Activistas

Thanks to Central Portland Families for reminding us that this huge effort is underway and there are loads of public input opportunities this month - from Monday 5.12 to Saturday 5.31 - all across the city. And they even invited the kids! A great opportunity to inject the family angle - whatever yours may be - into this process to create a family-friendly Portland in the next several decades....

We shared Obama's 2006 talk with Moms Rising a few months back. Well, turns out Hillary talked at the very same event. Good chance to see them both talk about our issues - long before the campaign. Worth a look if you have a few minutes to listen. Here's Hillary. And Obama. Pretty feel good - any notable differences?...

Think paid family leave should be available to working families in Oregon? Good news, mamas, because our newly formed Parents for Paid Leave group is meeting for our 2nd time this Saturday, 5.10.08 from 9:30 to 11 AM. We'll be at Jennifer's house in SE Pdx - 4423 SE 30th Avenue (1 block N of Holgate) to be exact. Our first meeting was incredibly productive for three reasons: We named...

I know, I know, it seems like an Obama-mama-rama around here these days. Now for something completely different. Mama may rhyme better with Obama, but Senator Clinton has the mamas on the mind and there's nothing wrong with that. Everything right with that, in fact. I love that a Presidential candidate so clearly sees where we mamas fit into this whole thing. While I am undoubtedly an...

It's hard to weave a beautiful tale of a first pregnancy with the hard science of toxicology, but Sandra Steingraber did it so very well in her 2001 chronicle of her own pregnancy, Having Faith: An Ecologist's Journey to Motherhood. Why I dared read it while pregnant I'll never know, but I'll never forget it. I was moved by her ability to capture so many of the tremendous emotions I felt, and...

There's an Obamamama in St. John's who's thinking big. If you're also a mama in St. John's, you're probably already planning to join the parade this Saturday 5.10 @ noon. Meg, another mama for Obama, is putting out the call to other Obamamamas in the neighborhood. She writes: Hi! I am gathering people (moms in particular) who would like to join us in the St. Johns Parade, Saturday May 10th, in...

I picked up a slew of endorsement write-ups late last week. There are loads of them - a godsend for many of us. Where do you turn? To one? Many? Or do you actually make up your own mind??!! I fancy that I decide for myself, but I sure check in with a bunch of endorsers - especially when I'm doing the last-minute voting thing. These devoted (and often paid) folks do...