How is the economic crisis impacting you?

America has the economic crisis seared into it collective consciousness right now. And Moms are impacted greatly--whether it means you have to go back to work to make ends meet, recover from a layoff, or discover your kids' college fund just lost 30% of its value.

I'll be following this issue here on the Mojo Mom blog as events unfold. My question for today is to ask how specifically is the economic crisis is impacting your family, and what information would best help you get through this difficult time? I will be working on creating resources over the next several weeks.

I'd love to hear creative solutions as well. Necessity is the mother of invention for a reason. We are often the ones who have to figure out which knobs to tweak to make it all work for our families.

For example, my friend Perri Kersh came up with an awesome approach to creating a free summer camp program while still working four days a week. Perri is so creative that I'd love to attend her Girl Camp! Read more on Perri's Enough is Enough blog:

GIRL POWER CAMP 2009!
Invite 5 girls to participate (helps if they know each other at least a little so they’re excited to spend a week together). Ask each mom to take all 5 girls for just one day during a week of the summer. Plan fun activities (bookclub, journal writing, a compliments box where the girls can write nice things about each other, pool time, outside play time, craft activities, cooking…whatever you’re in the mood for), and you’re off and running. I am in love with this idea. It’s creative, keeps the girls moving, builds on their self esteem and a sense of community, and it’s FREE!

We’re doing one week of Girl Power camp this summer as an experiment. My daughter is already so excited–it’s like a week of playdates–what’s not to love? Plus, it provides me with 4 work days where I don’t have to arrange or pay for childcare. In this economy, what could be better? And as a super summer bonus, I can channel my inner camp counselor…but just for one day. Almost makes me excited about summer again.

Challenges, opportunities, problems, solutions. I am interested in hearing them all. My podcast co-host Sheryl Grant commented that she's dying to talk about this with friends but it's a sensitive topic to bring up. This is one converstation that might be most satisfying to share online.

Hitting the gym, and my first responsibility-free vacation in 10 years

To write the new Mojo Mom, I had to chain myself to my computer for nine months. That got the book done, but the problem is now that I don't want to present it to the world looking like someone who has been sitting at her desk for the better part of a year. Getting my appendix out in September meant that I couldn't exercise strenuously for about eight weeks. I know many people who broke that rule and did fine, but I also know some who pushed it and got really sick, so I decided to take it seriously.

But now I have to go from cubicle jockey/couch potato to Mojo Mom, and I have to say getting my engines revving is an important part of getting my mojo back. I am starting out by walking, then playing tennis, and I am finally reluctantly hitting the exercise machine. I also realized I have to put down the potato chips--bad Super Bowl habit!

My husband is out of town, which means I am walking our dog four times a day myself. A little mandatory self-improvement plan. Our active canine fuzzball is an important member of our family, and the only piece of exercise equipment you can't leave in the closet.

For me, I am finding that a life of balance means balance over the long run. I am accustomed to seasons of intense creative work punctuated by seasons focused more on family life. I feel very fortunate to have a career and a family who enable me to go back and forth between the two.

And yesterday I found out that I will have my first responsibility-free vacation in ten years! My daughter will be attending a week-long summer camp, and I will be nearby at my favorite retreat with other family members, but without my husband or daughter, for a whole week. This is the special summer place where I could spend hours on the dock alternating between reading a book and swimming. To be honest, I am a little afraid that I have lost that part of my being. I don't know what I'll do with myself for that much free time. I hope I will connect with my writing muse, as free exploration and not work. It will be really interesting to see what comes up.

Believe me, I am not complaining. I don't want the rest of the family to think they have to put me to work around the house!

Mojo Mom Podcast: How to Avoid the Mommy Trap

We've made it to August and I bet I am not the only Mojo Mom who is burned out! This is the first time in a long time that I have not blogged for a whole week. Fortunately, I have a new podcast to share with you, Mojo Mom and How to Avoid the Mommy Trap.

Listen to the podcast now:


In this week's show:

Amy and Sheryl discuss the recent NY Times article about parents who just can't seem to let go of their children while the kids are at summer camp.

Then we meet Julie Shields, author of one of Mojo Mom's favorite books, How to Avoid the Mommy Trap. Julie's strategies help couples lay out a roadmap for truly shared parenting.

You can learn more about Julie's work at her website, MommyTrap.com.

The article that Julie and I discussed that emphasizes equally-shared parenting was Lisa Belkin's New York Times Magazine feature, When Mom and Dad Share It All.

Sheryl and I talked about the NY Times story, Dear Parents: Please Relax, It's Just Camp, and then yesterday Judith Warner wrote about it in her latest blog post, Camp Codependence.

This week my kid went to sleep-away camp for the first time and there was very little drama, certainly none of the kind reported in the Times. I have to say, sometimes it's a relief to live outside the New York hothouse. Down here in North Carolina, as far as I have seen, camp really is just camp.

I am planning to blog lightly over the next couple of weeks, and we plan to have the podcast return on Friday, August 15.

Camp as a cure for overinvolved parenting

I read with interest this article about "Kid-sick parents" who are sadly missing their children who are away at camp. It used to be the kids who missed their parents, but now the roles are reversed as parents face "an empty house."

I believe that overinvolved parenting is a real phenomenon, one that has affected me to some extent. We're so focused on creating a close bond with our kids that we may remain attached to the point where we are depriving them from independent exploration.

So when I signed up my daughter for a three-day beginner camp this year, I was consciously choosing this opportunity for her to operate "on her own" within the boundaries of a safe community.

She is definitely ready to give it a try, and I really hope she likes it. I look back at my own childhood, and I realize that even as I am seeking out opportunities for my daughter to grow into independence, she still has so much less autonomy than I did at her age. By fourth grade I had the run of the neighborhood on my bike.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate that on many levels, increased supervision is a good thing. But it looks like a quality summer camp is becoming one of the best opportunities to give our kids some growing room, as we step away from our helicopter parent tendencies and allow them to navigate camp culture on their own.