Chicago Moms Blog

P is for Quiet

A couple days ago I was searching for a birthday card for my mom, a process which always brings tears to my eyes. I'm a sucker for the endearing cards that get to the heart of how you feel no matter what the sentiment. Big droopy tears just start to flow. My kids asked me how I knew which one was the right one. "Your mom knows things kids." I quickly replied and with that they shrugged, convinced it was true and looked for their own.  

Thankfully I found one within a few moments so I didn't completely ruin my mascara. The card was near perfect talking about how time has made me a wiser person. After becoming a mother it slowly dawned on me what a fabulous job my mom did. She didn't have all the answers (but sounded like she did), went without a lot of the time and put her kids first in every sense of the word. Translation- she is a great mom.

That night after dinner and gifts, my mom retrieved a school paper of mine from the mid-70's (who else would have this handy I wonder?). I am guessing she came across the paper and thought my kids would enjoy seeing what I did in school for the holidays all those years ago. My oldest read through each sentence which went a little like, "A is for Angel, B is for Bow, C is for Christmas..." while my youngest commented on how nice my handwriting looked. It was a sweet moment that came screeching to halt after "O is for Ornament."

I Believe in Santa & Make-A-Wish, Not Macy's

 You know it's a bad sign when there's no wait for the Walnut Room during the holiday season. Years ago it was a child's special treat to go to Marshall Field's, wait for hours to sit down in the beautifully historic restaurant and dine by the glow of the enormous holiday tree. Even as an adult I continued the tradition and it felt as special and elegant as all the years prior. That is, until Macy's invaded my beloved Marshall Field's wonderland. 

Disclaimer: I gave Macy's a shot. Even attended their grand opening runway show. But no dice. After Macy's brought their branding, it felt like a vanilla box to me. Void of all luxury and service. It just felt cheap. 

Despite my dislike for Macy's, I admired their partnership with the Make-A-Wish Foundation, an organization that enables children to do things otherwise impossible. After my kids wrote their letters to Santa I thought it would be a special to mail their letters and make a small contribution to a phenomenal organization. The kids agreed. Hey, we could even pop by and see Santa if the lines aren't too long! Maybe hand the letter to the Big Man himself. I should have known it was too good to be true.

The path to Santa was relatively uneventful. I didn't expect trumpets to sound mind you, but I thought there would be a smattering of goodwill, or dare I say, cheer on this shopper's paradise known as Sunday afternoon. Nothing. Not a single person talked with us. No smiles. No warm welcomes. Nothing. Strike 1. 

Santa Knows You're a Sucker

Santa is already in his chair at the Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg.  He's earlier than ever and so are all the holiday decorations and jolly music. The economy is so bad, even Santa is working longer and harder. He's no dummy. Retail research shows such tactics work in getting people in the mood to shop.  

According to the Wall Street Journal, stores like Wal-mart, Target and Gap are spending far more on holiday advertising this year. Kmart is not only spending more, its ad blitz is 30 to 40 days earlier than last year.

At least WLIT 93.9 is holding off on the Christmas music... for now.  It'll likely start soon.  The station website is a clear sign executives are ready to cash in.  Last year, ratings tripled after The Lite switched over to all holiday music.  Maybe we need artists like Kanye, Lady Gaga and Taylor to write some cool Thanksgiving songs!

Suspended American Girl Boycott For Charity

My child is savvy. When we planned her birthday party last month the issue of presents came up and we had a long talk. Considering she has over 30 children in her class and all of them are invited, I felt that we should suggest a book donation for charity in lieu of presents for the birthday girl. When I made her the offer, I paused and looked confidently in her eyes. C'mon, show me that all of our conversations about humanitarians made a difference. Be the bigger person. Say you are game. 

She paused for a moment and said "Of course. That's a good idea." Exhale. "Can I look at the books before we give them away?" she quietly inquired. I was so amazed by her candor and acceptance. Pride swelled within me. That is, until her next question. "Seeing as though I am not getting any presents at my party, may I choose a special present for my birthday?" she asked, innocently enough, but I sensed a catch. Filled with such admiration for her generosity, I blindly agreed. 

"Then I will have my birthday dinner at American Girl Place and buy a doll to join us." the words came out like she was a prosecutor that had just been given special evidence linking the defendant to the crime. Now she glared into my eyes with what seemed like bravado. I was familiar with the thoughts swirling around her head. Be the bigger person. Say you are game.

Small Town Chicago

Nothing feels better than making a home in the city. One might think urban living is detached, but I say you just haven't found the right community yet. There isn't a secret formula to finding a place to forge a connection. It doesn't have the look the same way for everybody. Whether you live in a single family home or an apartment, you can find a place in Chicago that gives you what you need.  

Thankfully our family found a little neighborhood that puts the small town back into the city. It's like a dream state where we walk to school in the morning and then enjoy park play dates afterward. Everyone you meet on the street greets you genuinely. How rare is that? When we first moved in I thought it was strange and wonderful. Now I know it's what people act like when they are happy and satisfied. 

To my delight, our community makes a strong effort to make our home a better place. This past weekend a group gathered for a Clean and Green Event where we volunteered to pick up trash, collect leaves and prepare for the cooler temperatures. Despite the less than ideal weather on Saturday, families and homeowners came out to lend a hand. The collective commitment was intoxicating. I thought this was only supposed to happen in the suburbs? 

Chicago, Let's Clean Up Our Act

Chicago's image has been severely tarnished over the last week or so. We lost our Olympic bid in the first round of voting, a defeat that happened so quickly, the crowds who had gathered for the announcement in Daley Plaza were left dazed and confused, while echoing strains of Peggy Lee's "Is that all there is?" seemed to float on the breeze.

Prior to the vote and the other recent events that have placed Chicago squarely on the world's front page, I had been feeling a great deal of civic pride. On my brother's last trip, he remarked again how clean Chicago is compared to other large cities. When good friends visited last month, we took the El from Evanston and spent the entire day on foot, starting in beautiful Millennium Park, where they ooohed and aahhed over the "bean" and Priztker Pavilion, then wandering north up the Magnificent Mile all the way to Oak Street Beach, where they marveled over our perfectly preserved lake front.

But then came the tragic beating death of young honor student, Derrion Albert, followed less than a week later by another teen beating that resulted in a cracked skull. The nation and the world are shocked by these horrific acts of violence, but are we, here in the Chicago area, equally shocked? Most of us would like to pretend that Derrion Albert's horrendous death was an isolated incident, but the fact is that more than 30 school-aged students were killed in Chicago last year. Chicago's Olympic plan promised "uncompromising safety for the games through a fully integrated security operation … without compromising the protection of the city and its residents." 

Our city cannot even deliver uncompromising security to it's most precious commodity — its children. 

It's Not About Your Freedom

It was beautiful summer day in late July.  The kids and I had just finished grocery shopping at Dominick's in Northfield, and we were headed home to unwind for the afternoon.  As we waited at the red light at Happ and Willow I noticed a man on a motorcycle in the other lane, one space ahead of me.  He was young, and as we waited for the light to turn he leaned far back in his seat and stretched his arms over his head.  He reminded me of a cat in the sun.

The light turned green and he took off like the proverbial bat, weaving in and out of the cars ahead of him to break free of the pack and clear the traffic.  Fool, I thought to myself, driving in the same direction but behind several cars.  A minute later we passed a motorcycle cop standing on the side of the road, strapping on his helmet and getting on his bike, and I wondered if he was going after the speeding bike.  I instinctively slowed down, even though I wasn't above the speed limit.

Immediately I had to slow down again, as the two cars in front of me jammed on their brakes.  And then I saw it.  The only thing I could say in that moment was a sort of chant: "Oh my god oh my god oh my god."  My kids asked me what was wrong, and then they saw it, too.  "Mama, what is that?"

2016: Olympic-sized ambivalence

As you might have heard -- and if you live in Chicago, you've definitely heard, unless you don't watch local news, read a newspaper or any website dealing with sports or local news, go downtown, have children in school or know who anyone who does any of those things -- Chicago is one of the finalists to host the 2016 Summer Olympics. This week, we find out who the winning city is, and the scuttlebutt seems to indicate that a visit from the world's most powerful Chicagoan should seal the deal for us.

I should be excited about that, and I am, a little. After all, my kid will be nine then, and while I harbor no illusions about getting tickets to basketball, swimming or track, she'll be content seeing judo, Greco-Roman wrestling or whatever sport has tickets available. If we're lucky, we may even be able to see some soccer or a bit of the marathon. And if nothing else, we should be able to cover our gift-giving needs to the nieces and nephews for at least a couple of years with Chicago 2016 merch. From a completely selfish point of view, it's a win-win.

But then again, we can afford to be excited. We don't live very near the proposed venues, and no one will be displacing or constructing anything near our home, school or park facilities. If we decide we really can't deal with the crowds, we can make plans to go away. (I hear Rio de Janeiro is nice.)

Paying It Forward at the Parking Box

Chances are you have encountered the new parking boxes in the city firsthand. If not I am sure you've not been able to escape the numerous discussions about them and the contract that led to their quick appearance. 

There are always two sides, right? Sure, they are a lifesaver when you don't have any quarters with you and you get to use your debit card. And they are a pain when you are running late (have the quarters) and have to run a block down in the rain and then back again to display your little soaking wet receipt on your dash. Depends on how you look at it I guess.  

The downside for me is when I have a receipt with 45 minutes left on it but I am leaving the parking spot. Reticent to waste what I have purchased (and the paper used to print it) I've been leaving my ticket with time left on it on the top of the parking box for someone else to use. Why should it be wasted when someone else needs it? I think it's like paying the toll for the car behind you or adding an extra quarter into the meter in the old days- a nice gesture.  

3rd Annual SVmoms Summer Party

In coordination with Chicagonista, the SV Moms Group celebrated its 3rd Annual Summer Party in Chicago for the 2nd time around! There was so much laughter and fun shared with our missed bloggy friends and we could not thank our sponsors enough for making this happen.

Chris Campbell of Lakeshore Branding is our extraordinaire party planner and sponsor. Not only did he provide the beautiful party space at NV Penthouse Lounge, but the wonderful SVtinis and Chicagotinis were all provided by him. Lakeshore Branding also happens to be a “digital marketing agency that makes snazzy web sites and happens to be pretty darn good at Internet Marketing”. So if any of you are in need of some web help, he’s the man to call.

That’s Caring along with Tasty Catering provided the delicious food. That’s Caring also provided a couple of their eco- friendly gift baskets as drawing prizes.

Ring Central provided the trolley that chauffeured our bloggers back and forth to the Sheraton Hotel to the NV Penthouse Lounge and back.

Yahoo provided the Tarot Card Readings that was a big hit! Whether it made some laugh, cry, or worry, I’m sure they were all some great materials to blog about.

Smarty Card sponsored the much needed free massages. Imagine a mom without her kid/s. Partying with her girlfriends in a beautiful lounge. With martinis! And now massage?! Yes, it did happen.

Photobooth Express sponsored the most fun party within the photobooth party! They were the silliest, cutest, and funniest photobooth pictures of moms gone partying.  I've personally used this company in a lot of my events and I can't imagine not having them around to help me entertain my guests. And really, how can anyone go wrong with having one of these booths in any of your parties? An instant hit to all your party guests.

---

PICTURES FROM THE SILICON VALLEY MOMS GROUP NIGHT BEFORE BLOGHER09 PARTY

www.flickr.com

This is a Flickr badge showing items in a set called Silicon Valley Moms Group Night Before BlogHer09 Party. Make your own badge here.

MJ Tam is the Editor of Chicagonista.com - "movers, shakers, & baby makers" and Creator of City Connect Media, Inc. that runs and operates Chicagonista and other upcoming city sites. MJ also has a personal blog called SugarMyBowl.com

Do you Twitter? Follow mjtam here.