Operation Tubetop

This is a satire piece that I really enjoyed writing. Being a mom nowadays is tough. I'm not saying that previous generations haven't struggled with motherhood, but with the dawn of the Internet, there is a lot of constant pressure. Stay at home mom? You aren't a feminist. Working mom? Why did you have a child if you aren't going to spend all day with them. Co-sleeping? Your child is screwed. Sleeping on their own from birth? Your child is screwed. You lost the baby weight and fit into a size 2? So vain. You haven't lost the baby weight and sweat pants love you? What kind of example are you setting for your child? Post a lot of pictures of your child on Facebook? A little too obsessive mommy. Don't post pictures of your child on Facebook? Odd, paranoid mommy. You literally cannot win as far as the Internet goes. I have been blasted in the past for lots of things and while it isn't fun, I am growing a thicker skin. I truly think that a perfect mother is one w...

I did it! 31 hours with no social media and no Internet! Was it tough? Yes. But it wasn't impossible. I needed the break and I definitely think it was a great thing to try. I did kind of wake up super early this morning and look at my phone. There were about 30 Facebook notifications which is actually better than I expected. I half expected a whole thread on my wall with people mocking me. Only a couple of people tried baiting me but I stayed strong. Since I am nothing if not dramatic, I decided to write a log about my day without my beloved Internet. So here it is! 6:00- Wake up, reach for phone. It's in Airplane mode. Well played, last night's Tova. Well played. 6:30- Want to kvetch about Daylight's Savings Time. Can't. Whole online world is probably bitching in unity. Feel so alone. 7:00- Crawl into living room to watch Formula One. Perfect photo opportunity for Instagram about watching Formula One. Must resist. 7:30- Wan't to post that the new Ca...

Well, hey everybody! How are we today? Me, I'm good today. Better than the last couple of days to be honest. Thursday was such a mess and I thought things had calmed down but they picked up again on Friday. I can handle people questioning things, but I have a hard time with people not doing some research before they approach the castle with pitch forks. It is frustrating. We have to be a cohesive unit because that is what makes us stronger. Fractures lead to doubt and can cause long-lasting damage to the community and that is all I am going to say about that. But the Internet sometimes... wow. Everyday I learn something new about people and about me. I need to learn to walk away sometimes and I am getting better. Moving on....The awesome news (which I already posted about) is that on April 2nd, Hard Rock Heals (the Hard Rock Cafe global charity) is organizing a great event at the Hard Rock Cafe Vienna to recognize World Autism Day. There will be breakfast and a live jazz band a...

And as promised: another guest post! This one is from my dear friend Sarah. I have worked with Sarah for about 5 years and we are terrible influences on each other. We cackle daily and spend countless hours coming up with new ways to torture Office Twin (I am reminded of the time we made him put 8 Altoids in his mouth pretending we had the same amount in our mouths. We had none). It's fantastic. I am honoured to call her a friend and she is honoured to call me a numpty. Did I mention she's British? So here is an awesome tutorial about making lobster print PJ bottoms. Follow her on Instagram  here  Her user name is Scarethread and she makes fantastic things! Enjoy!  p.s. Sarah, this gif's for you... A couple of years ago, I bought the best pair of pyjamas I have ever owned. Ever. I bought them from an online shop called Hush, and they had the most adorable lobster pattern on them. I pretty much lived in them. Chances were, if I was in my home, you would find me prou...

So last night was my first night in a while to just go out and have some drinks and relax. While I do go out, often it is autism related and Mama needs a break sometimes. I originally had plans to meet a friend for dinner but she had to cancel. Instead I first had a quick drink with a friend at our local haunt and then I met another friend at another local: an Italian wine bar just up from the Pilgramgasse Ubahn station. I left work in a fantastic mood, ready to get my drink on and to talk and laugh but the Internet had other plans that afternoon, my friends. I received a private message from a mom with a screen shot of the start of a shit storm. As I have mentioned before, the Hard Rock Heals charity organization, in association with Hard Rock Cafe Vienna, is hosting a Hard Rock Goes Blue event for World Autism Day. This incredible event will help raise money for my organization: Autism in Vienna. The breakfast will have live jazz and an art display and I get to make a speech. The...

As most of you know, I have a beautiful little boy who has autism. He has a form of regressive autism which means it did not manifest until he was about 2.5 years old. He had about 80 words in his vocabulary and was incredibly communicative and was seemingly neurotypical. Over a few months, this disappeared and it was heart breaking. But three and a half years later, we are seeing him develop and grow and a large part has to do with the amazing therapy he is getting. I wouldn't trade my little boy for the world and of course, my mission in life now involves autism... which is something I never ever expected... and I feel like things are starting to get under control. Kind of. While we of course have our struggles and our heart break, we also experience joy and celebration. I decided to dedicate part of this blog post to talking about one aspect of autism: how to talk to a parent of a child with autism. This, of course, is from my point of view and of course varies from parent to pa...

Happy Tuesday! Tuesdays are often the hardest day of the week. They aren't Mondays (which are usually o.k. for me. I love the start of anything new), but they also aren't the middle of the week. They are kind of like not properly crisp bacon. You'll eat it, but you won't love it. Wrote the Jew... Anyway, this evening I have dinner plans with a friend at a Vietnamese restaurant called TaTa and I am very much looking forward to it! Otherwise, those are the only plans out this week which is absolutely perfect after so much chaos. Last night the Husband was out until about 9 and when he got home, I decided to go for a short run. As I keep mentioning (so I don't talk myself out of it and deal with the public shame), I am doing the Frauenlauf in the middle of May. I did it two years ago and did it in 34 minutes. I'm not fast, but I'm solid. But this year, my goal is to complete the 5K in 31 minutes. Is this a dumb challenge? Most definitely so! The good news i...