Jodi and her Family

Meet Jodi: A Washington D.C. Native

Jodi is the mom of a six year old boy, named Michael, and has been married to her husband for 10 years.  She is a Washington, D.C. native who loves the area because “it is full of things to do, both for family activities and as a couple.”  However, she wouldn’t mind the experience of “living somewhere else” and finds one challenge to remaining in the DC Metro Area is the high cost of living.

The Decision to Work Part Time vs. Full Time

Jodi works 20 hours a week as an attorney.  “Working PT was a decision based on finances,” she admits.  “I always knew I would go back to work, but when we priced FT daycare centers, it was more expensive to put a baby in daycare full time that it was for me to go back to work part time and find a part time baby sitter.”

She loved having 2 days at home to spend with her son when he was a baby.  “Now that he is in school full time, I use the days I don’t work to run errands and pursue other interests.”

In her spare time, Jodi is also an accomplished blogger who started her Jodifur after her husband’s encouragement. She has been reading a lot of blogs and he told her she should start one of her own! Jodifur has a large following of loyal readers who enjoy Jodi’s honest take on parenting and come back each week for her Shoe Friday feature where she features her favorite shoes and ones submitted by her readers.

Parenting Style and Regrets

“As a parent I do not subscribe to one particular “method,” she says. “I’m strict when I need to be and permissive when I need to be.”

Jodi’s one regret as a parent is that she yells too often.  “Sometimes I need to stop and take a breath before I yell.”

Scariest Moment in Parenting

“When Michael was in preschool, a cubby fell in his hand and broke it.”  Jodi remembers getting the call from the school that there had been an accident and they were calling the ambulance which was her “scariest moment as a parent” to date.

Most Difficult Age for Parenting

Jodi recalls age 4 being her most challenging age to parent.  “We moved and Michael had a difficult time with it,” she remembers. “He was in a preschool that was a bad fit and I felt like that whole year we were trying to get Michael to a good place.  We got there, but it was hard.”

Parenting Advice: “Parenting is hard”

“Parenting is hard,” Jodi admits. “You need to make the decisions that are best for you and your family.  Everyone is going to have an opinion on what is best, but every child is different, and you need to raise the child you have, not the child described in parenting books.”

Meet Amanda: Mom of 3 who lives in a rural area outside Washington, D.C.

Amanda Rodriguez is the mom of 3 boys, ages 9, 6, and 3 and has been married for 8 years.  She and her husband live in New Market, Maryland, a place that she describes as being “a rural part of the county which means I have to drive at least 15 minutes for essential items like ice cream and coffee.”  Because of the hilly geography, Amanda says that the terrain contributes to being “snowed in every.  Single.  Winter.  Like, seriously snowed in.  Sometimes for 10 days!” While the frequent winter snow could be seen as a challenge, Amanda also views it as a benefit because they have “blizzard parties with all of our neighbors.”

She loves living within walking distance to a private community lake “which means we barely even have to go on vacation in the summer.  We can boat, swim, fish, and all of that outdoor fun stuff right in our own neighborhood!”

Former teacher turned work at home mom who owns her own business and professionally blogs

Amanda is “employed by an outside employer” and works from home for that job and also for her own photography business, Then Again Photography.  Amanda finds that the ability to make her own hours “simultaneously good and bad!”

Prior to starting Then Again Photography, Amanda used to be a middle school teacher.  She decided to stay home when her first son was born. “My mom stayed home to raise us and I always appreciated that and knew that it was something I wanted to be able to do for my own family too.  I like the situation now where I am able to be home for the kids, but can also contribute to our income while doing things that I love.”

Amanda blogs on her own Parenting By Dummies site but is also the fashion blogger for TLC’s What Not to Wear, a show that she was featured on last fall.

Scary Moments in Parenting: CPR, seizures, and lost at school

“I have a scary moment associated with each of my children,” recalls Amanda.  “My oldest had a seizure when he was two, stopped breathing, had to get CPR and be transported to the hospital.”  In the end, Amanda said her son was fine but had the seizure because of an illness with a dangerously high fever.

“My youngest fell down the stairs and had a seizure following that incident. He was fine and it turned out it too was from a severe illness. And, just this year, my middle son got lost at school!  They located him within a half an hour but it was so, SO scary.”

Parenting Style and Challenges

Amanda describes herself as an “awesome” parent.  “But that’s the same description I use to describe everything I do.  It’s a way of life!”

Despite her awesomeness, parenting has come with challenges. Dealing with three different personalities “in a fair and consistent manner” is a constant challenge.  Amanda also says that “remembering that fair doesn’t mean everyone is treated the same, but instead that it means everyone is treated in a way that is right for them as individuals” is also important.

She also finds that age 3 is the most difficult age to parent.  “Seriously, who ever made up the term Terrible Twos must have got it circulating before their kid turned three!”

Parental Advice: Equating Parenting to Chocolate

“Having kids is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you’re gonna get, but you know they are all gonna be delicious!”

Sarah Kimmel from Tech4Mommies.com enjoys screen time with her children

Meet Sarah

Sarah Kimmel is the mom of 2 who celebrates ten years of marriage this year.  She lives with her family in Lehi, Utah, a place that is a challenge to live in considering that she grew up from Southern California and admis, “me and snow don’t mix.”  However, she enjoys the beauty of their surroundings and also the lower cost of living.

Benefits, Drawbacks, and Adjusting to Working at Home

In the world of work, Sarah has done it all.  “I’ve worked from home part time, worked out of the home part time, worked in the home full time and out of the home full time. When I’m at home I’m more present with my kids, and when I’m at work I am fully invested in my job.”

While she likes working outside the home for the ability to separate work and home, she recently accepted at job with ChicaLogic, a software company that helps women solve their own PC issues, and allows her to work from home.  Her decision to leave her former position was due to the opportunity to work with a “a company that has a mission and goals right in line with my own, which is to empower women with technical skills.”

She has adjusted to being a work at home mom quite well over the past month. Sarah typically works most of the day.  Sometimes she finds that she works early in the mornings and “then again late at night when we have things going on during the day.”

“I like working from home so that I can take small breaks and spend time with my children throughout the day.  I also enjoy that the hours are super flexible so I can do things with the kids during the day.”

Despite the flexibility, she’s finding it challenging to separate work and home.  “ It is definitely hard to keep work and home separate though, but I have an “office” that I retreat to when I really need to focus.”

Parenting Style

Sarah describes herself as “Strict, but extremely loving.  I can’t stop kissing those cute cheeks!  I do not let them cross the line though, when they do something wrong, they get in trouble!”

She also finds that every day her kids do something that make her laugh.  “The funniest thing my daughter does daily though is the invisible lists she has.  Whenever she wants to do something she holds up an invisible list and says, “We have to do that, it says it on my list!”

As a self-confessed list maker, Sarah swears that her daughter’s obsession has nothing to do with her!

Seeking Parental Advice

When Sarah needs advice, she finds that she turns to her sister and sister-in-laws.  As the youngest of 4 children, she says that her siblings have “been there, done that so they help me through my own struggles as a parent.”

Gems of Parental Wisdom

“Don’t be afraid to BE parents.  You aren’t here to be your kids friends, you are here to teach them how to be adults.  Don’t be afraid to teach them what’s right.”

Find Sarah Online

Besides working full time, Sarah is also known online for her websites Tech4Mommies and Organized Mom.  She regularly contributes advice about keeping PCs running smoothly through ChicaLogic’s Tips & Tricks section and can also be found on Twitter: @Tech4Moms

The Murphy Family

Meet Tom

Tom Murphy is the father of 2 girls (4 ½ years and 2 ½ months). He is married to Caroline and recently started blogging at Smarty Pants Dada, a site that complements her Smarty Pants Mama site.  The Murphys reside in Miami where Tom finds the year round warmth as a huge benefit to where they live but the potential for hurricanes and hot summer months to be a challenge.

Full Time Working Dad

Tom works full time at a job in Naples, Florida that requires more than full time hours.  He often leaves the house at 5:30 am and returns home at 7:30 pm.  The long hours are challenging mainly because he says “it’s hard to get as much family time as I want” but working is a necessity as the main provider for the family financially.

Memorable Moments in Parenting

As a father, Tom has many memorable moments.  He says his funniest moment is when he first changed his eldest daughter’s diaper “and it decided to fall right off of her as I picked her up.”  His scariest moment occurred when at a water park with his daughter who “accidentally knocked down and hit her head.”  He recalls her projectile vomiting in the car.  “Needless to say there was an ER visit that day.”

Parenting Style and Parental Role Model

When it comes to parenting, Tom describes himself as “the fun one” and has no regrets.  “I do the best I can,” he admits, “and I am completely satisfied with that.”

He feels that it’s most difficult to parent a newborn and a three year old but when he needs advice, he turns to his wife and family.  When asked about a role model, he exclaims, “My wife. She’s the best!”

Caroline Murphy and her family

Meet Caroline

Caroline Murphy is a mother of 2 girls (4 ½ years and 2 ½ months), wife, and founder of Smarty Pants Mama.  She and her family reside in Miami where she finds the “oppressive summers” to be a challenge and “fabulous winters” a benefit.

Transforming a Blogging Hobby into a Career

Caroline is a former classroom teacher who now works at home as a professional blogger, a career that she describes “happened by accident.” After becoming unemployed and having a major knee injury that required surgery, Caroline “decided to start blogging to pass some time during recovery.” Since then her Smarty Pants Mama site has slowly transitioned from a hobby into a professional blogging career thanks to social networking.

During her blogging career, Caroline has worked with many brands including Hallmark, Ragu, Huggies Every Little Bottom, PAM Cooking Spray, Hormel, and Oscar Mayer on exciting paid campaigns. Her family was also featured on Huggies’ The Potty Project that chronicled their adventures in potty training her oldest daughter.

Parenting Challenges: Trying to do it all

Caroline readily admits that one of her challenges is trying to be Super Mom!  “I want to do it all,” she says. “I want to be June Cleaver with a pie in the oven, clothes ironed and kids inline.  I am slowly realizing that it’s ok to have a few dishes in the sink or the bed unmade and a day full of time-outs.”

She loves trying to do it all because she’s not a person who likes monotony.  “I’m always on the go. I want to know and be doing the latest and greatest thing out there.”

Parental Regrets: Chronicling her kids’ lives

One of Caroline’s parental regrets includes not documenting her eldest daughter’s first year better.  “I’ve always wanted to keep a baby diary, documenting everything the baby did for an entire year.  I know it would get pretty monotonous…Today I slept, pooped and drank milk, but I think looking back they would really enjoy it.

Parenting Advice: Seeking and sharing

When seeking advice about parenting issues, Caroline likes to turn to friends, family, and online resources.  “I love to hear and read about people who have “been there, done that.”  I want to learn from their experiences.  I want to do what worked for them.  I want to avoid what they found to be catastrophes.”

When providing advice, she always finds that she has lots to say but tells new moms that despite her attempts, you can’t do it all.

“We may all try to be Super Mom but in reality there are only 24 hours in a day.  Just be a smart mom instead!”

Julie Meyers Pron and her family

Meet Julie

Julie Pron is a mom who lives with her three children and husband in the Western Main Line of the Philadelphia Suburbs. “I also love living in a small college town, so close to a major city. In our town we have all town fairs, carnivals and farmers markets, and if you want city culture, museums, restaurants and athletics, Philadelphia is only 40 minutes away.” Another main advantage of where Julie lives it the convenient proximity of everything the family needs and the lack of tax on clothing or food in Pennsylvania.

Part Time Working Stay at Home Mom

“I always knew that I wanted to stay home to raise our kids,” says Julie. She says that although there wasn’t much discussion when deciding to stay at home, it’s something that she and her husband agree on because it’s best for their children in the long run.

Although Julie is available for her children, she’s also “the type of person who needs her own “thing” which is why I’ve found some sort of part time job since having Big (her oldest son) in 2003.” Julie works as a blogger (Just-Precious.com) and social media consultant.  She founded a company with friend, fellow blogger, and Philly mom, Kelly Whalen, called Just Centsible that embraces social media by recognizing the focus of social media is human interactions and conversations.

Julie is also a member of Splash Creative Media, a national blogging collaborative with 7 other women, which creates online campaigns such as the upcoming Fill the Backpack back to school campaign. “I plan to continue this line of work once the children are in school,” says Julie.

Parenting Style: Establishing Expectations

“I’m busy.  Really busy,” Julie admits. “I’m shuffling between parenting 3 very different, extremely energetic children and working part time in social media (not to mention wifing and PTO directing.) I’m affectionate with my family, but I know how to be strict and express my expectations.”

Julie believes that having expectations are “huge in parenting.” “If you’re children don’t know what you expect of them, then they’ll have a lot of trouble being motivated and succeeding.” She’s consistent with her children, firm with her rules, and a strong believer in schedules although she does recognize that maintaining a certain amount of flexibility is important.  Julie provides lots of positive encouragement and rewards in the form of praise and hugs.

As a former classroom teacher, Julie believes, “I’m sure that my education in education has helped me to become the parent that I am.”

Parenting Challenges: Having Family Far Away

“The biggest challenge for me is that my family lives so far from here.” Julie grew up in the Philadelphia area but her family left after she settled there. “It’s very challenging to know that some families have so much help from their extended family,” she admits. However, after living over an hour away from her family since her children were born, Julie also can’t imagine living in the same town.

Parental Advice:  Seeking Guidance from a Family Therapist

Julie seeks advice from a family therapist who sees one of her children.  “When I took a big step and saw her alone, I realized how much talking to her, and listening to her, made a difference in my life and in parenting.” She finds that for her biggest struggles, the family therapist is her guild and “means the world to me.”

Alexis Prieto is a first grade teacher and mom of 2 boys

Meet Alexis: Mother of 2 Boys

Alexis Prieto is a 35 year old mother of 2 boys (ages 6 and almost 5) who lives in Miami, Florida.  “Miami is a wonderful city,” Alexis says. “It’s full of life and so much to do.” The downsides to living in Miami include traffic that makes it difficult to get to the many things that she’d love to do and the cost of living. “It’s too expensive.  I’m sure if I lived in a more rural area, I would be able to stay at home and raise my kids.”

Full Time Working Mom

Alexis finds working full time a necessity. She worked part time as an educational consultant for a major publishing company while pregnant and after her first son was born. Even though she was able to continue working part time after her second was born, she didn’t make enough to continue and returned to work full time. Now as a first grade teacher, her sons attend the same school “and come to work with me.” Alexis is also a recent blogger who finds the release of writing at her new site, TheExhaustedMom.com, somewhat addictive!

Parental Challenges

“From the outside it looks like I’m organized and under control.  But deep down I’m a huge mess,” Alexis confesses. “I work really hard to keep my head above water with the boys, their school and various activities…not to mention all the while running a household and teaching twenty 6-7 year olds.”  One of Alexis’ challenges is not not having her husband around as much as she would like or need.  Her husband’s work schedule that requires him to be out of the country for weeks or months at a time, the longest period being two months with no opportunities to come home. Alexis also finds it hard to summon the patience she needs at the end of the day for her two boys when she’s been dealing with other people’s children all day in her classroom.

Parental Advice

Alexis finds it easy to talk to anyone, “especially if they have recently gone through situations or stages that I am currently going through.” She finds herself taking all advice with a grain of salt and sifting through it in her mind before following her heart. As far as advice for other parents, Alexis recommends to “just love your kids and be sure to tell them everyday….no matter how crazy or frustrated they make you! Time is precious…it goes by too fast!”

Kris Cain and her two sets of twins

Meet Kris: A mom of two sets of twins who works inside and out of the home

Kris Cain lives in the South Suburbs of Chicago and is a proud mother of 8 year old twin girls and 5 year old twin boys. She was married for 13 years but is recently divorced and her “awesome sweetie in my life” is someone she went to high school with.

In addition to parenting, Kris works full time at the University of Chicago. She never had the choice about working full or part time or even staying at home.  “I had to keep working in order to get the bills paid. This is especially true now that I am divorced,” she candidly states. “Of course I dream of one day not having to work full-time. But, don’t we all?”

Kris also runs a small local photography business, designs websites, and does social media campaigns and consulting for companies such as ChicaLogic, eBay, and Keurig.  Her main blog, A Techy Mom’s Nerd Paradise, is a place where she shares her love of technology and gadgets. ChiTown Moms is her second blog that serves as a resource for moms in the Chicago. As an active blogger with many ideas, Kris has “a couple more on the list that I need to get going.”

Parental Challenge: Finding balance

“The greatest challenge for a while was finding balance in working, taking care of the home, and spending time with my kids,” Kris admits. She was able to quell the guilt but coming to terms with the fact that she really didn’t have a choice in working.  “My kids have to eat,” she says. “I want to provide a nice home for them. I love spoiling them rotten on Christmas. And we like to have fun. Since I am not rich, in order to accomplish all of this, I have to work.”

Kris takes pride in the fact that one of her daughters has said she wants to be like her.  “She wants to be a writer, vet, and dancer. She wanted to know how to choose just one.  I told her that she does not have to choose; she can do all three and be good at each.”

Parenting Style: Hip, strict, and able to experience life

“I think I am a hip parent, but also strict if that makes sense,” Kris muses. “I don’t shelter my children. I let them experience life. But, I also don’t let them run wild. I try to find a good balance so that they are well rounded, but also know right from wrong.”

Turning to the internet for parental advice

Kris has a support network of mommy friends with kids the same age as her children but as a plugged in mom, says tends to be a “Googler” who often searches internet for answers to medical questions to be informed when she needs to call her pediatrician.  “The internet just makes this so cool these days. You have instant access to a variety of parents that you can ask many, many things.”

Melissa Palazzolo from A Working Mom's Closet

Meet Melissa: Divorced working mom of a 4 year old girl

Melissa Palazzolo (A Working Mom’s Closet) is a recently divorced mother of a 4 year old girl who separated from her husband after being married for 9 ½ years.  Melissa and her daughter reside in Orlando where she works as the office coordinator for an administrative department within a local healthcare system.

As a single mom, she says “there’s really no decision to be made” in regards to working in order to support herself and her daughter.  Melissa works from 7:30 am – 6:00 pm Mondays through Fridays and says her biggest regret is having to work.  “I have to work. I desperately wish I could stay home with her because my HEART wants to be home with her, and I wish I could homeschool her, but our life situation doesn’t allow that.”

Parenting Style: Balancing Play and Laziness

Melissa describes herself as an affectionate mom because she loves “to give her kisses and hugs.” She does admit to feeling lazy at times because of the moments where she’d “rather put on a movie for her instead of playing yet another game of You Can’t Catch Me.” However, she loves the age of four and finds that her daughter is smart, funny, helpful, and kind.  “I just love hanging out with her,” says Melissa.

Sources of Parenting Advice: Her mom and ex-husband/best friend

As a single mom, Melissa finds that she turns to her mom or to her ex-husband.  “They are the two people I lean on the most when I don’t know what to do or when I’m frustrated.”

While she says that it might seem odd to some that she’s still best friends with her ex-husband, she believes it “makes our lives easier and it gives our daughter a sense of reliability” because their daughter is “secure in both of us and never has to watch us argue and is able to still spend time with both of us together because we enjoy hanging out together.”

Advice to Other Parents: Love, listen, and play

“Love your kid. Respect them. Listen to what they say and place value on their words,” Melissa advises. “Play with them when they ask because eventually, they won’t ask anymore and you’ll wish they did.”

Joanne Bamberger and her family at The Great Wall

Meet Joanne Bamberger

Published author Joanne Bamberger lives in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. with her husband and 11 year old daughter where she enjoys working in her home office as a writer, political/social media analyst, and consultant.  Joanne recently published her first book, Mothers of Intention, and is a well known blogger who is known as PunditMom for her site, PunditMom.com.

Working Full Time From Home: The best and worst of both worlds

Joanne works full time from home which she describes as the “best and worst of both worlds.”  She enjoys having control over her work schedule and often fits her hours around her daughter’s school or camp schedule that provides flexibility.  At the same time, she feels that she can “never get everything done in those hours” and often relies on use sitters or the occasional use of the school after-care program “to keep on top of things.”  Joanne admits that she sometimes feel as if she’s “always working and trying to catch up as I try to get things done in late evening hours and on the weekends.”

Parenting Style: Good intentions yet protective

Joanne calls herself “a mother with good intentions” and acknowledges her overprotective nature.  Her over protective self struggles with allowing her daughter with more freedom as she heads into middle school “and is wanting (appropriately) to put more space between us.”

She regrets those times when she is not her “best self in responding to a situation” and often looks back and realizes more appropriate ways to handle them. Joanne finds there are times where she is not as patient as she would like to be even though she knows it’s “unrealistic to expect that a mom will never yell at her child for one reason or another.”

Parenting Role Model: Her husband!

Joanne says her parental role model is her husband.  With two adult daughters from his first marriage, she says he tends to use his parenting experience to add perspective to what does and doesn’t work for their daughter.  “Plus, he’s calmer now and not as worried about every little thing, in the way I sometimes am since our daughter is my first and only child.”

Parental Advice: Days are long, years are short

“It’s an old one, but a good one – remember that the days feel long, but the years are short,” Joanne says.  “Sometimes, especially when our kids are little and we’re in the middle of interrupted sleep, temper tantrums, and all the things that go along with little kids, we just wish to get through those times in one piece.  But whenever a birthday rolls around, it’s hard to figure out where the time has gone and how our kids have gotten to be so big.  I don’t always succeed at this, but I try my hardest to focus on whatever good things happen to us as a family on a daily or weekly basis so I don’t look back when our daughter heads off to college with regret about wishing the time away.”