One Giant Leap Forward for Mom-kind, One Small Step Backward for NBC

When my mother was raising 5 kids in the "prime" of her motherhood years--during the 50's and 60's--mothers were relegated to the margins of society.

Like cattle heading to the milking pens, women were "prodded" and "corralled" into having families and giving freely of their "milk" until their teats ran dry, the kids left home, and some of their husbands left for younger women. They were expected to sacrifice their desires, dreams, and personal freedoms in order to take care of their families, and to feel so fulfilled in this role that any other personal dreams withered on the vine.

Many of those moms felt isolated within a nuclear family structure that provided little room for companionship while they tended to their little ones, and offered no understanding, comfort, or outlets for discussing how they felt about being mothers. And many longed for the fulfillment of dreams that never saw the light of day. My mother was one of those women. She would have loved to have the opportunity to pursue some of her own dreams.

Todays mom enjoys a different experience than that of her homogeneous American mom-sister of yesteryear. Not only are moms of today fulfilling their personal aspirations while raising their kids, but they also talk about their feelings, share their opinions, and have become a part of mainstream culture. Motherhood has leaped into the 21st Century.

The landscape of motherhood has definitely changed. Thanks to Hollywood moms, it has become chic to be a mom. Moms clubs exist in just about every city in the country, moms are joining together to influence national policy (Moms Rising), and the Internet has exploded with mom communities via mom-owned businesses, mom websites, and mom blogs.

Helping to lead the way in this Mom Revolution are mom bloggers and entrepreneurs like those interviewed last week on the Today Show (Jill Asher, co-creator of Silicon Valley Moms Blog and its sister sites; Kristen Chase, creator of Motherhood Uncensored; Mir Kamin, creator of WouldaCouldaShoulda; and  Heather Armstrong, creator of Dooce). These moms, and others like them, have shown the world the power of moms who are no longer confined to the four walls of their homes or limited by the restrictions of the "biology is destiny" credo. They have shown that moms have talent, intelligence, creativity, wisdom, and genius, in addition to nurturing abilities. Jill Asher and her co-creators have created a virtual blog syndicate through their sister sites, showing what moms can do with some good old American ingenuity and the freedom to pursue their ambitions and set their own agendas.

That's why I, and other mom bloggers, were so excited about the Today Show interview. Moms were finally going to be seen as the creative and talented women they are, separate from their important and valuable roles as mothers. Something that hasn't been seen en masse since, well, never. But I was disappointed by the interview. The clip was fine. But then Kathie Lee stumbled in with her own personal fears and biases about something she admits she knows nothing about. She seemed determined to trivialize the contributions mom bloggers make not only to other moms, but to parents, the media, commerce, and politics, by making it sound like mom blogging is all about sorority gossiping, whining, and oh yeah, child endangerment (way to go after a mom where it hurts, Kathie Lee).

And then, as if that wasn't enough, in a Mother's Day special called America's Favorite Mom with Marie and Donny Osmond, NBC actually called adoptive moms "non-moms!"

And so I wonder...have moms really made progress when it comes to society's attitudes and expectations?

Original post on 50-something Moms Blog. Cheryl also writes at: New Mom Central Silicon Valley Moms Blog Betty Confidential Type-A Mom