A Mama's Rant

It's pajama party time: an interview with The Pajama Diaries Terri Libenson

If you’re a mom or dad blogger or any kind of work at home parent, you must read the comic strip The Pajama Diaries by Terri Libenson. It centers on Jill Kaplan, a young, independent and introspective suburban mother, as she balances her career as a freelance graphic artist and family life with her husband, Rob, and their two young daughters, Amy and Jess. Jill narrates her day-to-day adventures in her journal and on a blog and touches on everything from juggling work with family obligations to marital sex and sibling rivalry.

This month, Terri takes the strip on a stroll down memory lane in a five-week series that tells via flashback the story of Jill’s first pregnancy and the Kaplans’ journey towards impending parenthood. This special series runs through August 8.

The Interview

I’m a huge Pajama Diaries fan and read the strip read the strip in the Denver Post first thing every morning, so I was thrilled to be able to interview Terri via email. You can learn more about Terri and the strip at The Pajama Diaries website. And now our interview:

A Mama’s Rant (AMR): As moms we all have our “war stories” about pregnancy and delivery. But I find that most of us are passionate about sharing it while our kids are still babies or toddlers. (Maybe it’s a way to get over the shell shock of parenthood, who knows?) So why do you think it’s taken you so long to tackle this topic on your strip?

Terri Libenson (TL): The reason I decided to go back in time now is twofold: I recently did a Mother’s Day Sunday strip that flash-backed to the delivery room. Also, I noted my 10-year anniversary of getting pregnant with my older daughter. These both inspired the idea of going back in time to when Jill first became pregnant. I also thought it would be a fun way to shake things up a little and give readers a peek into an unknown area of the family’s lives.

AMR: Part of sharing mom stories is to give up-and-coming moms some advice on raising kids. How do you try to do that in The Pajama Diaries?

TL: Actually, I try to avoid giving advice because I’m afraid I’d come across as preachy. Jill is a “learn as you go” mom who makes a lot of missteps. I try and make her an empathetic and relatable character rather than someone who knows all the answers.

That being said, I do try and try to point out some social awareness. I try to get across how stressed a lot of moms are and how we, as a society, need to address this (i.e., better daycare, flex time, getting more help in general).

A Review of the OFF!® PowerPad® Lamp and Lantern

I was hoping to use the OFF!® PowerPad® Lamp and Lantern that SC Johnson sent me to try during our recent camping trip to Vega State Park. A campground near a lake sounded like mosquito heaven to me and I wasn’t looking forward to hosing myself down with stinky, yucky tasting bug spray.

Well, we never ended up using it since the mosquitoes were hiding in the aspen forest. The one time we ventured into the forest for a hike we were covered in OFF! Deep Woods® Sportsmen. Glad we weren’t camping in it!

However, I noticed walking around the campgrounds than at least 60% of the RV campers had a OFF!® PowerPad® Lamp and Lantern in their campsite, either hanging from a pole or placed on a table. I talked to a few of the RVers who told me they really liked OFF’s new product. They said it was easy to use and effective. They also liked how attractive lamp looked. When you’re spending up to $250K on an RV, you want your campsite to look nice.

Needless to say, my sample OFF!® PowerPad® Lamp and Lantern is packed away in our pop-up camping trailer to use on Labor Day at Carter Lake. I’m sure it’ll come in handy.

And if you’re wondering why I don’t use it at home, it’s because we have an electric Amcor IntelliTrap Mosquito Trap that does a wonderful job 24/7. It should considering how much I paid for it!

Webkinz Jr. plush toys and website for the little ones

It’s just not good enough for toy makers to make a cool action figure or cute plush animal anymore. Each toy has to have their own gaming website, videos, clothing line, television show and possibly a movie, too. (Hello, Transformers!)

It’s enough to make a parent worry that the TV show is brainwashing their kid to bug their parents for toys. Or the toys are making the kids turn into Wii remote zombies.

Not to worry with Webkinz, which are adorable plush animals with their very own website. My daughter Lucie, who’s six, knows all about them and how each comes with an Internet code so you can play games with and take care of your new plush pet online. Since my daughter thinks stuffed animals are real – what six year old doesn’t – this makes perfect sense to her.

Well, Ganz, the makers of the Webkinz World™ website, recently launched Webkinz Jr.™, huggable oversized ultra-soft plush pets with a friendly world of imaginative interactive play for younger kids ages 3 to 6.

While playing, your child can visit all the places in the Webkinz Jr. neighborhood including your own home, school, the park, the caring center, playhouse and the W Shop. You can set the level at which your child plays and review his/her progress along the way. Also, unlike the Webkinz site, there is no social networking features so your child is totally safe. Take the tour to learn more.

Welcome to the Circus: Juggling Family and Writing

Ann Whitford Paul is the author of numerous children’s books, and also writes poetry. Her latest book is Writing Picture Books: A Hands-On Guide from Story Creation to Publication from Reader’s Digest Books.

In it, Ann covers researching the picture books market, creating characters, point of view, plotting, tips on writing rhyme, and more-all the lessons writers need to write great picture books that will appeal to both editors/agents and young readers/parents.

Welcome to the circus: juggling family and writing

Ann is the mother of two girls and two boys. When asked about juggling family and writing, she says it’s not an easy task. To help, she gives writer mamas these seven suggestions on getting your writing work done:

1. Remind yourself that living is collecting material for writing.  Consider this your gathering phase.  Instead of working on longer projects, you might find it easier to write poems and journal entries, or collect a story file, to use later when you have more time.

2. Never do housework while the children are napping or in school.  Reserve that as your writing time.  Then when the kids are with you let them help dust or mix up the meat loaf for supper or play alongside you while vacuuming  Children need to know what is required to keep a house going.

Win a bracelet making kit in the Bejeweled Giveaway contest

Have you ever wanted to start your own handmade jewelry store on Etsy or Silkfair, but didn't know where to start?  Maybe you already enjoy scrapbooking and knitting and thought beading might be worth a try, but weren't sure about the investment.

Now you can win a bracelet making kit plus $75 in product - a $100 value - by entering the "Bejeweled Giveaway" contest.  Ten readers across the Momfluence network blogs will be chosen to win!

But there's more!  Those ten winners will be able to submit a picture of their completed bracelet to the House of Gems, and one will be chosen to receive a $250 gift certificate, enough product to really jump start your business.