Archive for the 'Silicon Valley Moms Group' Category

What is my bedtime strategy? (and other signs of “corporate seepage” in my house!)

I am a proud writer for the Silicon Valley Moms Group, and every month, we have virtual book club meetings. A handful of bloggers read the same book, and we each post our thoughts on our personal blogs. It’s a great way to be part of a book club, especially when I don’t have time for non-family socialization… and I really love books. This month’s book is Just Let Me Lie Down by Kristin van Ogtrop, editor of Real Simple magazine.

I immediately fell in love with the book title, and then became enamored with the sub-title: necessary terms for the half-insane working mom. Instantly connecting to the subject-matter, I dived into the book.

Yep, I am a half-insane working mom: I choose to be a working mom, and respect any mom who is working (in the home, outside the home, and everywhere in between) to provide and care for her family. I connect with working moms, well, because I am one.  I get the madness of driving from home to school to work (takes me at least an hour everyday), leaving work early to watch 15 minutes of dance class and eating dinner as a family, and then working until midnight to make up the time. We all do it. We all have our reality. And this book made me know I am not alone. It even made me laugh at the madness of my wonderfully crazy (and never boring!) working-mama life.

As the sub-title alludes, the book provides an “A to Z” look at newly created lexicon for working moms to embrace as they journey through life. Kristin created a “Mom 2.0 dictionary” peppered with wit and sarcasm (two of my favorite things!) leaving me with a sense of “Good Lord, being a working mom is hilarious.”

Corporate Seepage: All that said, I want to deep-dive and focus on my favorite “necessary term” from the book: corporate seepage. This term is self-explanatory, it’s when corporate-speak spills into the home. And then your kid starts using phrases and expressions that a toddler should not know exist, such as “Mommy, what is my bed time strategy?” in response to “honey, bed time is in 10 minutes.” Oy.

Recently, corporate seepage has been taken a step further. You see, my five-year-old daughter has taken it upon herself to set-up an “office” with a faux workstation, computer and office supplies.  The other day, my husband was trying to get the kid’s attention, and simply heard the reply “Daddy, I am on a conference call, can you please hold for a moment?!” In fact, my daughter loves the conference call excuse. The other day, I was at home making dinner as Daddy and Kid were on their way home from dance class. The Kid blasts into the kitchen to hear me proclaim, “welcome home, honey, can I have a hug?” And what did I hear? “Mommy, I can’t talk right now! I have a conference call in 11 minutes!” So, she ran upstairs to her office… just in time to make her call. Whew!

Capturing her imagination: Despite the copious amounts of corporate seepage in my house, I also see some amazing and wondrous benefits of having two working parents in our house. I mentioned my five-year-old kid has a faux office in our house, but did I mention she uses her office to design buildings? She creates blue-prints, has meetings with clients, and has imaginary discussions about how beautiful her buildings look once they are engineered. She currently is working on designing a movie theater and an animal hospital. I swear, she comes up with all these ideas on her own… and I am bursting with pride.

Like any mother, I don’t care what career my kid chooses when she grows up. But I use these moments to remind her that she can be whatever she wants to be. I promise I am not pushing her into a world of competition and madness. But I love that she is learning to tap into her talents and imagination… just as long as she doesn’t miss that conference call in exactly 11 minutes!

Just Let Me Lie Down is available on Amazon.

– LTV Mom

Photo with Gina von Esmarch of Bowl Licker fame; Kristin van Ogtrop of “Just Let Me Lie Down” and Real Simple magazine; and yours truly.

Thank you to the Silicon Valley Moms Group for organizing a wonderful luncheon allowing us to meet Kristin and enjoy her wit and wisdom.

Published
by
Stacy Libby
on April 30, 2010
in Books, Silicon Valley Moms Group and Working Mom
. 19 Comments

2010 Earth Day: Common Sense and Learning

Back in 2008, I watched an episode of Oprah called “Going Green 101” which shared basic tips to live a green lifestyle, tips like turning off the water when you brush your teeth, which inspired a blog post called “Green is the new Cheap.” As much as I love being smart about minimizing waste, conserving natural resources and recycling, I still think it’s funny that common sense and frugality is now labeled “green” and is (finally) cool in the United States. Of course, I am talking with a touch of sarcasm, but I do think it’s important to embrace green-living by simply using your noggin and minding your wallet.

In honor of Earth Day, I decided to set aside my cynicism and learn something new about leading a greener (and healthier) lifestyle and teaching my daughter about the environment. The catalyst for my enlightenment is this month’s book club selection for the Silicon Valley Moms Group — Green Guide Families: The Complete Reference for Eco-friendly Parents — and having Earth Day as the monthly blog topic for the Yahoo! Mother Board. I figured this is a great way to accomplish my personal educational goals for Earth Day (and a good reminder that this grumpy old lady still has a lot to learn!)

What I learned: We all know plastic water bottles in a landfill is not a good thing, but I really wanted to focus on the issues that are not in my immediate control, things like food labels and toxins. I wanted to explore topics that require more than common sense, issues that need a few minutes of research and an open mind. For example, the Green Guide is a great resource for determining when to buy organic foods (and which fruits and veggies are least likely to be contaminated with pesticides). I also learned that not all food additives are bad for you; for example, ascorbic acid is basically Vitamin C. I also learned I should buy soy-based crayons because standard crayons are made from petroleum. Like most action items that lead to a greener life, one change might not appear life-altering, but collectively are that important.

Where I need to improve: There are two areas of my life that are the least-green: technology and commuting. Common sense tells me there are easy fixes like carpooling and unplugging the TV and DVR when I go to work, but my crazy working-mom lifestyle (and lack of mass-transit in the Bay Area) makes those solutions impractical (and quite honestly and selfishly inconvenient.) So, I headed over to Yahoo! Green to find new ideas. I learned that telecommuting has a bigger impact that I thought, so I will be more diligent about working from home 1-2 days a week. Still not sure what to do about my love for the TV and DVR, but suggestions are welcomed.

What I want to teach my child: I discovered there are easy, free ways to teach my kid about the beauty of the world and why we need to take care of it. The Green Guide talks about taking your kid to Farmer’s Market to introduce them to the actual people who plant and grow food, and take them camping to show them the beauty of our vast world. Luckily, both are easy in the Bay Area, and camping is on my calendar for later this summer. I also decided to teach my daughter how to garden, and since I am a novice (yes, I was raised in Iowa), I found some great tips on Yahoo! Green. Lastly, I also discovered that BBC is sharing its wonderful series Planet Earth for FREE on iTunes until April 26. My kid and I will watch together, and hopefully a little inspiration will come from watching.

At the end of the day: I was reminded that being green is more than common sense. It’s also taking time to read and learn, and also making choices (and sometimes sacrifices) for the greater good of the world. And heck, you might even save a buck or two.

– LTV Mom

Photo Credit: National Geographic

This post was written as part of the Silicon Valley Moms Group Book Club, and I received the Green Guide Families at no cost.

Published
by
Stacy Libby
on April 19, 2010
in Books, Silicon Valley Moms Group and Yahoo! Mother Board
. 1 Comment

Celebrities as Role Models (and what to do with iCarly?)

Parents are often asked what we think about celebrities as role models for our kids.  As you can probably guess from the name of my blog, we are not afraid of TV in our house.  While we limit the amount, and the type, of TV shows my five-year-old can watch, we often have the TV on during the evening hours. (I like to watch  Cash Cab when I cook dinner!) So, I have to be mindful of the shows we are watching, especially if my kid is in the room.
That said, I’m one of those parents who will turn off the TV, cover the kid’s eyes, or change the channel if the programming quickly turns inappropriate for a child.  I freak out when a major network plays a Viagra ad in the 8 p.m. timeslot or there is a racy performance on American Idol. My kid does not need to see that type of entertainment, so I simply take action. (After all, that’s my job.)
I have greater concerns about the shows my kid loves to watch, especially when she becomes glued to the TV. She is allowed to watch cartoons when eating her breakfast (when mommy is getting ready for work, packing lunches and running around like a wild woman). The rest of her TV-watching is during the weekend, when I just need 30 minutes to make dinner, wash some clothes or pay some bills. Her favorite show is iCarly, followed by similar shows like Wizards of Waverly Place and The Suite Life of Zach and Cody. At first, I thought the shows were okay for a five-year-old… not great, but okay. And then I realized iCarly kids are more than characters to my kid, she was seeing them as role models. And I didn’t like the effects I seeing.
I realized that if my daughter watched more than two shows in one day, she would quickly start to emulate the characters by copying the word choices, rude actions and snarky facial expressions portrayed by the kids on her shows.  Trying to nip this behavior in the bud, I would sit and watch the show with her and interject commentary like “you do realize that you are never allowed to talk to a parent in that tone or manner, right? You would be in big trouble!” I then struggled with letting her watch the shows and being the super-annoying mom who was barking at her during her TV time.
Finally, I decided to use iCarly and the gang to my advantage. When my kid is busted for back-talk, not listening to her parents or being disrespectful… the iCarly privileges are taken away with the explanation that “you are not allowed to act like that, even if you do see it on TV.”
To explore other thoughts and opinions on celebrities as role models, check out the video above where my fellow Yahoo! Mother Board members from across the country discuss their opinions.
Finally, I’d like to close with my thoughts on celebrity role models for ME. I admittedly get caught in the trap of celebrity beauty, weight and glamor. But then I need to get a grip and remember professional celebrities have access to trainers, chefs and an entourage. Most importantly, I have to remind myself “I need to judge and respect people based on their personal character… not their personal accomplishments.”
– LTV Mom

Published
by
Stacy Libby
on April 4, 2010
in Current Affairs, Family, Laptop Television, Silicon Valley Moms Group and Yahoo! Mother Board
. 6 Comments

My Life Scoop: Top 10 Wired Mom Blogs

Well, I am blushing. I was on vacation with my family last week, and began my Thursday with a Twitter check where I discovered some great news. Turns out that Laptop TV Mom made the list of Top 10 Wired Mom Blogs by My Life Scoop. Even better, I am listed with some great company including some of my friends and co-bloggers. Thank you so much, I appreciate the nod.

Top 10 Wired Mom Blogs

The list is designed to highight the blogs that share how everyday moms are using the Web and mobile devices to manage our crazy lives. Whether we have one kid or a dozen, whether we work outside the home or not, we all use technology to keep our families (and sanity!) in check. And heck, we even use technology to create a source of entertainment.

The List

There are some high-powered moms on this list, including the ladies from BlogHer and Silicon Valley Moms Blog (where I also write). I also am a personal fan of list-makers TechMamas, TechSavvyMama, Who’s the Boss, Cool Mom Picks, and Rox and Roll. I’ve also recently discovered Topsie Techie and Help Me, Obi-Mom Kenobi, You’re My Only Hope! and hope to meet them soon!

Other new lists from My Life Scoop include Top 10 Home Office Idea Blogs and Top 10 Homework Help Blogs. A complete list of their Top 10 lists can be found HERE.

About My Life Scoop

My Life Scoop is a blog dedicated to showing how people use technology to run their lives. Yep, this is my kind of blog. I use technology to run my household, keep track of my family, manage my paying job, and (you guessed it) entertain myself in my spare time.

– LTV Mom

Photo Credit: My Life Scoop

Published
by
Stacy Libby
on February 22, 2010
in Laptop Television, Silicon Valley Moms Group, Technology and Trying to be Cool
. 1 Comment

Coco Chanel and Tiger Woods = Same Lesson

Coco Chanel & Igor StravinskyCoco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky

I am a proud writer for the Silicon Valley Moms Group, and every month, we have virtual book club meetings. A handful of mom-bloggers read the same book, and we each post our thoughts on our personal blogs. It’s a great way to be part of a book club, especially when I really don’t have time to attend meetings and really love books. All that said, this month’s book club selection had me stumped.

This month, members of the virtual book club read Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky by Chris Greenhalgh, a novel based on the life of an historic designer and revolutionary composer. I love a good biography, even if it’s in the form of a novel, and I love a strong, independent woman. But I had no idea what was in store for me.

It’s important to note: I am not a fashion plate (um, far from it), and I don’t own a thread of Coco Chanel. But I love to read about women who change history. (My two favorites are Personal History by Katharine Graham and Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton.) So, I was so excited to read about a woman who changed the face of the fashion industry — in Paris, nonetheless — in the early 1900s. And while I learned a lot about the brilliance and vision for this woman, I was greatly disappointed by her personal character.

What I love about Coco Chanel

  • Her goal was to make woman’s clothing more comfortable, more wearable. She dumped stiff corsets and made clothes out of comfortable fabrics.  She even showed her ankles!
  • She was self-made. This woman came from literally nothing, the poorest of the poor in rural France. She earned her fortune by exercising on her vision and working hard.
  • She was a brilliant marketer. I read about how she crafted, and then sold, her now famous Chanel No. 5 perfume, and it was brilliant. I would even say she was the first viral marketer.
  • Her real name is Gabrielle Chanel, which is just beautiful

What shocked me about Coco Chanel

  • Where she was blessed with vision, intelligence and work-ethic, Coco Chanel lacked personal ethics. If the words of the book are true, she was a manipulative woman who had little concern about sleeping with married men. Well, as a woman who has a husband, reading this made me sick. The book tells the story of Coco’s obsession with composer Igor Stravinsky, and how she manipulated Igor and his family to move into her house as his wife was gravely ill. As Igor’s wife was bed-ridden and thought she was dying, Coco took Igor as her long-time lover. Now, don’t get me wrong, Igor was equally at fault here… but my point is while I was blindly impressed by Coco’s business sense, I was equally disappointed by her morals.

What I learned about myself

  • You know what, this book reminded me that no matter how much I admire someone or how revolutionary I think they are… my respect needs to stem from someone’s character rather than their accomplishments. Case in point: I am was a giant fan of Tiger Woods. That man made me want to watch golf on TV, which really is one of the most boring things ever. I liked his drive, his work-ethic, his intelligence (Stanford!), and his love for his parents. But you know the story, he cheated on his wife. And now I don’t care about Tiger Woods.
  • So, is Coco Chanel my Tiger Woods? Someone I held is high esteem until I read further? Yeah, I think so. It’s also a great reminder that we can admire someone, but we do not actually know these celebrities. They are not our friends, and they should not be our influencers. They are human, faults and all.

At the end of the day, this book was a good reminder that I need to judge and respect people based on their personal character… not their personal accomplishments.

– LTV Mom

Notes:

This book was provided by the publisher, but the words are mine and unedited.

Photo Credit: Amazon


Published
by
Stacy Libby
on January 27, 2010
in Books, Laptop Television and Silicon Valley Moms Group
. 7 Comments

Do One Nice Thing: and not just when it’s convenient

From time to time, the ladies and gents who write for the Silicon Valley Moms Group participate in a virtual book club.  We all read the same book and share our thoughts on our personal blogs.  I have been so overwhelmed with work and life, I skipped the past several books. But this month’s book selection was too intriguing to pass up. We read a book called “Do One Nice Thing” by Debbie Tenzer.

The concept of the book is quite simple: it offers more than a hundred easy ideas to show kindness to other people. The ideas range from donating baseball tickets to the Veterans Administration to smiling at everyone you pass on the sidewalk. Reading the book was a good exercise in self-reflection: Am I a nice person? Do I do nice things? Most importantly, am I teaching my daughter to be a nice person?

I grew up in a household that had one simple rule: if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. (And I guarantee unkind words resulted in big trouble, especially if I was talking to my sisters!) More importantly, I grew up in a Midwestern community that was just that… a community. We treated each other with respect, kindness and generosity each and every day. If a neighbor had a baby, the neighborhood would fill her refrigerator with casseroles and lasagnas.  When our roof needed to be re-shingled, my dad’s buddies on the street spent an entire Saturday helping him. When the local downtown flooded after days and days of rainfall, the high school seniors filled and hauled sand-bags to help save the family-owned businesses.

Random acts of kindness, and making time to help others in need, fueled our community. It was who I was raised to be.

Sadly, reading this book made me realize that I have lost some of the kindness and generosity that is so important to me. I am so focused on getting through my days, so set on surviving the rat-race, I have forgotten to take time to care for others. Oh sure, I still make the goulash for the new mommy across the street and I gave my daughter’s stroller to a friend who was strapped for cash. But those things are done when they are convenient for me… not necessarily when they are needed most.

I already have working-mom guilt, always worrying about taking care of my family.  But I have had a wake-up call that I need to look beyond my four walls and care for the people who need it… when they need it.

And not just when it’s convenient for me.

– LTV Mom

If you want to explore other thoughts and opinions on being nice, please follow the dialogue on the New Jersey Moms Blog.

Published
by
Stacy Libby
on September 29, 2009
in Books and Silicon Valley Moms Group
. 0 Comments