Welcome to our latest monthly column, Mom on the Street (ya know, like Man on the Street).
Each month,
we'll be asking moms, just like you, for a slice of their sage advice, insider tips or
tried-and-true wisdom in
the hopes that their unique brand of Mothering inspires, assuages,
calms, strengthens and even amuses yours.
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April Enochs is the creator of Mommy Trends (www.mommytrendsonline.com), a hip and expressive line of maternity t-shirts. Here's what this San Antonio mother of one has to say:
“It’s more like the best thing my mom ever did because actions speak louder than words. It is an accumulation of things she taught by how she mothered my three siblings and me. As a very small child, I sensed that our mom loved being our mom. I wanted to be like her—she molded my idea of motherhood.
My mom isn’t quick to anger, patient beyond belief, can get along with just about anyone, loves her kids and grandkids intensely and always, always, always puts others before herself. If there was more than one person and only one piece of apple pie then she, all of the sudden, wasn’t hungry or didn’t like apple pie anymore. For me, one who is prone to be quick to anger, incredibly impatient and easily annoyed by others, my mom influences me greatly on how to be a more giving and more patient mom and to enjoy all the cute moments and stages that I’ll never get back again with my own child.” |
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 Heather Borden Herve is the co-founder of La Folie (www.lafolieknits.com), a stylish and in-demand hand-knitwear company for children.Here's what this Connecticut mother of two—and sister of one— has to say:
“My mom was all about family, and nurturing and protecting her two girls. Pure and simple, she wasn’t a social butterfly, she wasn’t a career woman—she was all mom. With two daughters, she knew she was in for sibling rivalry, competition and fights as my sister and I grew up. So from our earliest moments, she’d always remind us of how we’d have each other, forever. There was the clichéd way: “You’ll see, you’re fighting now, but you’ll be best friends when you’re older.” There was the subtle way: countless photos of the two of us all around the house—in frames, on her closet shelves, on her '60s era photo-cube radio (which she still has). There was the overt way: conversation always peppered with “My two girls…”
Here ways must have worked because my sister and I now run a business together. I moved across the country to live just 10 minutes from her. Sometimes our husbands say, in moments of frustration, “Maybe you should just be married to her!” My mother’s lesson carries through everything, reminding us that however weighty it gets growing a young business, our sibling relationship is the important one. It’s a lesson we now teach our own children and remind ourselves of every day.
In fact, just after we got this request from THE FAMILY GROOVE to be in its Mom on the Street column, my sister and I got into a rare sibling blow-up. After a few cooling-off days, consideration of the business we run together was important, but tending to the sister relationship was where she and I both headed. And truth be told, the only thing I could have considered writing about was my sister, our relationship and how my mom taught us to nurture and protect it and each other. It’s the biggest gift she could have given us. (PS—Mom, we’ve made up!)” |
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 Naomi Hattaway lives in a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio with her husband and three little ones: Terran, who is 13 and not so little, Tony, a rambunctious, talkative four year old, and Mia, a precocious two year old. Naomi recently launched Rock-n-Tot (www.rock-n-tot.com), a nationwide series of events for the whole family, with her partner, Liz Weirshousky. Here's what she has to say:
“I have to admit that I spent most of my growing up years frustrated with my mother, and didn't appreciate her. I had no way to understand the position she was in, and what being a mother entailed. She was a single mother, raising four children and homeschooling us at the same time. Even though I remember clearly thinking that she didn't know much of anything, and that I was by far more intelligent and savvy than she was (you know, when I got into that nasty stage of being a teenager?), something she said to me has stuck with me and is invaluable to me: 'Trust your gut instinct . . . and then always get a second opinion.'
That might sound a bit bizarre, but I find it holds true in my life Women are given that gut instinct concerning children, husbands, friends, businesses, keeping loved ones safe and healthy, etc. Even though I am aware of the gut instinct that I have, I often question my decisions. I also am painfully aware that even though my mothering instincts are powerful, I also know that I'm not perfect. Reminding myself to seek the advice and counsel of someone I trust is always a wise plan.
Now, that doesn't mean that I take all of that advice to heart, and it doesn't mean that I always agree with the suggestions given. I try to look at everything with an open mind and swallow my pride enough to ask for help and assistance. I find that it strengthens the relationships that I have when I trust someone else enough to ask what they think.
I'm still trying to make it an everyday conscious decision to first and foremost, trust my gut, but to also make a habit of getting a second opinion.” |
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 Kathleen Whitehurst, an entrepreneur living in St. Helena, California, and mother of two grown children, celebrated her nine-year anniversary as a breast cancer survivor on February 8. The co-inventor of the award-winning DaysAgo Digital Day Counter (www.howmanydaysago.com), Kathleen created a special edition Pink DaysAgo, and is donating proceeds from sales of this gadget to breast cancer research in celebration of her monumental anniversary. Here's what Kathleen has to say:
'This year, I celebrated my ninth year as a breast cancer survivor. In 1999 when I had a mastectomy and started chemotherapy, my oncologist said, “Kathleen, 60% of your survival will be because of your attitude.'
I took that to heart. I reflected on what my mother always said while I was growing up. 'Tomorrow is a new day. Stand tall, put your shoulders back and press forward'—this is what my grandmother had told my mother. Mom lost her dad to cancer when she was fourteen and this advice had helped her cope. It also gave her strength and wisdom which helped her raise 11 children.
Those words of my mother helped me cope with health challenges, particularly lupus and breast cancer. The message was that life is not over when you are told you have breast cancer. My mother’s words helped me accept my daughter Jamie’s challenge in 2002 to do the Three-Day Avon Breast Cancer Walk with her. We did put our shoulders back and press forward, covering 60 miles in three days.
And tomorrow is a new day. After passing the five-year survivor mark, a friend and I came up with an idea for a product, a digital day counter called DaysAgo, which tracks among other things how long your food has been in the fridge. And Jamie conceived the pink special edition of the product to remind women when 30 days have passed since their last breast self-examination—so there will be many more tomorrows for women all over America and the world.” |
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