Yahoo! Mother Board to share their experiences with volunteerism and got a lot of great perspectives. It’s All About Balance shared her heartwarming story of how people stepped up to help her when she reached rock bottom. And now she’s paying it forward and teaching her children wonderful life lessons. Hormone Colored Days’ husband made the most of a tough situation as well by volunteering while he was out of work.

Some moms jump at the chance to be involved in every opportunity that comes to them. Bonngamom is one of the many Yahoo! Mother Board members who loves to volunteer at her kids’ school to connect with her children—and get a peek into their world beyond home. I love the approach Coast 2 Coast Mom has taken with her family who has moved frequently. They explore and connect with their community by participating in various charity walks and races in the greater NYC area.

As for me, I couldn’t help but relate to JavaMom who said that she falls into both categories: super-volunteers and slacker moms. Just like her, if you ask people in my various worlds, I’m one extreme or the other. While I would love to be an active part of my neighborhood (which has a bizarre, but wonderful number of ways to be involved), my son’s preschool, local charities and friends’ various walks, races, etc., I can only do so much well.

I’m trying to learn to say yes and no—at the right times. I was inspired by Chefdruck Musings who said, “Now when I say yes, I never do it in the heat of the moment, regardless of the pleading eyes directed at me. I take the time to consider the good my contribution will do and how much time it will take away from my family.” The bottom line for me is that I want to enjoy the volunteering I do, dive in and do a great job and inspire my kids to be do-gooders in the process.

Happy volunteering…however you choose to do it!

*For more posts on Volunteerism read the blogs of the Yahoo! Mother Board!*

Posted in Family time, Giving back, Parenthood, Tips and tricks | No Comments »

Formula Saves Lives Too

Monday, April 12th, 2010

This past week the blogosphere has been abuzz about the many wonders of breastfeeding. There’s new ammunition thanks to an article in the journal of Pediatrics that claims if most new moms would breastfeed their babies for the first six months of life, it would save nearly 1,000 lives and billions of dollars a year.

So why wouldn’t you breastfeed, right? I’ve seen claims that women’s mothers and grandmothers discourage it since formula was more prevalent in their generations. Others blame hospitals for making formula an easy option. Then, of course, are the accusations that women give up due to discomfort and inconvenience. And women who are told they can’t nurse? They’re simply buying into a myth to make a hard time in life a bit easier. After all, women’s bodies are made to lactate.

Well, most women’s are. Not mine. (more…)

Posted in Parenthood, Tips and tricks, pregnancy | 2 Comments »

Are Celebrities Good Role Models for Kids?

Sunday, April 11th, 2010

It’s a fact; whether we want to believe it or not, celebrities have a direct influence on us and our families. From the way they dress, to the things they say and the way they act, our kids look up to celebrity athletes, pop stars and movies stars. With the constant controversies surrounding our “beloved” celebs, how do you explain to your children that celebrities are just as “human” as everyone else? Listen in as the Yahoo! Mother Board (born out of a partnership with SV Moms Group) and friends talk about how they explain “celebrity” in their households.

Are Celebrities Good Role Models for Kids? @ Yahoo! Video

Posted in Tips and tricks | No Comments »

Mirror, Mirror on the wall..

Monday, April 5th, 2010

“Who’s the fairest one of all?”

Unlike the Queen in Snow White and Seven Dwarfs, I don’t have the luxury of standing in front of my mirror and spending a lot of time on my appearance every day. As a working, first-time mom, I find myself invariably in a rush – whether it’s cleaning, cooking, getting to work on time, managing deadlines or the simply caring for a demanding baby. Thanks to the baby I’m in desperate need of a mani/pedi and my hair hasn’t has a professional cut in months! Forget trips to the spa. Buh-bye! Instead, I’ve created these at-home quick beauty treatments. I bask in my DIY beauty prowess!

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Hair
Once or twice a week, I apply some whisked raw egg directly to my hair before I take a shower. This gives a lovely shine and fabulous luster to my hair. You don’t have to leave it on for too long, just a few minutes before you hit the shower works wonders! (more…)

Posted in Me-time, Tips and tricks | 1 Comment »

My Kids Eat Vegetables

Wednesday, January 20th, 2010

Looking for a quick, easy and kid friendly recipe? Do your kids typically scoff at the idea of eating their veggies? Well, do I have the recipe for you!

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As a busy working mom, I need quick, healthy meal ideas and simply don’t have the time (or patience!) to battle with my kids about eating vegetables on a daily basis. Egg & Veggie Baskets are my go to item for making the kids and mom happy! (more…)

Posted in Food and dining, Tips and tricks | 1 Comment »

My mom and me

Thursday, September 3rd, 2009

My name is Jasmin, I’m a Yahoo and when I was six-years-old, I singlehandedly gave the chickenpox to the entire second grade. While I count that as one of my proudest accomplishments, it also resulted in life-changing learning. When she wasn’t dotting the spots with calamine lotion or drawing oatmeal baths, Mom decided that it was time I learned to knit. Mom was raised in Germany, so it didn’t come from out of the blue; my mother never sat with idle hands. I was a fairly agreeable child, and so, I knit. While my first knitting is orange and full of unintentional holes, my subsequent knitting improved over time. All thanks to my mother. I knit through high school and college, and somewhere in between, started a knitting blog. Two years ago, I called my mother with a harebrained idea.

“We should do a knitting podcast!” I said. “And we should call it ‘The Knitmore Girls.’ Because it’s the two of us, like the Gilmore Girls!”

Mom agreed, and a few months later, we launched our first episode. Since then, we have had loads of fun and encountered quite a few mother-daughter teams. I suspect that most of them happened the way most family businesses do (kids working for their parents’ businesses). Some of these companies include Handmaiden/Fleece Artist, Southwest Trading Company, Tess Yarns, and most notably, Schoolhouse Press. (Schoolhouse Press was founded by Elizabeth Zimmermann and she was joined by her daughter, Meg Swansen, a few years later). Loads of people learn to knit from a family member, but if you’re not confident about teaching your kiddo to knit – or you would like to learn, too! – many local yarn stores offer classes, and Mom ‘n’ Me knitting classes are often offered in the summertime or over winter break. I happen to be a big fan of tandem learning – I learned to spin (on a spinning wheel) alongside my mom when I was in sixth grade, and I think it made me more open to learning as an adult.
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Posted in Clothing, Family time, Place: Sunnyvale, Tips and tricks | 2 Comments »

Do a little dance

Thursday, August 20th, 2009

At any moment in my house there are the makings of a dance party, a sing song or both.

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Posted in Family time, Parenthood, Place: Canada, Tips and tricks | 2 Comments »

Early mornings solved

Monday, August 17th, 2009

After a few weeks of getting up at 5 a.m. (or something even earlier) with my three-year-old (while my one-year-old will happily sleep until 7:30 a.m.) I have been just exhausted. The early mornings, getting two children organized for the day, and then working full-time was really wearing on me. I decided to get control over the situation and get my little boy a clock and put some rules in place. You know, the “it is not morning until the clock says X time” thing.

With a child too young to read I spent some time reading and looking online for clocks specific to toddlers. I found this great Teach Me Time clock that not only helped teach time but also had a feature where the nightlight went from yellow to green when it was time to wake up. I ordered it immediately and counted the early mornings until it arrived!

We have had the clock for a little over a week now and it has been a life saver! Not only does my son love having a clock in his room, the green wake up signal works!

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Posted in Parenthood, Tips and tricks | 4 Comments »

Creating wearable art for kids

Friday, August 14th, 2009

Creating custom t-shirts can be a simple, inexpensive, do-it-yourself home project. I started creating them for my three-year-old son because my long commute to work was leaving me little time to shop; creating these designs gave me a way to get cute clothing for him without sacrificing spending time with my little boy, plus it’s a fun project that shows off his artistic creations! Whether you are in the midst of an imaginative budding young artist, or you simply want to make a special shirt that is meaningful to your child to wear and show off, you can create wearable art as long as you have the following: a computer, t-shirt transfer paper, a printer and a scanner (or digital camera).

tshirt artwork

To get started, have your child draw something that’s special to them. Crayons or thick markers work best because the results are thick strokes and outlines. A while back, my three-year-old son drew a character he named “eggman,” which I used as my piece of inspiration for the shirt. If you don’t have a special drawing, choose a digital photo of your child, or find a character they might be in love with in at the moment.

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Posted in Clothing, Tips and tricks | 3 Comments »

Go forth and pay it forward, mamas

Monday, August 10th, 2009

I am a firm believer in the “pay it forward” mantra. My family and I practice it regularly in many forms: donating time and money to charities, giving blood, participating in the America Heart Walk, loaning money through Kiva, and helping folks in need (we’ve been there for people in motorcycle crashes, kayakers who have broken their paddles and needed a tow across a lake, and regularly rescuing lost dogs).

But last week I had an experience that made me think of a new way to pay it forward… ”pay it forward, mamas.” Here is the story.

Earlier this year I worked with the Yahoo! Employee Foundation to secure a $32k grant for Parents Helping Parents (PHP). PHP is a tremendous organization that assists parents who have kids with special needs, including autism, Down syndrome, learning disabilities, etc. I have had the good fortune of utilizing PHP in my journey to understand and treat my daughter’s dyslexia. I was so thankful for their assistance and the good fortune that we have as a family to have the resources to most effectively deal with dyslexia. My daughter and I decided we needed to find a way to show our gratitude. The grant was what we did.

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