This week as the nation celebrates Thanksgiving, I decided to share the three people on earth who inspire me to be the most grateful. 

1. My husband.  Sometimes it can be popular for moms to talk badly about their husbands and make a laundry list of all that they do wrong.  Fortunately for me, I can’t join that chorus.  As I always say, "My husband is not perfect, but he’s perfect for me!"  Don’t get me wrong, he definitely has his little idiosyncrasies that drive me crazy at times, but overall I definitely feel like I got the better part in this marriage deal.  (No, I’m not one of those women with low self-esteem….I feel great about myself.  It also helps that my husband feels the same way in reverse - that he got the better part in this marriage deal.)  My husband is affectionate, supportive and my best friend. 

2. My son.  For the last couple of weeks, my son has been acting like a crazy child.  I’m not sure if it’s just because he’s two or because my stomach is getting bigger and he senses that he’s not going to be the center of the universe anymore.  Irregardless, he has made me seriously reconsider my ability to parent two little boys at once.  I realize that it’s too late to change my mind now, but I’ve had my moments!  Overall though, I feel really lucky to have my little boy.  He’s smart, friendly, funny and so cute that I just want to eat him up. (Of course I’m biased in my description…what parent isn’t?)  It really is like my heart expanded when I gave birth to this little one and even when he’s behaving like a Tasmanian devil, there’s no other child in the world I’d rather have. 

And

3.) My mom.  For most of my life (besides my senior year of high school), my mom and I have gotten along incredibly well.  I’m especially thankful for her now that I’m a mother myself.  After divorce, she raised five kids.  At times, I feel like I can barely raise 1 1/2 child with the help of a supportive spouse.  I don’t know how she did it, but I’m grateful that she found/made a way.  Before my husband came along, my mom was my best friend and closest confidante.  (Now, she’s my best woman friend.)  My mom just thinks that I am great.  She thinks that I can do whatever I set my mind to and that I will always find a way to make "lemonade out of lemons".  My husband calls me Pollyanna, but my mother was/is the original Pollyanna in my life.  My mom has not had an easy life, but her optimism, joie de livre (joy of life), and perseverance inspire me.  I want to be like her when I grow up! 

In any event, these are just a few of the people who help me to be thankful.  I hope that in the midst of all the Thanksgiving day planning and preparations that each mom can take a few moments to reflect on those who give them a reason to be grateful.  Happy Thanksgiving!

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Last night I attended two great events.  I’ll write about one and give you the website where you can view the entire webcast of the second one.

The first event began at 6pm.  To my dismay, I didn’t even get on the subway until 6pm (arghhh!).  I really love being a mom, but one of the things about motherhood that challenges me the most is time…my schedule is not my own anymore.  I have to wait for my husband or babysitter to get to my house before I can leave for any other commitments.  (I don’t have to, but I would probably lose custody of my son if I left him at home by himself at the age of 2.)  By nature, I’m a “15 minutes early is on time” type of person, so this time crunch can drive me crazy at times.  Anyway, I knew the event wasn’t really going to begin until 6:30….the first ½ hour was for networking/refreshments, but I still wanted to be there by 6pm.  Anyway, I’ll move on.
 
I made it to the first event, the “Moms of Reinvention” session at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan, at around 6:20pm.  I briefly spoke with the two founders of Role Mommy, (http://www.rolemommy.com), Beth and Yvette, before the program started.  I was also very happy to catch up with a fellow “Mom in the City” member who I hadn’t seen in a while.  The last time that I had seen her she was (very) pregnant and considering how she was going to balance everything post-baby.  In the interim, she had quit her fundraising job and enjoyed bonding with her (now 6 months old) baby girl.  She was currently in the process of figuring out her next step career-wise, so this panel was perfect for her. 

The panel portion of the program began around 6:30pm (I was right…stressed for nothing!).  After a brief intro from Yvette and Beth (who have a new book, Peeing In Peace: Tales & Tips for Type A Moms coming out in early 2007), Cindy Hsu and the rest of the panel took the stage.  The panel consisted of a group of women who had reinvented their careers to strike a balance in their lives.  You can read more about the panelists at http://rolemommyevents.blogspot.com.  One of the first questions that were asked of Jennie Baird from AOL Coaches was, “What are women looking for?”  The number one answer….TIME…time for selves, time to give back to their family and community, time to juggle all of their responsibilities.  Some insights regarding time were: set priorities; learn to say no; do things for the right reasons; set limits; etc.  One of the audience members, a former attorney, shared how she had started her own business (http://whereismybaby.com) in order to do business on her own terms.  An overriding sentiment was that the corporate world doesn’t always conform to our lives as moms so we need to either (a) attempt to change our corporate cultures and/or (b) branch off and create our own businesses.  Ultimately, it came down to choices (doesn’t it always?).  We need to think about our priorities and structure our lives, including our careers, accordingly. 

On the subject of choices…I chose to leave this event a little early in order to get to another event on time.  As such, I didn’t hear the very end of the discussion, but I’m sure that it was great.  Overall, I thought that the program was very helpful.  I didn’t necessarily learn anything new, but it’s always good to be around other women who are fighting to live their dreams…it creates a sisterhood.

Next, I met up with a friend and we went to an American Express OPEN forum, “Standing Out in The Crowd”.  This event was also great.  It focused on three topics: 1. Finding Your Brand; 2. Creating Customer Demand; and 3. Keeping Your Business Moving Forward.  I’m not going to write about this event though, because you can soon see the entire thing on webcast at http://www.openforumonline.com/event.html and form your own opinions.  Enjoy!

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NBC is currently casting two moms to be part of a daytime show pilot
that we hope to shoot in January.  We are looking for two hip mothers who
love movies and would be willing to talk about them on television. 
This gig is not for those who are camera shy.  We would love to find two
best friends or two sisters who are moms, but we’ll consider everyone,
of course.  You will be our movie critics with a mom’s perspective.  You
will get to see movies for free before they hit theaters AND we will
pay you to do it!

You must meet the following requirements:
1) Be able to see three movies per week (on average) in New York City. 
There are multiple screenings so you pick the one that best suits your
schedule.
2) Be available to appear on the show once per week on a dedicated day
once the show gets picked up.

To be considered, please send an email to nbc.daytime.show@gmail.com. 
In it, please include a recent photo, tell us a little about yourself,
the last movie you saw and what you thought of it.  If you wish to be
considered with another person as a team (a friend, sibling, etc.),
please submit information for both people in the SAME email.

We can’t reply to every submission personally, but we’ll be in touch to
set up interviews in New York City soon.  Absolutely no phone calls,
please.

Thanks so much and good luck!

NBC Media Productions

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This weekend was a blast.  Friday night, we went to the Big Apple Circus http://www.bigapplecircus.org/) again…this time my husband was able to attend which made it all the more fun.
 
On Saturday, we had a MitC event at MAGIC (http://www.74magic.com/).  It was so much fun!  I received so many compliments about how well organized, friendly and helpful the MAGIC staff was.  Both the baby and “big kid” gyms were bright, clean and full of a variety of equipment…the kids had a blast!  (On a sweet note, a couple of the kids were crying because they didn’t want to leave…always a good sign!)  I highly recommend this space for parties/events.

Saturday night and Sunday morning, I was at the Javits for a church seminar (Saturday) and teaching the toddlers class (Sunday).  Fortunately I had time for a nap, because on Sunday night I went to see The Color Purple (http://www.colorpurple.com/) with some female family members.  The play was excellent (although I definitely don’t recommend attending with young children).  From the opening until the very end, the music, singing, dancing and acting performances were flawless.  I’m so fortunate that I was able to see it last night, because it was the last performance by LaChanze (who won a Tony for her portrayal of Celie).  The supporting cast is so strong though that I’m sure the play will continue to be worth going to see.

Now, I need a weekend break from my weekend!

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Last night, our family attended the Eleventh Annual Halloween Celebration at the American Museum of Natural History (www.amnh.org). It was a lot of fun. There were a lot of performances, activities and characters throughout the museum.

My son enjoyed Curious George, watching the other children in costume and “trick or treating” at the (over 20!) trick-or-treat stations throughout the museum. My husband enjoyed finding the various trick-or-treat stations and enjoying the various exhibits at the museum (he hadn’t been there in a while). As for me, I enjoyed bumping into a few moms who I had met at different events this year and seeing my son so excited about “trick-or-treating” (he really didn’t “get it” last year). For $9 a person, I think that this was one of the best Halloween deals in the city!

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