Chicago Moms Blog

No Good Deed Goes Unnoticed

So often we are surprised by the good in other people.  Whether it be someone helping out a lost tourist downtown, or someone simply holding the door open to a store, the recipient is almost always shocked that anyone is helping them.  Why is this?  Why are we so surprised when someone we don't know is helpful?

Over this past weekend I was down in Nashville at the BlissDom 08 conference, and on the way home I found myself stranded in Cincinnati.  Our plane was late, then had mechanical issues, and our entire flight full of people was re-directed to other airlines--and relegated to the local airport hotels for the night.  The mood was low, people were tired and starving (it was 1am and everything was closed), and I missed my babies.

As I stood in line to check into my hotel room for the night, along with 4 other passengers from my canceled flight, the woman next to me was asking the hotel staff for some contact solution.  All her belongings were in her checked baggage, and the airline (Delta) would not let any passengers have their checked bags.  They had none.  She was stuck, and her contacts were stuck on her. 

The New Work Paradigm

With the national unemployment rate at an all time high (if you measure it the way the Reagan Administration, and those before it did, it's at 14.3%), it wasn't all that surprising when my husband was laid off a while ago.  We were not thrilled, of course, but didn't have too many worries.  He has his MBA, extensive experience in his field, and is every employer's dream.

However, here we still sit, watching and waiting, for something to rise up from the ashes and materialize into a job that can sustain our family.  The explanations are aplenty.  Either they aren't hiring at his level, or they tell him he's overqualified (and therefore, too expensive).  We never realized "educated and successful" was a niche, yet here we've found ourselves.

Vote for Mom

This year's election is bringing all types of new sub-groups to the table.  Whether it be Wal-Mart Women, Waitress Moms, Rehab Republicans, Security Moms or Pocket Book Moms, one thing is clear: women are the vote to get by each candidate in 2008. 

While "Soccer Moms" may be so 8 years ago, the new names only solidify that the groups have become more complicated and more difficult to define.  Polls are showing that soccer moms and security moms are uniting and the typical Republican/Democrat vote spread will not look the same as it did 4 or 8 years ago.  Whether it be issues on the economy, the war, health care or the environment, many people are straying from their old ways of thinking and looking for a new place to land (this mama included).  Whether it be reading Momocrats, MomsRising or learning about the new I Remember Mama Voting project, moms are more involved than ever in politics and in this country we call home.  I have yet to find any solid Independent mom blogs (or Republican for that matter), so if you know any let us know in the comments!

The media are constantly looking for more and more information on what we moms think, and taking this survey can help get your voice heard in what you're thinking now and come November.  A recent iVillage survey showed that only 37% of women have decided who they will vote for, and more and more people are scrambling to sway us towards their way of thinking.  What issues are most important to you?

Taking a Stand

This week, I will be making history.  Not only will I be going to Washington D.C. for the first time ever, but I will also be marching the streets of the city and the steps of the Capitol in demonstration and protest.  We are flying out, leaving all three boys behind, and taking a stand.  My husband and I will be holding up signs with pictures of our two boys with autism, and like thousands upon thousands of others, we will be making a statement that we have had enough. 

A Passionate Blogger Speaks Out

I've had many things throughout my life that I enjoy doing.  Acting, dancing, shopping, knitting, keeping up with politics, cooking, the list goes on.  I enjoy these things, but I couldn't do them over and over without feeling a sense of wanderlust and looking over at the next fun thing to do.  They are enjoyable hobbies, but I'm not laying up at night thinking about them, or doing research about them, or looking to get better and better at them.  They are not my passions. 

What are my passions?  My family, my faith, photography, the beach, design, live music, writing and yes--even blogging.  All of these things are some of my passions, and yet I hesitate to add blogging to the list.  Why is that?  My passions bring me satisfaction, joy, love and even income. It seems as though loving blogging and being passionate about it tends to be something that people are ashamed of, yet most any other passion people will wear with pride.  "I love horses, really I do."  "I'm so passionate about sewing, I could do it all day".  When did blogging become a guilty pleasure, where we feel compelled say "oh I don't really care about my blog, it's just for fun" when anyone so much as hints at our fervor and zeal for blog reading and blog writing?  So many people like to put down blogs, including their own, as not being a big deal, as having nothing too important to say, or for just plain being useless.  I think that blogs are becoming extremely important, for moms especially, and the community, activism and support that blogs provide are just the tip of the iceberg of their contributions to society.  Should I start a "Passionate Bloggers Anonymous" group and see who joins, just so I know where my people are at?

Special Ed to Mainstream School: Making the Leap

A couple months ago my oldest son had to make the big leap from special ed school to a mainstream school.  My husband and I knew he was ready, but we couldn't help but worry and wring our hands thinking about all the what if's.   What if he regresses?  What if he gets made fun of?  What if he doesn't succeed?  He had been doing so well at the special ed school, why were we rocking the boat?  It was so tempting to just keep things status quo--no fixing something that wasn't broken. 

However, we knew that we'd be holding him back if we did not allow him to take the next step.  Sure, it would be hard and would be a big transition and maybe we'd be up at night worrying about him.  It would mean meeting all new people, learning all new rules, and feeling like an outsider again.  But it would also mean a chance at "normal" friends, a chance to push his already massively smart brain to the next level.  A chance to learn about the world in a bigger way and, yes, even a chance to learn about how hard things can be sometimes.