Celebrating Black Maternal Health Week #BMHW25

Mom and three kids Greetings from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania! Things have been busy. I am still a working mom of three, working full time who is trying to make a difference. I do a lot of things and try to be present so that I can learn from them. I share them on this blog so that we can learn together. Below are some thoughts, hacks, and/or lessons that I have learned from navigating my world. Black Maternal Health Week April 11-17, 2025 I am a Black mom to three wonderful children. I was blessed to have three successful births. While I am an attorney, my third delivery highlighted the potential risks that occur when a physician fails to listen to the birthing person. Initially, I chalked it up to the physician involved and limited it to my personal birthing experience. Then, I learned that I was not special. Overwhelmingly, Black women experience higher rates of birth trauma, birthing complications and negative birth outcomes.  These statistics are what lead to the creation of ...

Random Thoughts from a Working Mom: An Impractical Valentine's Day Gift






I like Valentine's Day. The whole tribute to love thing really resonates with my romantic spirit. In the past, I have had some great Valentine's memories some of which I have chronicled on this blog.
 
I also understand that practical and romance don't necessarily go together. When a woman thinks of a romantic gift from her boyfriend, lover, friend with benefits, her first thought isn't to hope that he stays within his budget. Instead, she hopes for something sparkly and decadent and if he truly loves her, something that is a little too much. That hope probably comes from reading too many fairy tales and watching too many romantic comedies. However, if you want a really romantic story that emphasizes the importance of sacrifice, just read O'Henry's Gift of the Magi, which encourages you to sacrifice your most precious possession for love.

An Impractical Valentine's Day Gift

 
The above notwithstanding, I was truly confused when I received the above notice by email encouraging me to "Plan a Picnic With [My] Valentine".  Given the Polar Vortex that swept the nation, the recent snow storm that ravaged the entire East Coast and Mid-West, and resulted in record low temperatures in every state in the union, I have no idea who the targeted audience was for this advertisement. Perhaps it was intended for all of those insane people who jump into frozen lakes and rivers in the winter or the ice fisherman in Minnesota that were profiled on the Today Show recently who sit outside in the cold while their beards collect ice and drink beer and they grill bratwurst.  

Then again, they may have been targeting Eskimos...
 
 

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