News Roundup
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Some of the articles of interest to working mothers that we’ve seen around the web recently…
- The Mom Edit rounds up some appropriately tacky Ugly Christmas Sweaters for the whole family.
- A lawyer and mother shares her thoughts with Above the Law about the impossibility of “having it all.”
- Hannah Morgan of Career Sherpa writes for U.S. News & World Report about looking like a “real professional” during a job hunt.
- New York magazine’s The Cut talks to Kate Spade (er, Kate Valentine) for their “How I Get It Done” series.
- Scary Mommy has a working mom’s open letter to her husband.
- From Quartz: “The Stanford professor who pioneered praising kids for effort says we’ve totally missed the point.”
- Sunshine and Hurricanes features some good picks for kids’ subscription boxes.
- Learn about mom retreats at The Washington Post’s On Parenting.
- The New York Times talks to adults who took a gap year before college and are glad they did.
- Have you heard the big news yet? Wired reports that Netflix is allowing users to download content to watch offline. (What’s your kid’s favorite show on Netflix?)
- Of course, we realize not all stay-at-home moms are like this, but … Romper lists “10 Things Stay-At-Home Moms Need To Stop Saying About Working Moms.”
Do be sure to check out the news update over at Corporette!
On Corporette Recently…
- Kat rounded up some great Cyber Monday sales — some may still be going on.
- We talked about wearing interesting suits to court
- Kat shared her lip balm collection.
Did we miss anything? Add ’em here, or send them to [email protected]. Thank you!
Dear clients, if you want my undivided attention and best legal work, you should call at a time that is not 4:30 pm on a Friday. Thanks for your understanding.
Random MIL text “Do you want lavender scented boot shapers?” Um, sure. I mean, if they’re on offer. But how do you just happen across lavender scented boot shapers?
Do we have any Philly moms on here? My best friend is moving to Philly soon and did some early childcare cost investigation (her daughter will be 3 when she gets there). It looks like what she found is $2k per month and the school has July and Aug off (so perhaps additional cost to find short term care in those months).
Does that sound like par for the course? Is that high end? Low end? Middle? Anyone have any suggestions of places in the city they like? Or that might be a bit cheaper?
Thanks!!
I’m annoyed by the can’t have it all article and the letter to a husband. Both get so close, but miss the point. Men get a “pass” and women don’t get that same pass. Men CAN have it all, because they have women in their lives who cater to their lives. Women do not have that same support from the men (or women) in their lives. Similarly, working women are tired in a way working men aren’t, because working men don’t do the upkeep of the household. Writing an entire article to say “husband, please do all of these daily things just so i can have one night out” but then saying you promise not to judge if it’s mac and cheese just treats it as him pitching in for the one night, rather than saying things need to change on a permanent basis so the working woman isn’t as raggedly tired.
I don’t know. I’m not articulating this well. But I’m annoyed.
I’m afraid i’m being too “special snowflake” with my 3 year old, so before I storm into conferences demanding answers next week I thought I would poll you ladies, who are always honest.
Our (new, as of September) daycare has video cameras. I didn’t utilize them much in the beginning other than to check in every once and a while. Then I started noticing that every time I checked in my 3yo was separated from the group (at a separate table by himself, sitting on the floor while everyone else is at the table, etc). I also noticed that he didn’t always have the same artwork as other kids at pick-up time. So I decided to start watching more often (yesterday and today). I’ve found that he is often separated from the group for long periods (still in the same room, but not doing the same activity) and that a lot of their morning consists of sitting at a table (other than outside time). Our daycare (and state licensing) has a policy that any “separation from group” be a last resort after positive redirection and be logged by the teacher in a separation log stating what measures were taken before separation. Separation must be in sight of hearing of the group (same room) and end once the child regains control (no more than 10 minutes).
My son is very rowdy, doesn’t always have great spacial boundaries with others, and incrediby sensitive to sounds, touch, and transitions, and always has something in his month. He’s always struggled with playdates/playing with same age peers. I’m starting to wonder if he has a sensory processing disorder, which I always overruled as an issue because he was very verbal at an early age. As I read more about it, he seems to fit the bill, but I also know there is danger in google diagnosing everything.
So those together has me wondering what I should do. Obviously something needs to be done. I think (1) it is not age appropriate for his 2-3yo class to be expected to sit as often as they are, (2) If my son is being separated I should know about it so we can work on solutions, (3) the rules should be followed regarding his separation.
Thoughts? Am I mama bear overreacting here? Should I talk to the teachers first and then the director or both together (his teachers are both fresh out of college, so I think are still learning about how to run a classroom).
Re Dweck and effort, when I was growing up, my mom never allowed me to say “I can’t” about anything. I always had to say “I haven’t learned yet.” So not “I can’t do long division” but “I haven’t learned long division yet.” Or even “I haven’t learned to skydive yet” not “I can’t skydive” (even though it’s very unlikely I will ever learn). It was annoying at the time and I’d say “I MEAN that, but right now I can’t!” But now that I’m grown up, I think her approach was amazing. I think it really did change my perspective. There are things that are clearly out of my reach. I will never be an Olympic gymnast. I’m 5’9″, 39 years old, and extremely unathletic. But I don’t doubt that I could learn to do a backflip if I really, really, really wanted to. As an adult I had a marital arts instructor who took a similar tack. It was never “I can’t” but “I don’t choose to put in the effort to learn.” It’s okay to choose not to, but just to acknowledge that it’s a choice.
Anyone have tips on where I can buy holiday outfits for my sons (size 2T and 5T) for tropical weather? Doesn’t have to be overly Christmasy.
1. I made the gift basket for my friend and I am SO excited about it. I think she’s going to like it a lot. Thank you for all the wonderful ideas yesterday.
2. PSA: the Lil’ Loo potty is on sale for $4 in the green and white color combo on amazon today. Which I know about because …
3. I think my daughter (turned 2 two months ago) is trying to potty train herself. Some of the kids in her daycare class are potty trained, and for the last week or two she’s been showing increasing interest in it. She’s asked to go to the toilet several times this week, and each time she has peed. This morning she woke up dry. My husband was going to change her diaper but she freaked out and was all “NOOO! NOOO! GO POTTY!” so he took her to the toilet and she used it rather than peeing in her diaper.
So, my question is what is the purpose of getting a tiny potty like the Lil’ Loo? They have normal toilets at daycare and she’s not scared to use the toilets in our house. Should I still get the little one? I mean, it’s only $4. Also, am I being overly hasty in thinking she is ready? I was going to wait ’til she’s older, but she seems pretty insistent on using the toilet.
Oops. this was meant to be a response to Anon at 1:17 pm
Can you meet her half way?
I’m honestly not sure if that would be okay… I feel like our caregivers kind of have the upper hand in these things (rightly so?), so I ‘m kind of curious to hear if anyone disagrees with this.
Bright side is that you seem to be happy with her and it’s great that she was vocal about being happy with you.
Agh, we told our nanny we were giving her a raise and she countered with a higher number! We can make it work and good for her, but the raise was kind of where we wanted to be. She also told us she is very happy. Im inclined to give it to her but oof. But good for her! Oh well.
Random/fun question – my son is attending a birthday party tomorrow (age 3) for a girl in his preschool class, and I have to get a gift today. I asked him what she likes, and he said “she likes rakes!” Question: do I get her a rake?