MOM CONFESSIONALS

Pinch me now! Sometimes I cannot believe the things that land in my lap. For instance, when I was invited to be a #RBabyMom Ambassador I was beyond thrilled! This year has been all about using my influence in social media for the social good. I couldn’t have found a greater partnership than with the RBaby Foundation. I’ve told this story many times, but you might find it hard to believe despite being an RN, when my child is in the ER, all those years of schooling and experience goes right out the door and I am just like any other mom — terrified for their child.  I couldn’t believe that in this day in age, living in America, we had to worry about something as important as basic pediatric ER standards.  I had no idea all Pediatric ERs were not equal.  In that moment, when you’re in the ER, the last thing you want to think about is whether or not they are properly trained or equipped to care for your child.  It was a no brainer, improving Pediatric ER care was something definitely that had to be done and RBaby Foundation needed to be heard.

I tweeted, I posted, I told, I begged everyone I knew to sign the petition.  If you’re a mom, a dad, an aunt or uncle, a grandmother or grandfather, a god-mother, a friend, your life will at some point connect with a pediatric ER.  It  could be for something minor and easily cared for, or something a lot more critical.  I never wish that on anyone, but wouldn’t you want to know that the hospital you wind up at is equipped to properly care for your loved one?

To Thank Us for our efforts (I know totally crazy huh?!), they invited us to be their guest at their 5-year Anniversary celebration the RBaby Foundation 5-Star Food & Wine Gala at the majestic Plaza Hotel in NYC.  Not only were we going to sip fine wines and cocktails while exploring 5-star cuisines from world-renowned chefs, we were getting VIP “Pink” carpet treatment!  Totally insane!  Just for doing what I love!  I was so honored to be an ambassador with some really truly amazing moms and social media influencers.  It was amazing just to see the power of social media doing social good.  That was reward enough, and here they were… spoiling us!  PINCH ME NOW!

Here am I COMPLETELY transformed into a princess! My hair was magically sculpted by Agnes from Federico Hair Salon, channeling Kate Beckinsale. I swear she was using some power tools back there.  She made me laugh as she kept saying, “God Bless your Asian fine, super straight hair! Oh my!”  Here is where you’ll definitely believe I’m a social media junkie.  How did I decide on Kate Beckinsale as my fashion icon for the night? Why Pinterest of course! If you know me, you know I barely wear any make up if any at all.  Mostly because I just don’t have the coordination to get it together.  I am the girl who every skin care expert to dermatologist gasps in horror to learn my method of face care includes the bar soap in my shower.  Ms. Kate Harvie along with some magical make up from Alison Rafaelle transformed me from bleh to glam!  I swear I looked better than I did on my wedding day!  Complete with jewelry curated from Melinda Maria I felt like royalty.  I couldn’t hide my blushing that night.

Enough about me… We ate, we drank, we listened.  It was so humbling to be there to hear the stories, and know while we made great strides, there was still much to be done.   We got to honor the amazing Julia Beck, the founder of Forty Weeks, and a leader in empowering expectant and new mothers.  She was awarded with the RBaby Champion Award and it was well-deserved.  One could only hope to be as an amazing advocate as she.

So yes the magical night is over, but there is still so much more to do!!!  What can you do?  SIGN THE PETITION NOW!  Then go and tell your mother, your brother, your neighbor and everyone you know to SIGN THE PETITION.

What am I going to do?  I am going to continue to spread the word of course!  My team at Trumpeting Media have an amazing project coming up and we are thrilled to announce that RBaby will be our charity of choice to support in more ways than one.  There’s work to be done people!

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I turn on the radio, my TV and even twitter and next to 50 Shades of Grey, the trending topic is attachment parenting. Time Magazine’s latest cover of a young hip mom with a toddler standing on a chair attached to her boob is shocking to say the least.  At the same time, it doesn’t seem so odd to me. By definition I seem like I practice attachment parenting. My son is about 2 and a half years old now and I am still breastfeeding and we co-sleep. Although I am not ashamed to admit this because its instinctive to me, I do often find myself gauging who I say this too and I often follow up with the sentence, I know I need to start weaning him. Then again, I feel like I have a crutch, my son is severely allergic to cow dairy, and of course I also mentally justify it because my son has a brain tumor. I wear it like a defensive armor – don’t judge me, my son may be dying, I will do what I want and if I want to be attached to my son and spend every waking minute basking in his love, I will because I don’t know how many days or weeks or months or even years he has and I don’t want to regret a minute of it. I even switched careers to spend and maximize my time with my children. I always tell anyone who questions my choices, I didn’t have children for someone else to take care of them or raise them. I’ve never defined his attachment to me other than simply a phase toddler boys go thru, but if I am an attachment parent, then so be it.
According to Dr. Sears, founder of the term “Attachment Parenting”, infants’ brains are “hardwired with strong needs to be nurtured and to remain physically close to the primary caregiver, usually the mother, during the first few years of life.” I agree!

While my husband has always been incredibly supportive of my commitment to breastfeeding, I can see him waning as my son can now throw full on temper tantrums to get his “nai nai“.  Why does society want to make me feel ashamed about doing something so natural all around the world?  I love this article by USA Today entitled, Breast-feeding a 3-year-old is normal, anthropologist says

Breast milk is one of the only sources of long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids that build brain tissue… It isn’t until age 5 or 6 that “95% of brain growth has been reached, and that’s also about the time that the child’s immune system is ramped up to full production,”  says Katherine Dettwyler, a professor of anthropology at the University of Delaware in Newark, Del.

I think our time with them as youngsters who so wholeheartly love us with all their hearts is all too short and soon they will run off to be with their friends, want not to hold your hands anymore and be independent. I’ve seen it many times with my nieces and nephews, my friend’s children and years later, all is well. I don’t know any grown ups that are still attached to their mothers physically rather I admire the many close mother/son relationships that I do observe. I think it’s sweet and it speaks a lot to the character of that man, who respects, loves and adores his mother. I am slowly weaning my son off breastmilk, but it’s not a hard stop, I’m not forcing it.  He only nurses when he wakes up and when he goes to bed.  I don’t know any teenagers still breastfeeding.

As for the co-sleeping, I know those days are numbered too and when he’s ready, he will go and sleep in his big boy bed on his own. In fact, last night, with my sister visiting from Beirut and the aerobed pulled out, he actually wanted to sleep in the bouncy bed with his sister.  He only lasted about an hour, but it was a step towards moving out of our bed.

I am not an extreme Attachment Parent. Yes my sex life had to get a little more creative with baby making three in the bed, but at the same time it made it more fun too. The careful planning, the anticipation.

So what do you think about Time Magazine’s new cover? Attachment Parenting?

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As a mom, nothing is more scary than when your child needs emergency medical care.  Your first instinct is to head to the Emergency Department (otherwise known more colloquially as ER) where you will place your entire trusted care of your child in their hands.  It would be shocking to learn that not all Emergency Departments are equipped, not only with the tools, but also the properly trained staff to care for your child.  Just because it says Pediatric Emergency Department on the outside of the building does not mean that they are an emergency department that is equipped to care for a child in a medical crisis.

RBaby Foundation is is the first and only not-for-profit foundation uniquely focused on saving babies lives through improving pediatric emergency care.

R Baby Foundation is dedicated to ensuring that babies, including those in the first month of life suffering from viral infections and other infectious diseases, receive the highest quality of care and service through supporting life-saving pediatric training, education, research, treatment and equipment.

In addition R Baby is educating and empowering parents with resources to better understand their medical options and make more informed choices in their care.  Before I became an RN, I remember going to the Emergency Room with my daughter and completely trusting them with my child’s care.  Everyone was a doctor to me.  Little did I know that most of them were residents, doctor’s in training, practicing on my child.  As an RN now, I cringe every time I think of that day when they asked both my husband and I to step outside as they performed a spinal tap on my child. I thought my child was getting top priority care when a handful of doctors entered the room and closed the door.  I was just a scared mom who wasn’t informed.  An absolute must read is their PDF entitled: What you need to know about Emergency Rooms

Before your child has a medical emergency, visit R Baby Foundation’s Emergency Resource Page for information on preparing before a medical situation arises and understanding your options.

I am proud to be an #RBabyMom, not just as a mother who has spent many times in the ER with her child, but as a Registered Nurse, who when is in the ER with her child, is only a mom who is scared for her child.

At the end of the day, you are your child’s best advocate.  If you don’t think a doctor or nurse is understanding your concerns, make them understand them.

If you have a moment, please join R Baby Foundation in petitioning the US Senate, the US House of Representatives & the Council of State Governments for a better, clearer definition of a Pediatric Emergency Department, mandatory pediatric equipment and supplies in all EDs, and increased pediatric training for ED doctors.  To sign the petition, please visit: http://www.change.org/petitions/demand-that-your-emergency-department-is-prepared-for-your-child

Feeling inspired? Spread the word, visit RBaby Foundation’s Volunteer page for more ways to engage and share the message.

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When I got asked to join the Listerine Oral Care Challenge, it was a no-brainer.  My own teeth have been the bane of my existence.  As a child, my dental visits were few and far between, as I aged I fell victim to dental carries and a few crap dentists who seemed a little too drill happy, both to my teeth and my wallet.  To make matters worse, as a grown adult, post-pregnancy, I had over $10,000 worth of dental work done due to weakening of the teeth.  The dentist even had the nerve to blame my 28 months of breastfeeding for calcium depletion… the nerve!  The bill itself was enough to scare me from ever going to the dentist again.  And really, going to see a dentist only when something hurts is not a good thing.  While I have since found better care, it still isn’t an easy place for me to go.  In fact my anxiety is at its all time high when visiting the dentist.   My newly discovered favorite form of treatment is nitrous oxide otherwise known as laughing gas.

Worried that my own experience with the dentist would taint that of my own children, I am eager to take this challenge head on.   Since learning that 50 percent of children will have a cavity or filling between the ages of 5 and 9 and the surgeon general reports that 51 million school hours are missed each year because of dental-related illness, I am scared. If prevention is worth its weight in gold, I needed to get going ASAP.  With my daughter at 4 years old and my son at 2 years old, neither of which have seen a dentist yet nor have very consistent dental hygiene habits, we might be on a road to trouble.

After participating in the Healthy Habits Kick Off call I was feeling a little disgusted and also very inspired.  Disgusted because I found out that brushing your teeth alone misses the germs in 75% of your mouth.  Yuk!  First things first, I picked up the phone and made dentist appointments for the kids.  I was very proud of myself for taking this first step.  Next it was time to unpack my Listerine Gift Pack.  I was thrilled to find Character themed products which made the introduction all the more easier.

J was thrilled to bits with his Phineas and Ferbs rinse and toothbrush, while A was giddy with glee over her new Barbie rinse and toothbrush.  M is still too little for a rinse but I couldn’t leave him out, so he got his very own Batman toothbrush, otherwise fondly known as “Man!”  We were off to a good start.

The good thing is that my husband has been firmly making sure that J & A brush their teethes, not just at night but first thing in the morning.  That was a habit that never stuck with me as a kid.  Having the character rinses definitely makes things a lot easier if not a little more troublesome.  A wants to brush and rinse her teeth all the time now.   I’ve had to put my foot down several times.  Really!  It could become a real problem.  The baby just loves to copy his older sibs and this time, it’s a good thing.  If they’ve got good oral hygiene, he is sure to follow suit.  As it stands, he has his own cup and toothbrush and loves to spit out water.  I mean who doesn’t!  He loves to stand side by side with them as they brush.  It’s really too cute for words.

I also found the time to dig out a toy timer from a now defunct game which will act as a 2-minute brush timer and 1-minute rinse timer.  I was so excited!

With the kids squared away, it was time to examine my own dental hygiene.  You’d think with my history, I’d be neurotic about my dental health habits… but I’m not.  I still never brush my teeth in the morning, unless I’m coming off a night shift.  Sometimes out of pure exhaustion, I skip the flossing and just brush.  Sometimes I’m soooo lazy, I don’t even use the Listerine rinse.  Working the night shift 3-4 days a week doesn’t help either, my times are always turned upside down.  That’s the problem with being a mom whose candle is being burnt at both ends.  I learned though from the call that, oral care has advanced so much that it takes just minutes a day to improve your oral care routine and establish a healthy habit that will benefit you for a lifetime.  The sooner you improve your oral care, the more money you will save. Fortunately, Walmart offers LISTERINE® and REACH® products at affordable prices!

This is a fresh start for everyone.  With new tools in hand, we are going to start creating some healthy dental habits.  Won’t you join us?

Visit www.walmart.com/AHA/Listerine/Reach to access to tips from leading dental experts and find great values and prices on oral care products.

{ disclosure: I received products and compensation from Johnson & Johnson and The Motherhood
as part of my participation in the Oral Care Challenge but have been a long-time loyal user of Listerine & REACH products. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this post and any post on this site are always my own. }

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My newest obsession is my Maclaren Field Bag.  I can’t believe it’s a diaper bag!  I guess the pull out changing pad is a good clue, but it’s so full of city style, I can totally rock it with or without a baby.  That’s right, the baby is my accessory, and the bag is my new love.  It’s got loads of pockets for baby essentials and mom’s necessities.  My favorite is the inside zipper pocket perfect for storing my wallet and keys.  Not to mention, not bulky at all!  Multipurpose as a tote or messenger bag, even dad won’t be wary of toting it along.  I’m slowly evolving out of the diaper bag era, but this bag has got lasting power.  It’s quite the stunner indeed.

The price?  A complete STEAL at only $50!  Maclaren, a name synonymous with strollers is now making it’s name in style.  Another stunner is their Canvas Park Bag for only $30.  Check out Maclaren’s new line of totes and bags at: http://www.shopmaclarenbaby.com/categories/Transport/Accessories/Totes-and-Bags/

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Recently I was invited to the launch party for Honest Company hosted by MomTrends and got a chance to meet the fabulously gorgeous Jessica Alba, one of the founders of this revolutionary company.  We listened to hear tell the story of her early days as a new parent and it echoed my very own experience.  I became a parent during the early uproar over BPA in bottles and remember the ignited fear within.   I began countless hours of research and at every turn I was more and more horrified.  Not just at the chemicals in everyday products we used but also at the high costs for products that were safer.  “I’ve spent way too many hours researching products and driving around trying to find safer, eco-friendly options for my kids,” exclaimed Jessica Alba, President and founder. “I knew that most people didn’t have that kind of time, nor the means to pay the premium prices. We had to make it easier.”  She teamed up with Christopher Gavigan, former Healthy Child Healthy World CEO; Brian Lee, ShoeDazzle.com founder; and Sean Kane, PriceGrabber.com executive, to launch The Honest Company, an eco-friendly line of family essentials offered through a monthly subscription service at Honest.com.  That’s a pretty amazing team for sure!  Healthy Child Healthy World was my go-to site for the most reliable information and still is.  Meeting Christopher Gavigan was inspiring.  He admits to being asked for product recommendations all the time but it took a LOT of nudging from Jessica Alba to give birth to The Honest Company.  We’re glad he came on board.

Created for parents by parents, The Honest Company founders say they are committed to making safe, sustainable products more convenient, beautiful, and affordable.  While one might be skeptical about signing up for a monthly subscription service, I can barely commit to a magazine subscription, I was pleasantly surprised at the flexibility.  The products are curated into personalized bundles that are automatically shipped every month, and parents can try a FREE Discovery Kit, that includes a sample pack of diapers and wipes, or trial-sized versions of the bath, skin and cleaning products.   If you like the discovery kit, you can continue to receive a customizable kit of FULL size products monthly.  It’s an easy process, and members at Honest.com can purchase a monthly supply of non-toxic stylish diapers competitively priced at less than $20 a week, and can also choose a monthly supply of the body care and home cleaning essentials for under $9 a week.  When it’s put in those numbers, it makes a lot of sense.

I really can embrace the Honest Family Essentials Bundle model where I can select 5 out of 14 currently available products every month.  My needs are always constantly changing, not to mention being a little commitment phobic, having the flexibility to choose the products I need for the next month is awesome!  While I am just transitioning my littlest one out of diapers, I have to say the Honest Diaper Bundle is so gorgeous I even contemplated waiting a bit longer on potty training.  Completely natural & non-toxic – made from chlorine-free, bio-based absorbent, and plant-based materials, these diapers are not only stylish, but also ultra absorbent with a premium fit.

As one of the founders of Trumpeting Media, we love brands that have a charitable arm, doing some Social Good.  I was thrilled to hear that a portion of every dollar Honest Company earns goes to their non-profit partner Baby2Baby. This worthy nonprofit supplies local families in need with essential baby gear and clothing for children up to age four.  We love it!

In these days where BUSY doesn’t even begin to describe a parent’s typical day, convenience and value speaks to us.  We welcome The Honest Company to make every parent’s life a little more manageable.

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Just in time for your holidays, I was honored to co-host with Nancy Johnson Horn (The Mama Maven) and Esti Berkowitz (Primetime Parenting) an exclusive Media preview of LOFT’s inspiring charms benefiting St. Jude, before they officially went on sale last week.

The limited edition necklaces designed by Dogeared, represent the LOVE, JOY and HOPE of the patients at St. Jude.  Everyday I am thankful as St Jude’s motto “Give thanks for the healthy kids in your lives…” and as an RN I am touched by the children whose paths I cross with who are not.  They are some of the most extraordinary kids I have ever met.  These children deserve to live a full life and the research that is done at St. Jude gets us one day closer to that every single day.  If there is even a small contribution, “and give to those who are not.” I can make, I would.  Being able to make a purchase that does good means just as much to me as making a purchase that is good for one’s health, because it’s good for one’s soul.

These small charms are affordable and gorgeous for that special someone in your life, or even for yourself.  Each charm retails for $26 and five dollars from the purchase of every charm will be donated to St. Jude.  The inspiring charms are available for sale starting today, December 5th, in LOFT stores nationwide and on LOFT.com. To learn more about the charms and meet the children they benefit, visit LOFT’s Facebook page.

This marks the fifth year of ANN INC.’s participation in the St. Jude Thanks and Giving campaign – the hospital’s national awareness and fundraising campaign that brings together celebrities, media and corporations to ask shoppers to “Give thanks for the healthy kids in your life, and give to those who are not.”

Since 2007, the company has raised over $6.7 million for St. Jude through its ANN Cares® charitable initiatives. As part of the ongoing partnership, now through December 31st, customers who shop at LOFT and LOFT Outlet stores will have an opportunity to support St. Jude through an add-on donation during the check out process. Additionally, ANN INC. has committed to donate up to $100,000 from the sale of limited edition products benefiting St. Jude during the Thanks and Giving® campaign, including the three LOFT Cares charm necklaces.

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ONE Moms is a movement of moms everywhere using their extraordinary power to spread awareness for the fight against extreme poverty and something very near and dear to me, preventable diseases.  I am thrilled and honored to be ONE of these moms.  Ava and I recently sat down with some truly amazing moms doing their part and filmed this Call to Action and I hope you’ll join us!  These moms are leading a movement to promote education, engagement and activism on behalf of the world’s poorest.

It only takes ONE mom. That’s what we believe. ONE mom can make a difference; she can tell another mom’s story. She can help a child with homework; she can tweet, blog and use her voice for mothers in the world’s poorest places.  As I said in the video, “It only takes ONE mom to inspire hope.”  Won’t you be that ONE mom?  To learn more about ONE, please visit: http://www.one.org/us/actnow/moms/

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There is nothing I love more than when a brand partners with an organization to do good and create awareness.  This time it is baby staple, Maclaren!

Recently Maclaren was introduced to Tracy Seckler, founder of an organization called Charley’s Fund. Charley’s Fund directs money into the hands of researchers who have the best shot at developing a treatment or cure for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). The organization’s goal is to cure DMD in time to save Charley Seckler’s (the organizations namesake) life and the lives of thousands of boys like him. DMD is the most common fatal genetic disorder to affect children around the world.  Children with DMD cannot produce dystrophin, a protein necessary for muscle strength and function.  As a result, every skeletal muscle in the body deteriorates.  Although Duchenne is the most common fatal genetic disorder to affect children, sadly, there is no cure.

When Maclaren learned of this illness – which is commonly diagnosed when in boys only around the ages of 1 to 3 years – last year, their Chairman wanted to use the Maclaren name to help bring awareness of this disorder AND raise money to find a cure.  They created the Charley’s Fund “I Believe” Triumph buggy. The stroller will retail for $195 (and will include a special “I Believe” Universal Organizer and raincover).  While most companies donate a portion of their sales to a charity, Maclaren has gone above and beyond buy giving ALL proceeds from the sale directly to Charley’s Fund to support research to find a cure for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

Many of us have family and friends who are either suffering from a terminal illness or disease or know of someone who does.  My family right now is dealing with my mother’s cancer diagnosis and in my job I am often meeting new families dealing with their own difficult diagnosis.  It’s through companies like Maclaren, taking the initiative, helping consumers make more thoughtful purchases, that there is hope.  If you’re in the market for a new umbrella stroller, won’t you consider a stroller that will help fund research for a now incurable, but soon to be curable disease?  With time and money, it is possible!

The stroller is available exclusively in Maclaren’s Online Store – http://www.shopmaclarenbaby.com/charleys-fund-i-believe-buggy/

To learn more about Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, please visit – http://bit.ly/r1rlLo or follow Charley’s Fund on Twitter (@charleysfund) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/charleysfund).

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Recently I was onhand as Christy Turlington Burns joined to celebrate the launch sale of Hatch by twobirds Collection on Gilt Children where a portion of proceeds will go to Christy’s charity, Every Mother Counts.

I have to admit that I was in attendance at the event because I am passionate about maternal and child health (as a mother-baby nurse by trade) and wholly support Christy’s charity and was excited to meet her in person but I was completely blown away by the Hatch by twobirds Collection, especially the dress that Christy wore that night.   Christy showed an excerpt from her debut documentary, No Woman No Cry followed by a Q&A. Christy’s documentary and discussion were extremely touching and women in the room were soon asking what they could do to help.  I picked up some simple ways to get involved and the first thing I did when I got home was look up how to donate my old cellphone to Hope Phones.  Every Mother Counts is an advocacy and mobilization campaign to increase support for maternal and child health. Gilt Children, Hatch and Gilt City are happy to help raise awareness and funds for this campaign.

Gilt Children is exclusively launching the Hatch Collection before it is available anywhere else. The sale kicked off yesterday at 12 PM ET and runs until September 30th. Gilt members will get 20% off and a portion of the proceeds will go to Christy’s charity, Every Mother Counts. You can visit the sale by going to: http://www.gilt.com/sale/children/hatch-maternity-appa . Gilt Children is passionate about offering the best products for moms, babies and kids and this beautiful, innovative collection gave Gilt amazing opportunity to do so while also raising awareness for a global cause. Check it out!

If you don’t have an account, click here for your invitation to join!

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