I get Mary Hunt’s Everyday Cheapskate newsletter, and find she often has some great tips.  One she sent today really caught my eye … it’s about full-ride scholarships for working moms, available thru Elearners.com.  Check out her article here if you or any moms you know are working and looking at further education!  The deadline to apply is August 31st … don’t miss your chance!

Ran across this today, thanks to OMSH who I love reading, and it’s a great post on Mom Entitlement by Mrs. Flinger.

“Something clicked one day while watching one of those “news” shows (Dateline? Something?) which featured a successful mom earning a night out. “She makes breakfast for her teen son, works 9-5 and rewards herself at night with parties and cocktail bars!” The mom comes on the air explaining how rewarding yourself is the best gift you can give your child. It’s the best for everyone, really. You work hard, go enjoy life! So she justified her nightly parties by her 30 minutes of morning routine with her 15 year old son.”

Read the whole entry here … and come back and let us know how you reacted to it!  It struck a chord with me … taking Me Time but not wishing for it the majority of the time when I don’t have it. 

It’s easy to feel like what you do day in and day out isn’t really appreciated or seen.  The little ones don’t notice or care, the older kids don’t stop to think, and by the time they do, they’re out of the house!  And spouses, well, it’s the rare one that offers thanks for the repetitive and mundane things that likely hog your time!  I just posted an article on it over on my coaching site, take a look!  The Power of Acknowledgment: An Easy Gift to Give.

Speaking of acknowledgment, we’re really low on answers to this week’s question about who your support group is, so take a minute to answer it and give a shout out to the ones who keep you sane!

 

There’s a new section on Sane Moms this week and I hope you’ll all join me in introducing yourselves to each other!  It’s found over here but will only be visible once you’re logged in.  Tell us as much or as little about yourself as you wish, and links to blogs/photos/etc. are welcomed.  Please put your username in the post title to help us find each other. 

Thanks for participating in SaneMoms!

You’re all probably aware of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty, which I’ve found pretty inspiring when it comes to resetting the ‘ideal body’ stereotypes that we’re inundated with as women.  A friend sent me a link to this  part of their campaign today, and it’s well worth the 60 seconds or so it takes to watch.  I don’t envy any of you raising girls!

My friend Stacey over at Wellness Works has put together a fun Exercise-a-Thon Event next weekend, to benefit victims of domestic violence through Womens Law.org!  All proceeds help Womens Law provide easy-to-understand legal information and resources to women living with or escaping domestic violence.  Many of them are moms also, and I think it’s a great cause.  Details are below, and in case you can’t make the event but want to help out in a small or big way, here’s a link to Active Giving that will help you make a quick donation online.  Hope to see you there if you’re local!

WHEN /
Saturday, March 22nd, 9am

WHERE /

399 Atlantic Avenue and Bond Street (map)
(Downstairs from Marathon Bank)

Brooklyn, New York 11217

 

HOW MUCH /

$20 gets you in to as many classes as you want, all day long!
Fun classes like Yogalates, Family Fit Baby Time, and Total Body Conditioning. 

 

REGISTER /

Active.com  

 

QUESTIONS /

Call Stacey at (718) 233-3807

When survival takes pretty much every waking hour, life is a little different than most of us are used to.  I saw a lot of poverty in rural South America as a young kid, and it played a huge part in shaping my ideas of how things work and what life is about.  Sometimes I forget … I’ve been having a bit of a pity-party for myself the last week due to some hard circumstances, and coming across this link From Women Thrive Worldwide about living on less than $1 a day in Nicaragua while trying to provide for a family was a nice wake-up call.  Just the perspective-shift I needed!  It’s an interesting photo-diary about one woman’s attempt to live on $1 a day, just for a weekend, and how mom-to-mom support is so essential to their survival.  That need for support certainly crosses poverty lines, and is true no matter what your economic situation!

I added a couple new section this week, one in honor of the Dreamings question for the week, and one as the result of a request.  After you’ve thought about your “someday” projects, see if you can commit to the first step towards one of them (make it tiny if you want!) and let us know about it in the new Goal Sharing Section.  I’ve started it off with a running goal of mine, and look forward to seeing what some of the rest of you are up to!

I had a request for a place to share inspirational quotes and such, and so added the … Inspirations Section!  Let us know if you’ve got a favorite quote or song, just make sure to give proper credit to the original author. 

While sweating it out on the treadmill this morning at the Y, I caught an ad for a new reality show on TLC that looks intriguing.  It’s called The Secret Life of a Soccer Mom, and while some of the writeups make me cringe (“ordinary” SAHM?!) it looks like an interesting concept.  Stay-at-home moms are given a week (without their family knowing where they are) to pursue the career they left behind when they had kids.  The schedule is here, and as I only watch cable while at the gym, I’m not likely to see it any day soon.  If you do catch it, please leave a comment and let us know if it’s worth watching!  It debuts on March 3rd. 

I’ve never read any of Suze Ormand’s books, but heard good things about them.  Being financially savvy is something many of us are not (myself included) so it can’t hurt!  Her new book Women and Money is available for free download as a .pdf until 8pm tomorrow (EST) on Oprah’s website.  Check it out and let us know what you think!  I’ve got it queued up to read :).