Motherhood (general)

The following is the first of a series of essays which discuss the 5 founding principles of Mothers Acting Up, a national non-profit organization which exists to inspire and mobilize mothers to advocate on behalf of the world’s children.

Cross-posted at MotherTalkers.

There has been much hoopla surrounding toys recalled for safety reasons. But are the legislators and industry actually doing something about it? Parents magazine recently released a full report:

I felt like an eager parent trampling the competition to get to the holiday season’s “it” toy. Except I was not trying to beat the rush at WalMart for a video game console, but online vendors of glass baby bottles.

Doctors agree that breastmilk is best for infants, but their own licensing board isn't following doctor's orders. Sophie Currier recently learned that when it comes to supporting breastfeeding, many of our leaders--whether they are in the medical establishment (as in Sophie's case), business sector, or elsewhere--still don't "walk the talk." You see, Sophie was denied breast pumping breaks during her nine hour medical licensing exam. She's not alone. Even in this day and age when the medical evidence is clear that breastfeeding is best for infants, women are regularly denied the time and location to pump.

Today on All Things Considered, NPR featured a moving piece about the two sides of Hurricane Katrina evacuees relocating in Houston. Some of the 90,000 people who have resettled in Houston are doing well; two years later, others have still not found security. Mothers in particular seem to be suffering.

Lorenthia Richardson is a former nursing students and store manager who is sharing an apartment with three female relatives and their 14 children. NPR reporter Wade Goodwyn's summary of Richardson's situation caught my eye:

"Richardson knows how to dress and act for the professional world. That's not her problem. Her problem is that she is a black, single mother from New Orleans. For two full years, Richardson has been unable to land a job, despite more than 50 separate attempts."

If you want straight answers to straight questions, then Elizabeth Edwards is your gal.

After hearing her speak at last week's BlogHer conference, I know if she was the one running for president, she would be getting my vote -- hands down.

Not only is she exquisitely tuned in to the issues many of us think are the most important ones, she knows something else that seems to elude most office seekers -- if you want support from women, you need to make connections.

When we became parents, I discovered and adopted a few very helpful perspectives:

1. Change is constant. There's always something new to learn or adjust to. True, I'll never again be a novice at changing a poopy diaper in a public place or figuring out the top ten uses for My Brest Friend. But as this baby grows, she changes, and my parenting techniques have to change with her. What worked yesterday to soothe, entertain or distract her might not work today. Remembering this keeps me on my toes instead of feeling constantly inadequate!

The Today Show segment I appeared on this past Saturday flew by in an instant, but I was proud that I did get to mention MomsRising.org.

Preparing for the segment gave me a chance revisit everything I've been reading and thinking over the past few years. I wrote a blog post today to pull it all together. I want to give credit to all the brilliant women who have been writing about motherhood. We are all busy working it out for ourselves as we go along and now we are gathering into a movement here at MomsRising.

I do think there is a significant generational shift, which is what I write about in my blog post Cracking the Privilege Code. It was interesting to come away feeling that the path we are carving out is more radical than I had realized.