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Susan's Finds- If The Onion's fake news and opinion articles crack you up, you definitely need to check out the new Onion News Network. It's kinda like The Daily Show with John Stewart, but Onion-style. - Have you seen Disney's new Family.com beta site? It's supposed to make our lives easier "by providing instant answers, expert content, and easy access to other parents who know exactly what raising a family is all about." Seems to have lots of good stuff on it. See what you think.  - Do you believe in the power of one person making a big difference? Contribute a onesie to MomsRising's campaign supporting paid family leave in Washington State. You can either personalize a onesie or just pay MomsRising to do it. Your onesie will join a chain of thousands in a giant Mother's Day display--and possibly more in the future. Learn more at MomsRising.org. Cara's Finds - Safe virtual world for kids online? At 4-years old, my son is already playing games on the Internet. His favorite games are on NickJr.com. A while a back I discovered a Nick website for older kids called Nicktropolis. It's a virtual world where kids can create their own rooms, play games, and connect with friends and Nick characters. It claims to be a safe virtual world for kids. Parents can choose to allow their child to communicate via pre-written messages or using Nick Safe Chat with a Nicktropolis Dictionary. I'm curious to know if your kids are on Nicktro  polis, and if so what's your opinion of it? - At least you can look organized... SeeJaneWork.com has a lot of cool office and organization products, like this Memo Mouse pad featured in Real Simple.
I’ve been “part-time” for about three months now, and I’ve spent approximately, um, ALL of my off-day Fridays in the doctor’s office confirming my suspicions that O (the letter, not the number) had yet another ear infection, or hadn’t recovered from the previous infection. At the last visit after a second course of antibiotics and a shot of antibiotics hadn’t knocked out the current infection, the pediatrician threw in the towel and instructed me to see an ENT to discuss ear tubes. So much for breastfed babies not getting ear infections.
I called the ENT O’s pediatrician recommended and couldn’t get in for a month. I thought it was regoddarndiculous that they would make a suffering 8-month-old wait that long to see someone. Since I suspected O was getting yet another ear infection (or still hadn’t kicked the old one—who knew?), I started asking around for other ENT recos. More than a few people reco’d Dr. Cotton from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. So I called him up and got in at the end of the week. I was sold--by the fact that he got me in so quickly and because he was described as an international leader in the field of Otolaryngology.
So last Friday, O and I made my way to Children’s, maneuvered our way around the hospital corridors, and met with Dr. Cotton. His diagnosis was what I feared: O needed tubes. The Dr. saw a lot of fluid that was constantly becoming infected, and he suspected O’s hearing was being affected by this fluid, so he instructed O to get a hearing test.
The test was held in a small room with speakers in two corners. There were two women, one to distract O and another who went behind a darkened glass window to play sounds through the speakers. I held O in my lap and prayed he did well on one of his first real “tests.” My heart sunk every time he turned his head toward the wrong speaker. I almost started crying. We got another diagnosis that day: O had some hearing issues due to the fluid in his ears, but we were assured that once the fluid could drain properly (through tube insertion), his hearing would go back to “normal.”
From there we went to see nurse who explained all about the surgery—showed me the “tube” (a super-small piece of plastic that I'd never think to call a tube) that would be inserted in his ear drum, told me exactly why it had to be done, what to expect before and after surgery, and tried to calm my fears. She failed on that last part. Even though the surgery is only going to be approximately 15 minutes long, even though O won’t be in pain anymore, even though he won’t have to withstand any more courses of antibiotics, I’m still worried. It’s my little boy. He’s having surgery. He’s going under anesthesia.
Friday is his pre-op appointment and surgery is scheduled for Tuesday. J. will be out of town, so we're on our own. I’ve rearranged my schedule next week so I can have the day of his surgery off, and be home the day afterward—even though people have assured me he will be good as gold as little as a few hours after surgery, I still want to be there for him as much as I can.
Another good thing I've been told about the surgery? Children sleep much better post-op. Good for O and his development, and good for Mom and her TV watching habits. Maybe I'll actually be able to stay awake during Lost next Wednesday.
 My various blog networks were abuzz this week about this story, which talks about a recent study showing children who go to daycare are more likely to have behavioral problems in grade school.
As soon as I read it, I could hear the collective wail from working moms everywhere. Indeed, a couple of the ones whose journals I follow on a regular basis were downright depressed. I even felt like crap. "That's just great," I thought. "I really don't have a whole lot of choice about putting my daughter in daycare, at least a few days a week. I guess we could NOT EAT for a couple of nights if it means she'll behave better in sixth grade."
What I wanted to say, however, was "Shut up!" Seriously. Whenever one of these studies come out, I want to tell both the researchers and the journalists to can it. You're not helping. Especially not with a story like this, which follows an alarming headline with a bunch of wishy washy garbage about how more study is needed, and it's probably not that big a deal, blah blah blah...
I mean, I can understand if you've uncovered irrefutable evidence that 80 percent of kids in daycare grow up to be axe murderers or raving lunatics. That's something we probably should know about.
But even then, what are we supposed to do? I'm being facetious when I say we couldn't eat if I didn't work. We would eat, but we would be hurting. There are women, however, who truly could not afford basic necessities if they didn't have a job. Even for those of us who aren't in dire straits, it's easy to feel like we have little real choice when the mortgage is due, the car needs repair, and it's time to buy a season's worth of new clothes for a kid who outgrows things before the store tags are off. We put our children in daycare because we need to. We do our best to find quality care, but many of us still feel conflicted about it. And when somebody does a study like this, it makes us feel more guilty. And helpless. And we don't need it, thanks. So, all you researchers, I'm sure the work you do is valuable. And journalists, I know you're just doing your job writing about the latest health buzz. But I don't have to like it. On behalf of the other working moms who got heartburn after reading this latest story, I'd just like to say, "SHUT UP!!"
Working Moms Against Guilt is currently being featured on the home page of TopMomma.com. It's a site that promotes popular mommy blogs, such as WMAG and many other goodies. Please click this link to check it out (look for our pic with the four of us waving like fools).
You'll give us a popularity boost and see other Top Mommas while you're there.
Today's Tasty Tuesday comes to us from Tela. She's got the good word on...
 Bertolli Frozen Dinners
A few weeks or so after I had O, my good friend Marla came by and dropped off a care basket. One of the items inside was a Bertolli Frozen Dinner. I can't remember which one she gave me (I think it was the Meatballs Pomodoro & Penne), but I really liked it. So much so that I've tried many others and loved them, even if they can get a little pricey. Although, to be honest, I haven't worked up the nerve to try any of the shrimp dinners yet.
Paired with a bagged Ceasar salad (which Marla also thoughtfully provided) and a crusty loaf of bread, Bertolli helps to make one deliciously convenient dinner.
I remembered my convenience item when I saw an ad on them for Yahoo, and upon clicking through I saw that Bertolli recently added Pasta & Sauce dinners, which now I'm anxious to try. Coming from a city with a largely Italian heritage, gnocchi is a favorite of mine that I can't easily find in this German Goetta town. Here I come, Bertolli!
Sara again! Don't forget, you can contribute a recipe idea, too. Just email it to saraWMAG@gmail.com
I'm not one of those sad workaholics who can't manage to use up their measly pittance of vacation time each year.
No, I treat my too-few paid days off like precious jewels. I carefully plan each day throughout the year. Last year, I used almost every single one to spend time with my newborn daughter (part of my 12-week FMLA leave).
I tack them on to three-day holiday weekends. I try to squeeze out one full week to travel somewhere in the summer. I even save a few gems for the end of the year, so I can spend extra time with family during the Christmas holidays.
 I simply can't imagine the sheer awesomeness of unlimited vacation. But for the 300-plus salaried folks at Netflix in California, the endless vacation smorgasbord is a reality.
Seriously! Netflix employees can take off as much time as they see fit. As long as they get their work done. CEO Reed Hastings calls vacation limits and face-time requirements "a relic of the industrial age." Sounds a lot like the philosophy over at Best Buy, which has instituted a results-only work environment policy.
Hastings goes on to say:
The worst thing is for a manager to come in and tell me: 'Let's give Susie a huge raise because she's always in the office.' What do I care? I want managers to come to me and say: 'Let's give a really big raise to Sally because she's getting a lot done' - not because she's chained to her desk.
Amen, brother! Preach the word.
P.S. Thanks to my pal Michelle for alerting me to this story.
Bucking our usual lame weekend-at-home trend, our little fam hit the road this past weekend. And man, it was good to get away.
We packed up Cassie in the car seat, armed with distracting jingly toys and Goldfish snacks, and dropped the dog off at our friends' house. (Thank you, Ko!) We actually almost forgot the dog, but Jay remembered at the last minute that someone needed to watch him. Poor Merc. The cats merely got extra food dumped in their bowls on the front porch. Oh, how things have changed since our girl arrived.
My cousin Ali and her husband Mike, recent parents themselves, were kind enough to let us crash at their house in Indianapolis. Cassie tromped all over their lovely home and occasionally noticed her 7-week-old cousin Lindsay. She also gave Mike and Ali a little peek at what's to come once Lindsay is mobile.
On Saturday night, Jay and I went out for a real date! We went to the Jazz Kitchen to hear my favorite jazz singer, the dreamy Kurt Elling. We also enjoyed a delicious, grown-up meal and some interesting conversation with our tablemates (total strangers, but very nice). Mike and Ali enjoyed an evening with our crazy crawling girl and their sleepy sweet pea. We couldn't have been more grateful.
It was sooo nice to hang out with them and get out of our routine. Cassie handled the two-hour drive each way like a champ, and even slept pretty well in a new environment. I highly recommend hitting the road once in a while to recharge and refresh.
A few weeks ago, I caught a repeat of the Martha Stewart show. Now, I like Martha. I subscribe to her Living magazine and I visit her website for the occasional crafty idea. However, I’m not a fan of her talk show. Just because watching Martha interact with her guest is sometimes painful and embarrassing. Especially this episode, where the very candid, very Southern chef Paula Deen visited the set. I thought Martha’s head was going to spin when Paula said she let people wear shoes in her house. “Oh, we are very different” Martha said followed by one of her nervous, uncomfortable laughs.
Which brings me to another aspect of Martha that makes her different than most—her standards of clean. Martha started the show introducing her new book, The Homekeeping Handbook: The Essential Guide to Caring for Everything in Your Home. “Homekeeping” is her term. Martha prefers calling it homekeeping rather than “housecleaning” or “housework “or as I term it, “doing crap around house.”
From the Homekeeping book, she revealed her list of Six Things to Do Every Day. These are supposed to be quick tips that will help keep your home more tidy. Here’s the recap of the list, along with my added analysis for us moms.
1. Make the Bed—“Tidiness begets tidiness. A crisply made bed makes the whole room seem more orderly, which makes it less likely that you'll let other things -- such as clothes and papers—pile up around it.” I don’t mind making the bed every day. It’s dealing with the laundry on top of the bed that I’ve neglected to sort. I’ll move it to the floor at night. Then the next morning, make the bed and pile it back up again. There’s nothing orderly about it.
2. Manage Clutter—“Whenever you leave a room, take a quick look around for anything that isn't where it should be. Pick it up and put it where it belongs. Insist that everyone in the household do the same.” This tip is just about impossible when you have two toddlers living with you. Everything is not where it should be. And just try to insist to your screaming two-year-old that the mile-high pile of DVDs she pulled out needs to be put away.
3. Sort the Mail—“Take a few minutes to open, read, and sort mail as soon as you bring it inside. Keep a trash bin near your sorting area for junk mail. Drop other mail into one of four in-boxes: personal correspondence, bills, catalogs, and filing.” Sorting mail is the least of my problems. How about sorting sippy cups so that they don’t knock ya on the head when you open the cabinet… is there a tip for that?
4. Clean as You Cook—“Instead of filling the sink with pots and dishes, wash them or put them in the dishwasher as you prepare a meal.” This tip would be easier to accomplish, if I had two more arms. I could clean a pot in the sink, sauté chicken on the stove, and get milk out the fridge for the kid that’s wrapped around my legs—all at the same time.
5. Wipe Up Spills While They're Fresh—“Whether it's tomato sauce on the cooktop or makeup on the bathroom counter, almost anything is faster and easier to remove if you attend to it immediately.” Sure, if you know about the spill, it would be easy to wipe up. If only moms had Super-Sonar-Spill Skills, we’d know the exact time and location of all other spills. This would surely avoid stepping into mysterious sticky spots on the kitchen floor.
6. Sweep the Kitchen Floor—“Every evening once you've finished washing up after dinner, sweep the floor. This will keep tough-to-clean dirt and grime from building up, which will make the weekly mopping much quicker.” Weekly mopping? I’m lucky if there’s monthly mopping.
After learning Martha’s six things, I think back to what an old neighbor said to me once. She was coming over to visit and I apologized for the mess. My neighbor, a mother of six (yes—six!) grown boys told me not to worry, that “a house isn’t a home unless it looks lived in.” Take that advice, Martha.
Tela's Finds
Nothing revolutionary from me, just some things that might make you smile in prep for your weekend.
- If you are ever in Montgomery, Alabama, be sure to check out this flea market. This commercial seriously cracks me up.
- If that commercial gave you a headache, maybe you should try this headache medicine.
- Any WMAGs-to-be out there, please take into consideration first and last name combos.
Susan's Finds
- Who knew our daughter's babysitter also happens to sell cute, affordable baby clothes on eBay! She has a whole store, it turns out. I was thrilled to learn this--I tend to be suspect of eBay sellers after a few bad experiences. But if I can trust Karen with my kid, I can surely trust her to sell me adorable Gymboree outfits for her. Check out her Oh Baby Boutique--I will personally vouch for her awesomeness!  - Pottery Barn Kids is having its Spring Sale right now. Save up to 65% on bedding, clothes, furniture, toys, and more. I only buy PBK when it's super-discounted, so I'm on it. - Shopping online for you? Check out MyShape.com, where you can submit your tastes, shape, and measurements to get recommendations on your most flattering sizes and styles.  - Social networking is all the rage, so of course the Web's most popular site for women has joined the fray with iVillage Connect. If you spend a lot of time on iVillage, you'll like all the new options: write a blog, join a group, meet new people, and share photos and videos. I'm getting a little overloaded with the networks right now, so I'm staying on the sidelines. You can still be my friend on Maya's Mom, though. Cara's Finds - Sugar-free Peeps? This favorite Easter treat now has a sugar-free version, made entirely with Splenda. I'm going to try them even if they're getting not-so-sweet reviews. - Cool craft. Got a lot of old photo slides just sitting in a box? Make them part of your decor with this Photo Slide Lampshade idea.
Guess what, WMAGs? When it comes to spending time with our kids, we're not doing as bad as we thought.
In fact, we're spending more quality time with our sweet peas than our moms did with us (or their moms did with them), according to a new study reported in yesterday's Washington Post. Yet, we feel like we aren't around enough.
 I guess when our moms stayed home with us, they stuck us in a playpen and leisurely read the newspaper or something? I do recall sitting on the floor at the YMCA while my mom Jazzercised to bad '80s music. We also watched All My Children pretty religiously (and still do, when we get a chance!) And it's not like we sat around making special crafts or scrapbooking all the time. But however much time Mom spent with me, it sure seemed like plenty.
Maybe the pressure was off moms back in the day, so they actually ended up spending fewer "quality" hours with us and more time on other stuff. These days, we pressure ourselves so much to be serious breadwinners and fabulous moms--along with a bazillion other roles too numerous to mention--that we make the time with our kids. But the tradeoff is subtracting hours from housework (hence, my house is dirty), free time (zero social life), and sleep (so that's why I'm exhausted all the time!)
In any case, it's a good article and interesting report. I highly recommend you check it out ... somewhere between your more-than-ample quality kid time and your next manicure. Ha!
P.S. Many thanks to Grusser and Justice Fergie for alerting me to this article!
I was tagged last week by Justice Fergie of MamaLaw to offer up 5 reasons why I blog. I can't back down from a challenge! So even though I am usually not one to blog about blogging, I'll break my general rule. It's for Fergie.
- I want to help other working moms like me know they're not alone in their struggles. And maybe help them improve their own lives in some small way.
- It's fun to share cool stuff I've discovered with people all over the country/world.
- I love hearing what other WMAGs have to say about topics that interest us. It's a great conversation I'd never have otherwise.
- I learn a lot from doing this blog--some things that help me at my job, others that help me in my personal life. Learning rules! (I know, I'm a dork.)
- It is my small act of chipping away at working-mom guilt, one post at a time.
Now I'm supposed to tag three more people. So I choo-choo-choose you, Amie at 4Benders, Mommy Dearest at Brodh20, and Kathy at Working Mothers. It's your turn to write a post about 5 reasons why you blog (and tag three more people, of course). I'd also love for my fellow WMAGers to chime in! Whaddya say, Tela, Cara, and Sara?
 Susan posted the other day about the challenges of maintaining a social life when you have small children. One of the ways I keep up with friends is through activities like book club. Susan started our club, and Tela also is a member. We get together, eat and chat - sometimes about the book we were supposed to read, but more often about life in general.
I'm hosting the next book club meeting, which takes place on a Thursday after a full day of work. It's not a problem, though, because I've got a lot of quick and easy munchie recipes I can whip up. Today I thought I'd share my recipe for hummus. I make mine without tahini since I rarely have it handy and some of my friends have children with severe nut allergies. The fun thing about a recipe like this is that the kids can help, too. All you have to do is pop a few things into the food processor, and you're good to go.
Hummus
Ingredients:
- One or two cans of chick peas (depending how big your crowd is), drained
- Juice from one lemon
- Two to three cloves of garlic (depending how much you like garlic)
- A few good "glugs" of olive oil
Directions: - Put chick peas, lemon juice, garlic cloves and olive oil into food processor
- Blend ingredients until they turn into a paste
- Continue to add oil, garlic and lemon juice until you get the taste and consistency you want
- Put hummus into a bowl and garnish with chopped parsley, if you like
- Serve with fresh veggies and pita bread triangles
The Simplest of Steamed Veggies Tela here, and I'd like to rave about new Birds Eye Steamfresh Veggies. My new mom-friend Amy had suggested them for O since he is all about feeding himself these days (and has the teeth to do it). So this weekend I headed to the store to buy some and lo and behold--they were on sale! $1 a bag. I grabbed as many as I thought I could shove in my freezer and headed down the road. Later that day, I tried a bag. Can you say easy, and GOOD? Just pop these bad-boy bags in the microwave for about 5 minutes, and voila! Delicious, good-for-you frozen vegetables that don't taste like the typical frozen vegetable--they actually have taste. This weekend O and I tried some broccoli and peas. Next on the agenda are the green beans. We'll let you know how it goes. Don't forget: You can suggest a Tasty Tuesday recipe or convenience food, too. Just email saraWMAG@gmail.com.
"Got any big plans this weekend?" "Did you have a nice weekend?"
Such questions are innocent enough. Just office small-talk. TGIF, "Somebody's got a case of the Mondays," and all that jazz.
But when people ask me, do they really want to hear my "big plans"? Do they really want a quick, punchy recap of my actual weekend?
Well, for those who think they do, my typical weekend goes a little something like this. It's a lame, boring, but honest tale only a working mom (or dad) can truly appreciate.
Friday night
So tired. Can ... barely ... make it ... home through rush hour. Jay picks up Cassie from the babysitter's house (it's his usual day at the office). He's pooped. I'm pooped. Cassie's ready to go, whoo! Let's order a pizza. We'll get healthy next week.
What should we do for fun? Watch Cassie crawl and pull herself up around the living room. Uh-oh, the carpet is furry with dog hair. I'll vacuum it tomorrow. Add it to my to-do list. Feed Cassie while we wait for Mr. Pizza Man, whom everyone loves (even the dog doesn't bark when he rings the bell). Is there a clean baby spoon left in the drawer? All the dishes are dirty. Must ... clean ... kitchen.
After Mr. Pizza Man has come and gone, and so has the pizza, it's time to take Cassie to the "MamaSpa" (very exclusive--personal pampering and excellent service). All-keen! Bedtime stories and night-night. Jay and I thank the Lords of Kobol that she goes down without a peep. We are so freakin' lucky.
Now what? Open that bottle of cabernet. Watch some Netflix, or see what's on basic cable? We still lament the passing of SciFi Friday (a total geekfest: two Stargate shows, followed by Battlestar Galactica). Maybe I'll just read a book until I pass out in bed.
Friday night is the fun part of my weekend.
Saturday
Wake up, hopefully paying down the week's sleep deficit a little bit. Cassie wants to get up at 7, of course. What's Saturday? So we eat cereal, watch the news, play. I try to clean the kitchen and pick up clutter while keeping her happy. Daddy helps, but he's had plenty of Cassie-time all week, so he's ready for a break.
Her morning nap comes and goes so fast, I barely have time to shower and check my email. Now what? I know! Let's visit Grandma and Grandpa!
In just 15 minutes, we reach the land of Grandma and are greeted with much fanfare. Cassie gets a healthy dose of kisses and laser-focused attention, while Mama gets to rest a little--and do some shopping if she's lucky.
But unlike me, my parents have plans for the evening. So we say "bye bye" and head home to Daddy. What's for dinner? Not another pizza. How about some Trader Joe's? Yum. Cassie prefers mushy chicken noodle dinner and some cheese.
The night is young! We could crank through at least two, maybe three loads of laundry. Sweet. Not enough energy for grocery shopping or cleaning. That will have to wait for tomorrow. Once Cassie's sleepy-sleepers, Mama and Daddy get a couple of hours' break until we're ready to go sleepy-sleep, too. Saturday night's alright. We should really go out on a date sometime.
Sunday
Good morning, Cincinnati! Cassie decides to wake up early. 6:14, people. Jay, please, please, please get up with her. I just can't do it. So he does, and I "sleep in" (till, like, 8). I love my husband.
By the time I wake up, there's a pot of coffee brewed (half gone) and a baby rarin' to go. I make some waffles, and Cassie practices standing up in the Pack 'n Play. Jay catches up with email.
After breakfast, I make BIG plans. I'm going to do our taxes. Clean the house top to bottom. Buy a week's worth of groceries (after cutting and sorting coupons, of course). Fold and put away all that clean laundry. Take Cassie for a walk in the stroller and go on the swings at the park. Pay all our bills. Call everyone back and have meaningful conversations with them.
Essentially, Sunday becomes this magical catch-all day when I (theoretically) can take care of everything that piled up over the past week while I worked, mothered, and housewived myself into total exhaustion.
And still have to time and energy to watch Battlestar at 10 p.m. (SciFi Sunday? Just doesn't have the same ring to it.) Oh yeah, and catch up on work emails so I'm not totally overwhelmed come Monday morning. Meanwhile, I'm going to play with Cassie, read to her, feed her, change her, bond, etc.
What actually happens is Cassie takes the #1 spot. I play with and care for her most of the day. In between, I get a few things done. Maybe hit Kroger (with a coupon or two if I'm doing really well). Vacuum the worst rooms. Taxes? Ha! Meaningful conversations? No way.
I may collapse for a guilt-filled, but totally worthwhile, nap while Cassie snoozes in the late afternoon. That wasn't on my to-do list, but it sure feels good.
When Battlestar ends at 11 p.m., and it's time for us to hit the sack, I'm beat. The bathroom's not clean, and anxiety about the upcoming work week looms. As I drift to sleep, I think, "Can't wait ... for someone ... to ask me about my weekend ..."
Cara's Finds
 - It's the little things in life... like knowing when you'll get your next Hottie McPirate fix. Thanks to this countdown, the next Pirates movie trailer is only a few days... hours... and seconds away.
- Did you hear about the mother that went back to work only 5 hours after she gave birth to her first child? Sara's Finds
 I'd like to introduce everyone to two very funny guys: Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement. Together, they are Flight of the Conchords . I met and hung out with them a couple of years ago while in Scotland with friends for the Fringe Festival. One of my pals knew Bret through his role as an elf in the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings films (It's a long story...). Anyhoo - my husband and I have been following the Conchords' rise to fame, from appearances on Conan O'Brien to their own HBO special. Just the other day, Hubby found some awesome clips on YouTube. My faves are the "Hiphopapotamus vs. Rhymenoceros" and "Business Time." But all of these bits are funneh. Check 'em out!
Tela's Finds
- Think you can name all 50 U.S. states? What about in ten minutes? I found this game strangely addicting. Good luck!
- Find super cute knit clothes, toys, bags and more at blablakids.com. They aren't a new site, but I don't know that many people know about them. And they should! Warning : I've never actually ordered from them, so I can't vouch for customer service.
Susan's Finds- Be the first to know about new products. And get free stuff. Are you one of those people that loves to discover new stuff and tell your friends about it? I am. That's one of the reasons I went into journalism in college, and now have a blog. So I was excited to learn about Vocalpoint. It's a network of women (mostly moms) created by Procter & Gamble to get our opinions about new products, brands, and programs--and spread the word about them to our personal network. Sound like your cup of tea? Learn more and join Vocalpoint here. - Don't feel guilty about buying more shoes. Buy them from ShoeBuy.com! Free shipping, no sales tax, and get $10 off your first order! I ordered two pairs of Robeez for Cassie through this site, and paid about 40% less than I would have through other sites. ShoeBuy.com has shoes for you, your hubby, and your kids. Let the shoe-shopping begin.
In the February/March issue of Working Mother magazine (which I get thanks to a subscription given to me by the loverly WMAG-er Susan), they published an article about caring for a child ailing from a cold or the flu. They also conducted a study tied to the story that revealed one-third of working moms have sent a sick child to school or daycare. The study of more than 625 working moms discovered that:
- One in three Moms have sent their child to school or daycare sick, the most common reason being because mom was unable to take a day off from work to care for her sick child.
- 70% of moms felt guilty sending a sick child to school or daycare, and were also concerned that their child might infect other children.
- Other feelings Mom felt when dealing with the decision to send their sick child to school include: stressed (48.5%), torn (43%) and frustrated (31.2%).
- Also, even though 54 percent of working moms have some flexibility to work from home, keeping a child home sick is not always an easy decision.
I found that last bullet point to be pretty interesting. As a writer I have one of the most easiest jobs in the world from which to "work from home," but it's not exactly looked upon kindly at my office. A lot of people, for some reason, feel you have to be in the office, sitting at your desk to be a viable team member. Why? Not sure. But I'm sure the 54% of moms struggling with the decision to keep their sick child at home--even though they have flexible work options--probably work at offices with similar attitudes. Since starting daycare, my son has had an almost constant cold. If I took a day off every time O had a cold, I would never be at work, therefore probably not have a job. And unfortunately, I don't have any family in the area, so giving him to grandma or grandpa isn't an option. Daycare it is. Fortunately (or unfortunately, not sure how to feel about it) colds are hardly looked at as being "sick" when it comes to daycare or school. A case of the sniffles or a little cough is almost a mainstay at these institutions. I have taken time off to take O to the doctor for ear infections and if daycare calls me with the suspicion he is sick, I definitely rush right over. And if he had the flu, a fever, or anything more alarming than a cold, I would definitely keep him at home. That's just me. And I think I have that option. Now the cashier I wrote about last week? She probably still has to go to work. But I do feel guilty/torn when I have to take time off to care for my boy. (Although it's not like I "really" take time off, I still work--just not in the office.) Part of me feels like "Screw it, it's my family--way more important than being at work," but the other part of me feels like I'm angering coworkers or possibly letting them down. I also feel this time off could potentially reflect poorly on me as an employee, considering the attitudes of some individuals I work with. Maybe I'm wrong on that point--I certainly hope so. Just one more hurdle the working mom has to deal with. How do you handle when your child is sick? Have you ever taken a sick child to school or daycare?
 For working moms who would rather fake it than make it... You'll enjoy this recipe Cara found in Real Simple magazine. Here's Cara:
This weekend as I rushed through the grocery store, I caught a tempting whiff of the deli's rotisserie chicken. Instantly, I remembered this "Fake It, Don't Make It" Chicken Curry in a Hurry recipe from the March 2007 issue of Real Simple.
So I grabbed the chicken, but couldn't remember all the other ingredients. I ended up buying sour cream instead of heavy cream. And I also forgot the cilantro. But, to my surprise, the sour cream substituted just fine and we didn't really need the cilantro. It was delicious! I can't wait to try it again with the right ingredients.
Chicken Curry in a Hurry
- 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons curry powder
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 3/4 cup heavy cream (I used just a little less of sour cream)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained (optional)
- 1 rotisserie chicken
- 2 cups cooked white rice (optional)
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 7 minutes. Sprinkle with the curry powder and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the yogurt and cream and simmer gently for 3 minutes. Stir in the salt, pepper, and tomatoes (if using). Remove from heat.
Slice or shred the chicken, discarding the skin and bones. Divide the rice (if using) and chicken among individual bowls, spoon the sauce over the top, and sprinkle with the cilantro.
Yield: Makes 4 to 8 servings NUTRITION PER SERVING: CALORIES 180(60% from fat); FAT 12g (sat 6g); SUGAR 1g; PROTEIN 2g; CHOLESTEROL 33mg; SODIUM 136mg; FIBER 0g; CARBOHYDRATE 16g  ...Sara again! While we're talking chicken, I'd like to recommend a tasty and convenient dish we did in the crock pot this weekend. Usually, I try to do our crock pot meals from scratch because I find that the crock pot inherently equals quick and easy. But my husband thought the Banquet Crock Pot Classics Chicken and Dumplings meal looked good, so we gave it a go. It was delish! Most important, Little One loved it. She gobbled down those dumplings as fast as we could put them on her plate. She even ate the carrots. This is one of those meals you can set to simmer as you walk out the door for work, then serve in the evening with a minimum of extra prep. Good stuff!
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polis, and if so what's your opinion of it?
