'Mad Men's' Betty Draper And TV's Meanest Moms: A Salute (VIDEO) - Huffington Post

"Mad Men's" Betty Draper: One of TV's meanest moms

"Mad Men" is finally back (Sun., March 25, 9 p.m. ET on AMC) -- with the anti-Mom of the Year Betty Draper -- so it's time to raise our glasses!

While you're sipping on highballs or Moscow Mules, check out HuffPost TV's salute to some of the meanest moms on TV. Of course January Jones' slap-happy Betty Draper made the cut and she's joined by moms spanning centuries, from "Downton Abbey's" Dowager Countess to George's mom on "Seinfeld" to not one, but two Jessica Walter characters -- it was really hard picking just one Lucille Bluth moment.

Bed-ridden cranky women, a tough-as-nails lawyer and many socialites round out some of our favorite evil matriarchs.

Who is your favorite mean TV mom? Tell us in the comments below!

Video created by Sidra Ayub.

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For Moms with Postpartum Depression, the Nation's First Inpatient Unit - TIME

For moms battling depression, a first-of-its-kind psychiatric unit at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill offers intensive, inpatient care. Studio Boo... Images by Amber Northfield / Flickr / Getty Images

Jenna Zalk Berendzen gave birth to a son in June. It was a difficult labor, and after Maxwell was born, Berendzen “just felt different.” She was anxious and had trouble sleeping. When she told the nurses, they soothed her, saying, “Oh, it’s just new motherhood.”

But Berendzen, a nurse practitioner herself, suspected it was much more. And she was right. “The night I got home, I started to feel I was going to die,” says Berendzen, from Cedar Falls, Iowa. “I felt maybe I shouldn’t be here so my son could have a better mom. “

Over the next few months, Berendzen, 36, started on antidepressants and antipsychotics. At one point, she had up to 15 bottles lined up in her bathroom. Despite the medications, she still felt overwhelmed. She told her husband she thought she needed to be hospitalized in a psychiatric unit, but being separated from Maxwell — whom she continued to breast-feed and care for — only exacerbated her precarious emotional state. “I knew I wasn’t safe at home, but I also didn’t feel safe there because I was away from my son,” she says. “Being in the hospital perpetuated my feelings that I’m a bad mom because I was away from him.”

It’s a crossroads faced by the sickest mothers who struggle with depression both during and after their pregnancy: a general psychiatric ward that treats drug addicts and schizophrenics doesn’t feel welcoming to moms whose mental health struggles have a very clear cause, the birth of their child. Historically, they’ve had no place to turn.

Then last year, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) opened the nation’s first stand-alone inpatient psychiatry unit specifically for expectant or new mothers struggling with depression and anxiety. It’s not somewhere moms hope they’ll ever end up, but for those who need round-the-clock care, it’s a place where treatment focuses on the needs of both mother and baby. Perhaps most significantly, a hospitalized mom is able to be with her baby most of the day, which stands in contrast to many general psych wards that don’t allow infants.

(MORE: Pediatricians Should Start Screening for Postpartum Depression)

There’s weekly therapy from psychologists who practice mother-infant attachment therapy, which works on how mom relates to her baby and reads her baby’s cues, and there’s partner-assisted psychotherapy, which helps dad understand how he can be most effective. Moms learn stress-management skills, practice yoga and participate in biofeedback sessions and mindfulness-based stress reduction groups. They have access to lactation consultants and hospital-grade breast pumps if they want to express milk. Coping skills and medication help get these moms back on track; counselors help connect departing mothers with hometown resources or transition them to outpatient programs.

Outpatient programs serve the majority of mothers who battle postpartum depression. Up to 15% of moms are thought to be affected, but most experience mild to moderate symptoms that don’t require intensive therapy. About 5% of those who become ill are affected so severely that they need to be hospitalized. Think of it like heart disease, says Dr. Samantha Meltzer-Brody, director of the perinatal psychiatry program at UNC and an associate professor of psychiatry. Most of the time, the condition can be successfully managed with outpatient therapy; in the event of a heart attack, however, patients will need state-of-the-art care in a cardiac intensive care unit (ICU). “This is our ICU,” says Meltzer-Brody.

The unit evolved from a pilot program launched in 2008; it was so successful — attracting hundreds of women from across the country — that hospital administrators were persuaded to carve out a separate space for the program. They set aside five patient beds and have treated 61 women since August, when the unit opened.

Decorators have tried to mirror what a lot of labor and delivery units across the country have done in recent years, swapping cold tiles for warm Pergo floors and making rooms pretty and welcoming. Rooms are designed to feel more like a comfy and serene space than an institution. Walls are painted cream and blue; artwork features seascapes and mountains. There are gliders in each room, along with baby bassinets and cuddly blankets.

The real attraction, however, is the camaraderie. “To be there with people who are going through the same thing is hugely important,” says Meltzer-Brody. “You don’t feel alone.” For many women, being surrounded by others experiencing the same struggles is akin to opening the floodgates. “Everyone is in there because things are really not going well,” says Meltzer-Brody. “There is a rawness.”

By the time they check in, women are beyond the point of acting as if everything’s fine. “There is a stigma around postpartum depression, but by the time they are that bad that they need to be in the hospital, they can’t pretend any more,” says Meltzer-Brody. “There’s an enormous relief in being able to be honest with their experience.”

Insurance typically covers the cost of hospitalization as a mental health stay, assuming a woman’s symptoms are severe enough. But still, the average stay of seven to 10 days can be prohibitively expensive, after factoring in travel for mom, dad and baby.

(MORE: Study: Fish Oil May Prevent Symptoms of Postpartum Depression)

Berendzen was lucky; her sister-in-law lives in Chapel Hill and provided family support for her husband and baby. She was admitted the day after Labor Day and quickly noticed the difference between her hospitalization in Iowa and the specialized focus on moms and babies at UNC. Maxwell was able to visit so she could nurse him. Yoga helped relax her. Meeting other women like her made her feel less alone. “I didn’t feel crazy,” says Berendzen.

When she checked out after 10 days, she felt more confident in her ability to handle new motherhood. Back home in Iowa, she feels as healthy as before the depression took root.

It’s not easy to share your vulnerability with a national audience, but Berendzen hopes that spreading the word about the care she received in Chapel Hill will lead to other similar programs throughout the country. Says Berendzen: “I don’t want to think I went through this in vain.”

MORE: Please, Please Go to Sleep: Lessons from 100 years of Bedtime Battles

Bonnie Rochman is a reporter at TIME. Find her on Twitter at @brochman. You can also continue the discussion on TIME’s Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.

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Moms Talk: Trayvon Martin, Skittles and Hoodies - Patch.com

Put your parent hat on, sit your children down, and explain - if you can - how a pack of Skittles and a hoodie can get them killed.

Explain Trayvon Martin. Explain George Zimmerman.

Many mothers have already had this conversation. For them, it's called "the talk," and it sits right alongside the birds and the bees chat. It goes a little something like this:

You are black in America. Society will not let you forget it, so don't you forget it. People will not like you because of that; in fact, they will fear you. You will be maligned and marginalized, so beware at all times. Watch what you say, and don't do anything stupid.

This isn't fair? Yeah, life's not fair. But, don't let it get you down. Let it inspire you. Be smarter. Be better. Be humble, too. Because many people came before you, and died, so that you could have this chance you're getting. So, if you forget everything else I told you, don't forget where you came from.

Set to repeat. 

I'm 32, my sister is 29, and my brother is 22, and my mother is still re-affirming "the talk." Times may be different, but it still rings true, unfortunately. Ask Trayvon Martin's mom.

Trayvon, a black teenager, was walking around his parents' gated community in Sanford, Fla., when he was shot and killed a month ago. He was wearing a hooded sweatshirt, commonly called a hoodie. He had a pack of Skittles, an iced tea and a cell phone. In New York City, a "Million Hoodie March" took place Wednesday to bring more attention to the story.

Georgia Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch leader, saw Trayvon and some kind of confrontation ensued. Police were called. Before it was all over, Zimmerman had shot the unarmed youth. He hasn't been arrested. He says it was self-defense, using Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law. Zimmerman proponents say he's a nice guy.

I don't know who was and wasn't the aggressor. I wasn't there, and we do not have all the facts. Every time I turn around, there's another dizzying news account about all of this. Social media is all over it. A grand jury will convene April 10; the federal government is swooping in, as well.

Sanford, Fla., isn't looking too good on the map right now.

But, even if you take the element of race out of it, you're still left with an unarmed, dead teenager. You're still left with what we've become very good at here in America - preconceived notions.

So, what do we tell any of our kids?

Don't go to corner stores?  Don't walk around by yourself? Don't wear sweatshirts? Don't pack Skittles, pack pepper spray? Don't leave the house? Don't do anything that could bring attention to you, period? Just, don't, OK?

Add to that list: don't play in the street, don't talk back, don't play with fire, don't eat too much sugar, don't forget sunblock, don't hit your sister, don't stay out late, and any other "don't" you can scrounge up, and pretty soon, there's nothing to do. 

I think the overall message is clear. We want to, but we cannot protect our children from everything. Anything at any time could happen to them that is completely out of our control.

The best, it seems, we can do is to teach them to be good people who value the lives of others - even if they are walking around in a hoodie with Skittles in their pockets.

Late yesterday, the office of Dr. Janet Brown, president of the Gwinnett County NAACP, issued the following statement to Patch:
We at the Gwinnett NAACP send our deepest sympathy to the family of Trayvon Martin. We are pleased that the police chief resigned. We are in full support to have Trayvon's murderer brought to JUSTICE soon. WE all are Trayvon Martin and should be outraged with the consistent level of injustice still in America!

So, let's hear it. What long-held advice do you give your children? How do you teach them about pride and prejudice?

Thanks. We'll email you the next time we update this story.

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Mom's Exposure to Air Pollution Can Increase Kids' Behavior Problems - TIME

Prenatal exposure to pollutants in city air is linked to later anxiety, depression and behavior problems in children. Henrik Sorensen / Getty Images

Pregnant women who are exposed to high levels of air pollution may be putting their children at increased risk of developing anxiety, depression and attention problems, a new study finds.

In urban areas, nearly everyone is exposed to pollution, particularly to compounds called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) — the byproduct of burning fossil fuels, tobacco and other organic material. Exposure to PAHs in car exhaust and cigarette smoke can be detected in the air and in the blood, and researchers reporting this week in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives say that 100% of the New York City women participating in a study of children’s environmental health had detectable levels of PAH in their homes.

Even more concerning, the scientists, led by Dr. Frederica Perera at Columbia University, showed for the first time that expectant women exposed to higher levels of air pollution, and those with the highest levels of PAH in their blood, were more likely to have children who developed anxiety, depression and attention problems by age 6 or 7.

PHOTOS: Terribly Beautiful: Industrial Pollution Seen From Above

In the trial involving 253 non smoking inner-city women who gave birth between 1999 and 2006, those with the highest levels of detectable PAH in their homes, as measured by the researchers during the mothers’ third trimester of pregnancy, were 4.5 times more likely to have children with anxiety problems that might qualify for a clinical diagnosis. Perera and her colleagues also measured levels of compounds that PAH form in the blood, to get a sense of how much of the toxin that both the mothers and their babies actually absorbed in their bodies. Women with higher levels of PAH residues in their blood at the time of delivery were 23% more likely to have children scoring higher on the anxiety and depression measures than those with lower levels, and babies who had elevated amounts of PAH in their cord blood were 46% more likely to be anxious or depressed than those with the lowest amounts. The results were similar for attention disorders measured in the children as well.

“Our study provides new evidence that prenatal exposures to these air pollutants, at levels commonly encountered in New York City and other urban areas, may adversely affect child behavior,” says Perera.

The trial is a continuation of Perera’s work investigating the factors that can influence fetal development. In the first stage of this research, Perera reported in 2011 that higher levels of PAH in cord blood was linked to more symptoms of anxiety, depression and attention disorders in children at ages 3 and 5; her current findings extend that effect out to older children.

While numerous studies in animals have documented a variety of developmental outcomes related to prenatal exposure to common environmental pollutants, few have looked at how these compounds can influence human development in utero. (In adults, exposure to pollution has been linked to heart disease and in children, to lower IQ.)

MORE: Environmental Toxins Cost Billions in Childhood Disease

Perera’s biggest challenge was to account for the effect of the many other environmental factors, beyond pollution, that can affect human behavior, and try to ensure that she was zeroing in just on the relationship between a mother’s exposure to PAHs and her child’s later behavioral outcomes. So she measured and then controlled for the effect of secondhand smoke, lead, bisphenol A (BPA) and other known neurotoxins that are also thought to contribute to anxiety, depression and attention disorders in children. “There is always the possibility of unmeasured factors that could have also played a role,” Perera says. “But we have taken practical steps to control for as many factors as we could.”

Even after the adjustments, the correlation between PAH exposure and behavioral problems remained strong. Which leaves the worrisome question of what parents, particularly expectant mothers, should do to minimize the risks from PAH.

While much of our exposure is beyond our control, particularly in traffic-heavy urban areas where fuel-burning cars are unavoidable, there are some things that moms-to-be can do to protect themselves and their unborn children: Minimize exposure to secondhand smoke. Make sure that rooms are well ventilated when grilling or smoking meats at home. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables that are high in antioxidants, which can counteract some of the harmful effects of PAHs on the genetic integrity of cells. “You can’t draw conclusions from our results about any single child, or conclude that exposure to PAH causes behavioral symptoms later,” says Perera. “But the results do add to existing evidence that these exposures could have deleterious effects in children.”

Alice Park is a writer at TIME. Find her on Twitter at @aliceparkny. You can also continue the discussion on TIME’s Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.

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Do Good Detroit: Mom-2-Mom sale expands - Detroit Free Press (press release) (blog)

When Jenn Cross started planning Mom-2-Mom sales for her church in 2005, the economy was booming, the housing market was expanding and jobs were easier to find.

"We started out small," said Cross. "We hosted 40 tables and about 300 shoppers in our first year."

After the economy collapsed in 2008, the Mom-2-Mom sales at Zion Christian Church started to grow at a rapid rate. "Every year we host a sale in March and another in November. The day after our November 2008 sale, I was already getting e-mails about the March 2009 sale," said Cross.

Parents who had been laid off or had hours reduced were trying desperately to keep their houses, families and kids afloat by selling gently used clothing, toys, books and games. Zion's Mom-2-Mom sale quickly grew to 70 tables and welcomed more than 850 shoppers to each sale from 2009 to 2011.

Cross noticed that families that had never thought to visit Mom-2-Mom sales were coming in droves to try to save money on clothes, shoes and books. "Most had always bought these items brand new from stores," said Cross. "After visiting as a shopper, many come back to the next sale as a seller with a table of their own. We had an extensive waiting list for table rentals."

This year, Zion Christian Church's Mom-2-Mom sale will move to the main church building. "We've outgrown the gym," said Cross. "We have so many sellers and shoppers that we've decided to move the sale into the main church building to help meet the needs of all these families."

The new location will allow a 30% increase in seller tables. Jenn Cross and her team have sold more than 100 tables to local families for the upcoming sale on Saturday, March 31, 2012 from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The sale is open from 8:30-9 a.m. for Early Bird hours, which costs $2. General admission from 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. is $1.

The event will be held at Zion's main building located at 3668 Livernois in Troy, and is sponsored by the church's ladies ministry. Parking is free and strollers are welcome.

"As a single mother of three young children, I understand how expensive it can be to keep them in clothes that fit," says Cross. "Zion's annual Mom-2-Mom sale connects mothers from all over metro Detroit with the same goals -- saving money, recycling and helping other moms in this difficult economic time.

The proceeds from the admission fees and table rental fees go to support the church's ladies ministry and community outreach programs, including the Grace Centers of Hope and the Heart Campaign- Zion's anti-human trafficking organization.

Pastor Connie LeLaCheur, the senior pastor in charge of these outreach programs, said, "These annual Mom-2-Mom sales are such a symbiotic event for the Troy community and Zion -- we provide a venue for a great sale and the attendees and sellers, in turn, provide support that is put right back into the community."

For additional information, please visit www.zionchristian.org or call 248-524-2400.

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Hershey High School moms join kids in USA Memory Championship in New York - PennLive.com

PHILADELPHIA — As Mike Mirski sits down with a pack of playing cards, he starts spinning the most incredible yarn. It involves a giant club sandwich, a big lily pad and a monk sitting on the moon.

University of Pennsylvania sophomore Mike Mirski, 19, of Naperville, Ill., wears sound dampening ear muffs as he demonstrates his memory techniques at the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia. Mirski is on the competitive memory team at the school. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

None of it is true, of course. The surreal tale is just a mnemonic device enabling the 19-year-old University of Pennsylvania sophomore to remember the order of the cards in the fully shuffled deck.

It's one of several mental skills being tested Saturday at the USA Memory Championship in New York. Mirski and his Penn teammates are set to measure their recall powers against squads including four-time defending champ Hershey High School of Derry Township and a group of Hershey moms.

About two dozen individuals are also competing in the event, now in its 15th year. Other contests require memorizing an unpublished poem, recalling biographical information of random people, remembering rows of random numbers and matching about 100 names with faces.

Event founder Tony Dottino, a former IBM executive turned business consultant, said he established the competition as a way to promote the capabilities of the human brain. "You are not stuck with the memory you were born with," he said.

Colette Silvestri, who has coached Hershey's team since 2008, said it's fascinating to see which techniques work best for each student on a given task. For card memorization, she said, some arrange them in specific shapes, some whisper to themselves. "This lays it bare," she said. "You can actually see the learning styles."

Mirski, the Penn student, uses a fairly common card system in which he associates objects and images with certain suits and numbers: The ace of clubs is a giant club sandwich, the king of spades is a big lily pad, the 10 of hearts is a zen monk and the three of hearts is the moon.

He'll study a deck for about three minutes, mentally weaving together an intricate and fantastic story that will cue him as to the order of the cards.

Mirski said the strategy carries over to academic subjects that might seem intimidating at first, calling it "a reminder that the material isn't necessarily hard, it's the way you approach it."

Mirski, of Naperville, Ill., said he joined Penn's memory team as a way to add to his already eclectic repertoire of skills, including unicycling and solving Rubik's cubes.

But Dottino said such extracurricular clubs have proven a hard sell over the years, and he's at a loss to explain why. This year, there are four teams from Pennsylvania — Penn, plus three groups related to Hershey High — and Bergen Academies from Hackensack, N.J. The individual "mental athletes" represent a slightly wider slice of the country.

Hershey junior Nate Hamilton, 16, said he joined the memory team because his friends asked him to, and was quickly hooked by the camaraderie and relentless quest to challenge himself. "Every time you hit a new personal best, you know you can improve it more," Hamilton said.

A group of Hershey moms who have watched their teens compete for years decided to join the contest this year. Dana Hamilton said her participation has spurred some "cool conversations" with son Nate about strategies — exchanges she wouldn't have otherwise had.

But there's not much mother-child rivalry, she said. In fact, Dana Hamilton described the Hershey students as being supportive of their older — but much less experienced — parents. "I don't think they're worried in the least about us coming to close to their scores," Hamilton said.

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Moms, music come together for Moms Rock Showcase

AUSTIN -- Moms Rock was Austin's first showcase to focus on moms. The concert was put on by TX M.I.L.K., an organization that promotes inspirational things done by moms across the state, all while raising kids.  

"Well our website, TXMILK.com, stands for Texas moms I'd like to know, and celebrates the Lone Star State's most fascinating moms," Lauren Bayne, a program organizer. "We thought we should take that celebration to SXSW and host Austin's first-ever mom focused showcase."

The concert featured a full line up of musician-moms at Happy Salon & Spa on West Sixth Street. Headlining the concert was the Bluebonnets, the new band of former Go-Go's Kathy Valentine. Also in the line up was Shelley King and Elizabeth McQueen.

Food trucks and mom-owned businesses were also on-site for the showcase.

Even though it was focused on moms, the whole family was welcome. The free event also included several door prizes, like salon gift certificates, strollers and high chairs.

Click here for more information on Moms Rock or TX M.I.L.K.

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Moms Judge Other Moms, But One Says She's Sorry

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Last week, mommy blogger Kara Gebhart Uhl issued a public mea culpa: she published a blanket apology for judging other moms before she had kids of her own.

Uhl recalled her smugness with humility in “Apologies to the Parents I Judged Four Years Ago,” which ran on the Huffington Post:

I thought things like I would never have children who would behave in such a manner in public. Or, Doesn’t she know the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no TV until the age of 2? Or, How can he possibly be feeding his children that crap? Has he not read any of Michael Pollan’s books?

And what’s worse, now that I’m a parent, I realize internal smugness isn’t so internal. As a parent, I know when I’m being judged. I can sense it, even when nothing is being said out loud. It’s in the look. The double-take. The whisper to the companion they’re with.

As a matter of thumb, saying “I’m sorry” often serves to defuse a situation. But in Uhl’s case, her acknowledgment that she had looked down on a mom at Kohl’s pushing a screaming toddler, a friend who let her kids overdose on Nick Jr. and a parent at the park who hadn’t packed “an organic, free-range, all-food-groups-represented, no-dessert lunch complete with sandwiches cut in cute little shapes, who instead fed your children chicken nuggets, cold French fries and (gasp) chocolate milk” opened the floodgates for a nation’s worth of maternal angst.

MORE: The Parenting Trap: Why You Shouldn’t Care What Others Think of How You Raise Your Kids

More than 1,700 people commented on Uhl’s post, including one mom who wrote:

I have 4 children and feel I have been an awesome parent. There are times i feel I have also been a terrible parent. We all have — and if you don’t believe it, just wait till they grow up and tell you about it. As parents we all do the best that we can for our children, with what we know and where we are at the moment…I don’t have time to focus on other parents’ shortcomings as I am too busy trying to correct my own. I think many people would do well to do the same.

It’s hard not to judge others. More often than not, though, might our judgments be rooted in our own insecurities? We all want to be good mothers, good parents. But what defines a good mother is pretty subjective. Does it hinge on buying organic apples (they do, after all, top the list of the Environmental Working Group’s “dirty dozen”)? On signing our kids up for Kumon? On leaving our precious bundles with nannies instead of dispatching them to day care?

Few have tapped into this vein of thinking like Valerie Stone Hawthorne, a mom of 3½-year-old twins who just happens to hold a doctorate in cancer biology and cell biology and who is pretty handy at making wickedly satirical videos lampooning modern motherhood. In 2010, her cartoon “Why I Can’t Make Mom Friends” tackled the same phenomenon to which Uhl has pleaded guilty. “She struck a nerve because everyone has thought like this,” Hawthorne says of Uhl.

At the time, I described Hawthorne’s clip like this:

In the video, two moms meet at the playground. One, a mom of twins, shares that she stopped breast-feeding after a month because it was too difficult. The other, a mom of three, responds: “That is a shame. Your poor children.”

“They are just fine,” replies the first mom. “They are in the 90th percentile for height.”

“Mine are in the 95th,” counters the second mom.

As an earnest new mom, Stone Hawthorne would troll mommy message boards only to get beaten down. “No matter what I was doing it was always wrong,” she says. “You know, if you don’t hold your child a million times a day and attend to his every need, he will grow up dysfunctional.” A researcher, she read scores of baby how-to books to determine the “right” way to raise her children. What she’s discovered is that there is no right way.

MORE: In Defense of Motherhood: Why We Keep Having Kids When They’re So Clearly Bad for Us

Uhl has discovered that same truth. Eventually, one hopes, we all reach that point. But not many of us have the chutzpah to pen a public atonement.

Bonnie Rochman is a reporter at TIME. Find her on Twitter at @brochman. You can also continue the discussion on TIME’s Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.

Read other related stories about this:Apologies To The Parents I Judged Four Years AgoThe Huffington PostRelated Topics: Huffington Post, judgment, Kara Gebhart Uhl, mommy guilt, Mompetition, organic, Valerie Stone Hawthorne, Culture, Love & Family, Parenting
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American Moms Carry Wrong Concepts About Cold and Flu: Survey

Moms require more training and education in handling a humidifier in a child's room during cold and flu, says a survey conducted by the Vicks Humidifiers.

The central topic of the survey was how moms fought and treated cold. The different medication they adopted and the different mood swings they experienced were also exposed.

Moms reported tea, orange juice, chicken soup, plenty of water and humidifiers as commonly relied natural remedies to treat the cold.

Kids' health worried the moms most. They prepared their little ones for the cold and flu season by giving proper hand washing instructions.

The next issue was how these moms cared themselves when they fall sick.  They either wanted to keep themselves busy or wanted to relax their mind and body by reading a good book or watching a classic movie.

"Love Actually," "Dirty Dancing" and "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" topped their favorite movie list.

When their spouses fell ill, about half of the moms preferred to avoid hugging and kissing altogether and a small group reported to sleep on the sofa.

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The survey revealed the moms' wrong ideas and beliefs connected with the common cold and flu.  They had the misconception that a sick person loses the most body heat from his head. But face being more sensitive to temperature than other body parts gives the feeling.

Regarding rest and exercise, 72 percent thought not to exercise and to take rest. On the contrary, small exercises can sometimes help feel better. Another wrong action was to feed a cold and starve a fever. The right way to treat an illness is to eat well and stay hydrated irrespective of the symptoms.

Some believed going out in wet hair caused cold and fever though exposure to viruses cause the infection.

The online survey conducted by Linderberg International and supported by Vicks Humidifiers based the findings on responses from a random sampling of approximately 501 women with kids at home across the United States.

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Support group aids moms whose losses never leave them - Tribune-Star

TERRE HAUTE — Even though her son had committed suicide more than a decade earlier, Meri Kay Hoopingarner continued to grieve.

“I had a really, really hard time,” said the 57-year-old West Terre Haute resident. “There’s nothing worse than losing a child.”

Then, in 2010, she started attending a group founded by Monica Shipley called “Mothers with Broken Hearts,” a support group for women who have lost a son or daughter.

It made all the difference for Hoopingarner. “We all told our stories. … There was a lot of crying,” she recalled. “It was like a release of something we’d held in so long. A lot of people don’t understand if it hasn’t happened to them.”

She and Shipley shared a special bond in that both lost sons to suicide.

Shipley, who started the Terre Haute group in August 2010, says it meets at 6:30 p.m. the first and third Thursday of each month at Joan & Yogi’s One Stop, 6638 Indiana 63 South.

Joan and Yogi’s is in southern Vigo County, about 21/2 miles south of the Federal Correctional Complex.

Mothers with Broken Hearts has a sign in front of the store, where mothers or anyone else can write the names of children who have died. “I leave a marker out there,” Shipley said.

The organization also has three chapters in Ohio, where Shipley used to live.

“We’ve done a lot of healing,” Shipley said last week. The support group is open to any mother who has a lost a child.

Starting Mothers with Broken Hearts has helped Shipley heal and focus on the needs of others, she said.

She has a small group of “regulars,” including Hoopingarner, who attend meetings to help the other mothers. “They are anchored to my heart,” Shipley said. “I think they’ll come until the end of time because they believe in the program so much.”

Having a support group isn’t something she can do by herself, she said. “When you put mothers together who have suffered severe loss, they unite,” she said.

Shipley has written a book about her personal experience losing her son, Jeff, called “Mothers with Broken Hearts, God’s Miracle.” Jeff was 33 when he died in July 2004.

She wrote the book “so I can touch every mother who has ever lost a child and they can communicate with me,” she said.

She’d like to see chapters of the group started in other communities. “I’d like to see it go nationwide,” she said.

Shipley will attend booksignings at the Open Door in Terre Haute from noon to 5 p.m. March 31, and from noon to 5 p.m. April 14 at the Barnes and Noble university bookstore. The softcover book sells for $12.95.

Part of the proceeds will go to Jeff’s two children and part to the support group.

Those interested in purchasing the self-published book can contact Shipley at (740) 572-7830 or go online at www.iuniverse.com. Shipley also has a website, www.motherswithbrokenhearts.com

The group also plans to publish a monthly newsletter.

Sue Loughlin can be reached at (812) 231-4235 or sue.loughlin@ tribstar.com.

View the original article here

Moms, moms-to-be seek bargains at children's consignment sale

MUHLENBERG TWP., Pa. -

One man's trash could be another man's treasure when it comes to purchasing kids clothing.

Thanks to a group of moms, families have the chance to save some extra cash.

It was all a big relief for Eliza Taylor from Morgantown, who is seven months pregnant and also has a 4-year-old daughter.

"I think I was overwhelmed with how much money I had to spend when I became pregnant again and didn't have anything," said Taylor. "Now I don't have to worry."

Taylor was one of many parents who said they found great deals at the Just Between Friends consignment sale at the Great Reading Expo in Muhlenberg Township.

Tracy Panase, along with Beth McIntyre, both Berks County moms, started the event several years ago.

"I think we all know that our kids outgrow their things before they are outlived. So it's really just an opportunity to recycle in a very smart way," said Panase.

Everything is 50% to 90% off the retail price, and sizes range from newborns all the way up to juniors for girls, and size 18 for boys.

Wendy Gilbert, from Gilbertsville, Montgomery Co., said she also enjoyed the experience and the savings.

"I just get better deals here and it helps. More money goes a longer way," said Gilbert.

"This is an opportunity to get everything under one roof, so you don't have to drive from store to store, or yard sale to yard sale to get everything," said Panase.

Just Between Friends will run until Saturday, March 24.

Many items will be marked down an additional 50% off on Saturday, event organizers said.

Officials said the items that are left over will be donated to the Children's Home of Reading.

Copyright 2012 WFMZ. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Kids Digital Cameras - Reviewed By Moms! - PRLog (free press release)

PRLog (Press Release) - Mar 24, 2012 -
With an incredible estimate of 2.5 billion digital cameras in the world right now, there is certainly a bewildering choice available, even amongst the range designed for children. Co-author and inspiration behind the site, Claire Gillespie explains “as a mom of two pre-school children myself, I have trawled the Internet for a variety of toys, games and nursery equipment for my own children. I feel that review sites, in many cases, are little more than a sales pitch by another name. Here at KDCR, we are setting out to do something different.”

Claire’s co-author, Alison Graham takes up the story – “We wanted to be able to talk to people who visit our site as we would talk to friends - about products we have tried, read about and our children (and in my case), grandchildren, have played with. We aim to give a more rounded picture than is generally available, giving site visitors the background knowledge they need to make an informed purchasing decision.”

Kidsdigitalcamerareviews.org does exactly “what it says on the tin”! Each review follows a structure where the age group of the child for which the model is intended, the positive and negative aspects and the educational benefits are explored. A summary of key features provides an ‘at a glance’ checklist for those trying to compare the relative merits of two different models.

The site is divided neatly into categories for cameras that only take still pictures, video cameras and those cameras that are waterproof and can even be used under water. In addition to the reviews, are articles aimed at providing the background knowledge that parents and perhaps especially, grandparents, will want to read before making a purchase.

Each of the reviews is neatly categorized with a star rating which is based on an overall impression, taking into account factors such as available features, durability, price and comparison with other similar models.

As we finished our discussion about the aims of the site, Claire, whose keen interest in photography sparked the inspiration for the site, said “we set out to provide all our readers with the very best information, not a sales pitch - but of course, we hope people will come to our site when considering a purchase. This is why we have tried to provide links to the best deals we can find for each model we have reviewed.”

We provide up to date information about digital cameras for kids, including detailed, honest reviews of the range of products available.

View the original article here

Indian moms also earn their stripes as tigers these days - Calgary Herald

NEW DELHI — Stay-at-home mom Swati Rastogi watched her daughter Krisha play with plastic monkeys as son Dhruva lined up model cars in their two-bedroom apartment surrounded by Hindi and English alphabet posters.

Three-year-old Dhruva asked whether Pakistan is part of India. He was informed that it's not. "I don't know where that comes from," his mother said, watching attentively.

That's a rarity for Rastogi, who leaves little to chance when it comes to her children's education. Although China and its diaspora receive lots of attention for hyper-parenting since last year's publication of the book "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother," Indians aren't exactly wallflowers in the child-rearing department.

At a January literary festival in Jaipur, "Tiger Mother" author Amy Chua told adoring audiences that Indian tiger moms may outnumber China's.

"The crowd went gaga over almost anything she said," said Shobha De, a writer, socialite and mother of six. "I don't think she's seen such a positive reaction elsewhere in the world."

Indian tiger parents feature in Indian TV series, reality shows, books and magazines in a society willing to do almost anything for its children's future, even sometimes before they're born. "Looking for sperm donors," read a recent Chennai advertisement. "Must have graduated from a top technical institute."

As millions of Indians migrate from villages to cities, expanding India's middle class, parents increasingly view education as their family's ticket to higher social status and material wealth.

In one survey, parents said they spent half their take-home pay on education. The sacrifices, monetary and otherwise, made so children can learn English and won't have to work on a farm, lead to a frequent mantra, experts say: With all I've done for you, why aren't you getting perfect grades?

"It's become very crass," said Shayama Chona, former principal at prestigious Delhi Public School.

The drive to succeed is filling the world's top hospitals, universities, multinational companies and start-ups with people of Indian descent. Given the growing competition from Chinese and Indian youngsters, American students must raise their game, President Obama warned in May.

"In Indian culture, parents say: 'You're going to do engineering, not music, and you're going to be first. No excuses,'" said Indian-born University of Houston Chancellor Renu Khator.

Rastogi, who rates her intensity as average for an Indian parent, quit her software industry job to raise her children, enrolling both in pre-nursery school at age 2, supplemented by home instruction.

When her daughter turned 3, Rastogi and travel exe Stay-at-home mom Swati Rastogi watched her daughter Krisha play with plastic monkeys as son Dhruva lined up model cars in their two-bedroom apartment surrounded by Hindi and English alphabet posters.cutive husband Aakash applied to 15 nursery schools, scouring their circle of connections to find one who was a board member at Delhi Public School, then charming his secretary for a recommendation letter. Covering their bases, they also prayed to deceased guru Sai Baba.

"It was divine intervention" when Krisha got in, Rastogi said.

Rastogi then focused on Dhruva, showing up every other day at Krisha's school so teachers and administrators wouldn't forget her and making cut-out tree props for school assemblies. Dhruva was also accepted.

"If you want relaxing weekends, enroll elsewhere," the school principal told parents at orientation. "If you're ready to work weekends helping your kids study, you're in the right place."

Despite being taught the first-grade syllabus in advance, Krisha is struggling in Hindi and English penmanship, so she and her mother practice at home.

"I give her a deadline, not a very tight one, just 10 minutes," Rastogi said. "She's more interested in distractions than the blackboard."

Recently, Rastogi backed off teaching Krisha herself - sending her instead to thrice-weekly tutoring - after realizing she was losing her temper, occasionally slapping her daughter, when progress lagged. Krisha's also doing twice-weekly art and dance classes for relaxation.

A government survey released in early March found that 99 per cent of Indian children had been either slapped on the face or hit with a cane at school, and 81 per cent had been told they were incapable of learning.

"Hitting, slapping and forcing kids, which is quite common in the Indian context, are traits of tiger parenting," said Mumbai's DNA newspaper. "Such parenting behavior would have child rights groups up in arms in the West."

Some mothers consciously reject the parental arms race. Novelist Namita Devidayal, a self-avowed "slummy mom," teaches her children yoga. "India used to be more holistic," she said. "We're trying to be like China, but we're not even getting there. Hopefully this will balance out."

The pressure carries costs: In 2010, there were 2,479 suicides in India committed by students who had failed school tests, compared with 1,571 in 2001. Chennai's Sneha hotline, one of India's first such counseling programs in a nation where mental health treatment still carries a stigma, fields up to 450 calls daily from anxious students.

In search of offspring perfection, some parents wield guilt, anger, feng shui and time-management strategies, pushing teenagers to study as much as 10 hours a day outside classes, after canceling cable TV subscriptions and banning parties.

"My mum went insane," said Kavita Mukherji, a recent graduate who now works in the publishing industry. "She locked me in, delivering food to my room, so I wouldn't leave the house." At a temple one day, her mother made her walk around an auspicious idol for luck. "If I do 100 rounds, will I score 100 per cent in every subject?" Mukherji asked her mother. "She got offended and never took me to a temple again."

That said, most Indian tiger moms believe they're less fanatical than their Chinese counterparts, perhaps tempered by a more tolerant culture and core spirituality. "Tiger moms in India are not as fierce," author De said.

Back in her living room, Rastogi tells her children to pick up their toys.

"I'm not a tiger mom," she says. "I'm just doing my role. Working would be selfish. It would just leave more for the grandparents.

© Copyright (c) McClatchy-Tribune Information Services

View the original article here

Trayvon Martin: African American Moms Warn Teen Sons - ABC News

Martin Family/AP Photo

By Pierre Thomas, Jack Cloherty and Tia Brueggeman

Across the country Trayvon Martin’s death has touched a raw nerve in the African American community. It was stunning when a young, black, unarmed teenager was gunned down, having committed no crime other than walking through a gated community to get Skittles and iced tea.

Concern has spread across the country from ordinary citizens, to celebrities, even the president of the United States. President Obama said on Thursday, “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon.”

Although this story has exploded onto the national scene, for women with African American sons, it is a conversation all too familiar.

“I don’t want to be like Trayvon Martin’s mom, burying my child,” said Racine Tucker-Hamilton, a suburban mom with two teenage sons.

Tucker-Hamilton and fellow suburban mom, LeGreta Dennis, told ABC News that they have given their sons specific instructions for survival even though they are honor roll students.

“Basically, once they started looking like men, which is about 14 or 15, even though they’re children, I basically told them, now you’re perceived as a black man in society,” said Dennis. “You know how they say, ‘buyers beware,’ it’s like young men beware.”

This conversation in many black households is a non-negotiable. Even a simple trip to the grocery store is not routine.

“I tell them, always you have to keep your hands out of your pocket because people perceive that as threatening or they may think that you’ve stolen something,” said Tucker-Hamilton. “And if you are in public, and the noise level starts getting a little high and a little loud, you need to tone it down.”

Both women are keenly aware of how their sons could be perceived in public, advising their children on nuanced aspects of their dress and behavior. They have to remember that some view them as “under suspicion.”

“If you walk in a building and you have your hood on from being outside, take that hood off. If you’re in a store and you buy something, always put your item, even if it’s a pack of gum, get it in a bag and get your receipt so they’ll be no issue there,” said Dennis.

The moms say to always remember to smile and don’t stand too close to people, particularly woman. They  caution their sons to be aware of their behavior around police officers if they are pulled over while driving.

Dennis said, “Don’t reach for anything, roll down the window, be respectful, ask the officer if you could please call your parents. I want to be on the phone to hear the conversation.”

The teenage boys also feel the pressure.

Adam, Tucker-Hamilton’s son, said, “Sometimes when I’m riding in the Metro, I’ll walk right by somebody and they’ll kinda tighten up.”

“You do become conscious of it when you realize that employees of the store start looking at you a certain way,” said Marcus, Dennis’ 16-year-old son.

Dennis’ older son, Brandon, a 17-year-old wearing glasses and a polo shirt said, “It is frustrating. I get kinda angry, I’ve got to admit.”

The mothers’ concerns are supported by research. A Justice Department study found that black males were three to four times more likely to have police threaten or use force against them than their white counterparts.

Until something changes, Tucker-Hamilton admits, “It’s painful, but it is our reality. The bottom line is, at the end of the day, I want my sons to come home alive.”

View the original article here

Low-income moms risk obesity to feed kids - United Press International

Published: March. 19, 2012 at 9:05 PM

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa., March 19 (UPI) -- Low-income U.S. mothers who struggle to provide food for their families are often at risk for obesity while trying to feed their children, researchers say.

Molly Martin, assistant professor of sociology and demography at Pennsylvania State University, and Adam Lippert, a graduate student, said low-income mothers -- who are often the food managers in the household -- might skip meals and eat cheaper but less nutritious foods, to ensure their children are fed.

The sociologists found food-insecure mothers were more likely than fathers who face food shortages, as well as food-insecure, childless women and men, to be obese or overweight.

The researchers analyzed data of 7,931 participants in the Panel Study of Income Dynamics -- data on weight and food insecurity in 1999.

The study, published in Social Science and Medicine, found food-insecure mothers gain more weight over time, compared to all food-insecure men and food-insecure women not caring for children.

"To make sure mothers can provide for their children, they may eat only once a day, for example, or they may eat erratically, which are all behaviors that are obesity risks," Lippert said in a statement.

Besides causing weight gain, irregular eating can also cause a metabolic response that retains fat, the researchers said.

Women who have given birth tend to gain weight, but the researchers determined having children did not explain the weight gain for the food-insecure mothers.

View the original article here

Moms Who Want Smarter Babies May Need to Rethink Their Feeding Schedule - The Stir

Moms Who Want Smarter Babies May Need to Rethink Their Feeding Schedule | The Stir var _comscore = _comscore || [];_comscore.push({ c1: "2", c2: "6035453" });(function() {var s = document.createElement("script"), el = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0]; s.async = true;s.src = (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js";el.parentNode.insertBefore(s, el);})();Cafemomfollow usFacebookTwitterYouTubeCommunity Today's StoriesGames Log In Join CafeMomThe StirPregnancyBabyToddlerBig KidTeenFood&PartyHealthy LivingLove&SexIn The NewsEntertainmentSportsTechnologyBeauty&StyleHome&GardenWritersColumnsSearch Cafemom's The StirGenius Parents Build Nightclub in Their BasementObama Talks About the Trayvon Martin Case (VIDEO)7 Telltale Signs Your Guy Is CheatingHilariously Opinionated Girl Refuses To Do School Project'Hunger Games' Reviews Say It All (VIDEO)Do Dads Need a Son to Complete Them?Will Houston's Cause of Death Wreck Her Legacy?Employers Now Want Your Facebook PasswordWoman Walking & Texting Falls Off a Pier (VIDEO)Trayvon Martin Killing Breaks Every Mother's HeartWant to Eat Less? Smell Your FoodShould Someone Pay for Trayvon Martin’s Murder?7 Hilarious Ways Kids Would Shake Up Our Legal SystemHilarious Experiment Shows Kids Can't Handle '80s Gadgets (VIDEO)Parents Pull Kids From School Because Teacher is Too Hot Baby Mom Moment Moms Who Want Smarter Babies May Need to Rethink Their Feeding Schedule

Posted by Mary Fischer on March 19, 2012 at 11:35 AMComments (12)|Likes (5)

If getting your baby on a good feeding schedule is stressing you out, don't worry, because you definitely aren't alone. Plenty of moms (myself included) have caught themselves checking their watches over and over again to make sure that their babies don't go more than a certain number of hours between feedings. Doesn't it get kind of exhausting sometimes?

It can be so tough to judge how often you are supposed to feed them to make sure they're getting the nutrition they need, not to mention keeping their little bellies full so they are happy. Of course, some moms eventually give up on the whole feeding schedule thing and let their babies determine how frequently they eat. And they may be on to something with their go-with-the-flow attitude. New research suggests that babies who are fed on demand may have a higher IQ down the road.

Kids at ages 5, 7, 8, 11 & 14 were IQ tested in Britain, and the results showed that those who were either breastfed or bottle fed on demand as babies scored four to five points higher. That's not a super-huge gap, but it does sound like good news for moms who've really had it with the whole feeding on a schedule thing.

I can remember keeping a little feeding journal when my son was a baby. I would frantically scribble down the times he had eaten so I could refer back to them and make sure that he was eating every few hours, right on cue. But then there seemed to be times where he was hungry in between feedings, or when he didn't seem interested in eating right at his scheduled time. There were days where I just couldn't get it right.

But I was always worried that the world would come to an end if I deviated from his schedule in the slightest way. (You know -- because of the whole new mom jitters thing.) Geez. Where was this study six years ago? I probably would've been a lot less worried and stressed out as a new mom if I'd heard that being flexible when it came to a feeding schedule was potentially a very good thing.

Do you let your baby feed on demand, or do you feed on a strict schedule?

 

Image via ripkas/Flickr

About the authorMary Fischer

is the writer behind The Mommyologist, a popular parenting blog that totally lacks a filter. When not glued to her laptop, Mary is trying to learn how to walk correctly in heels and trying to convince the world that she invented the Crystal Light martini.

MoreFiled Under:breastfeeding, formula Comments (12)|Likes (5)Like What You Just Read?Click the "Like" button below to get Natural Parenting stories on Facebook. Extra Sugar Tasty Treats from Our PartnersPartner HeadlinesJessica Simpson Shows Some Serious Cleavage - tooFab!Kim Kardashian Gets Flour Bombed (VIDEO) - TMZ7 Signs You're Amazing in Bed - YourTangoWatch "Breaking Dawn: Part 2" Trailer Teaser (VIDEO) - tooFab!This Celeb Forgot Her Underwear! - Celeb Dirty Laundry? Add CommentComments (12)

Kwiat2 on Mar 19, 2012 at 11:38 AMI don't know how you don't feed on demand when breastfeeding. If he's not hungry he won't latch. If he is, he'll cry until you pop a boob in his mouth. Even if that means he still wants to eat three times a night when he's 10 months old. That's how my son was anyway. Report this comment

SuzyBarno on Mar 19, 2012 at 11:44 AMI bottlefed formula and agree with you kwait2. I could never ever feed a bottle when either of my kids werent hungry. I do on demand till they kinda determine their own routine of naps, bottles and meals at like 9 months. Bottles in my house are also not comfort objects, my kids never hold them. Blah, blah, blah, on demand is the way to go!Report this comment

KBW2 on Mar 19, 2012 at 11:50 AMOn demand all the way.Report this comment

katyq on Mar 19, 2012 at 12:20 PMIts natural to feed on demand and really abusive not to. I knew a woman that would not feed her baby in the early evening so she would gorge right before bed :(Report this comment

Nonmember comment from Amanda v on Mar 19, 2012 at 12:44 PMI always fed on demand. I never kept track of what time/how many feedings. I always figured if they are on track with their weight gain, they are eating fine. And I didn't want fat babies either because I made them eat when I wanted them to. Scheduled eating could mess up their natural hunger cues! But I digress.
Babies know when they are hungry, and they will let mom know. Schedules are for activities that aren't based off bodily needs and functions. It'd be like trying to train your baby to poop only on schedule. Even if you could do it, would it be the healthy way to go? Uh. No. Convenience should not trump health. Some peeps take routining kids' lives way too far.Report this comment

Facebook comment from Alison Carabajal on Mar 19, 2012 at 12:52 PM

I've never fed any of my boyos on a schedule. They ate when they were hungry. Really it's simpler that way and most of the time makes for happier mama and baby.

Report this comment

jessicasmom1 on Mar 19, 2012 at 1:17 PM

my DD was eating when she was hungry it seemed much better that way

Report this comment

Melissa042807 on Mar 19, 2012 at 1:30 PM

I fed on a flexible schedule. If he was hungry before the "scheduled" feeding time, I fed him. No big deal. I didn't stress about it. He liked being on a schedule though. He's a creature of habit. 

Report this comment

Facebook comment from Moria Funck on Mar 19, 2012 at 3:48 PM

with my firsti tried ot keep a journal.. i also tried too keep a schedual.. forgettt ittt... i dropped it quick the first time and didnt even try the second..

Report this comment

Saerise on Mar 19, 2012 at 3:53 PM

Feeding on demand works beautifully for us. It's hard to imagine doing anything else. 

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