mama monday: link-a-lot

Here are a few of my favourite sites related to all things mama.  My love of babies dressed as bookworms is only surpassed by my love of witty writing so I hope you'll enjoy the selection.  Not all sites are suitable for work, men who are squeamish, or those with no sense of humour.

This site, called "Mila's Daydreams" was featured in the Globe and Mail last week.  It stars the daughter (Mila) of a mom (Adele) from Helsinki.  It's reached Antoine-Dodson-esque fame in a short amount of time since it's the cutest thing since Anne Geddes.  And 87% less saccharine.

I'm so proud to say I know these people.  Melissa, due on Thansgiving, and her husband, Jonathan, have been updating her Tumblr site, "Melissa Börger", with week-by-week countdown photos of the pregnancy.  Best.

"Pacing the Panic Room" was the original (and rudimentary, in my opinion) inspiration for Melissa's site.  Photographer Ryan took weekly pictures of his wife, Cole, leading up to the birth of their daughter, Tessa.  American Apparel heard of the project and began to send Cole maternity samples to wear in the shots!  The rest is blogging history.  For a completely adorable video of the whole process, click here.

A writer and friend of mine from university, Angela, started her blog, "The Half-Assed Housewife" a few years ago and is still not receiving the global accolades that her writing deserves.  Wife, mother (biological and of the fostering variety), knitter, vegetarian cook, and one of the funniest people I know.  The image below is from a notorious post you can read here.

New parents (as in, just found out they were pregnant a few weeks ago) Nik and Thea are friends of mine from university.  Their blog, "The Craptastics", is occasionally updated by Nik who still writes prose that can make me laugh out loud.  His poetry sucks though.

The original blogger-turned-celebrity, "Dooce", stands alone as my favourite blog of all time.  I once read through several months (years?) of her archives in one sitting.  Author (of blog and books) Heather likes to talk about wifehood, motherhood, living in Utah, her dogs, poop and boobs.  And that wasn't in order of prominence.

wifersize wednesday: margot tenenbaum, a case study

I have a friend, Angela, who writes much better and wittier than I do and who recently became a mother. Long before Gabe (or "behbeh", as she fondly refers to him in her blog) appeared on the scene however, she and her husband were parents of the fostering sort.

I vaguely recall them giving updates on their application process (I was a young, wild, single 20-something at the time and like way more interested in cute shoes than I was in their life-altering decisions) and, then, what seemed like a few weeks later (I think it was years), they were attending our wedding with a child in tow. A foster child. He was adorable and, somehow, Angela and her husband looked more adorable with him. The girl I had attended university with, had perfected my writing craft with, and had made lewd jokes with, had turned into a foster mom.

Before we were married, Andrew mentioned that he had been inspired by a youth leader and his wife who adopted. At the time (and, to be honest, sometimes even now) the idea intimidated me. I had always dreamed of being a mother but via the regular, grow-an-embryo-in-my-uterus kind of way. Mothering someone else's child? Calling it my own? What if I didn't bond to him/her? Or, worse yet (especially in the case of fostering), what if I did?

I am still in awe of and inspired by couples such as Angela and her husband, that influential couple in Andrew's life, and Carlos and Catherine who in the process of adopting a boy. It makes me wonder: would I have it in me? I'm not sure what the "it" even is. Love? Endurance? Goodness?

I'd be worried that I'd duplicate the scene from The Royal Tenenbaums of Royal stating, "This is my adopted daughter, Margot Tenenbaum."

It's not a question we have to address any time soon, but it's a question that lingers. What are your thoughts, stories, and opinions on adoption/foster care?

"I would like to thank what this film is about for me which are the moms that take care of the babies and the children no matter where they come from."
- Sandra Bullock, 2010 Oscar acceptance speech for The Blind Side