The video clip above, (click here if you can't see it) is of Soledad O'Brien speaking to the Blogalicious attendees via skype video. This was an impromptu interview, but it went so well, which to me showcases the power and versatility of a tool like skype video. One of the most interesting parts of this clip is Soledad talking about her latest Black In America CNN series 'Almighty Debt'. Remember, I previously posted about the DVD Giveaway for this. Anyhoo, as Black Americans we know that we were feeling the pains of economic inequality long before the recession, and in this documentary Soledad really sheds light on the issues Black Americans have surrounding finances, debt, unemployment, and building future wealth for our children.
One of things she said really stood out to me. Quoting Michelle Singletary she said, "If you make two million dollars and spend two million five hundred, you are still broke!" For many of us, the issue is not about how much we make, but how we are spending our money and handling our finances. One of the big things I talked about in my time management post was taking the time to every month, review my budget, pay bills and set aside a savings. While I would personally love to spend more time talking about fixing our finances, I know in all honesty folks don't really want to hear the not so glamorous side of living in my means, buying an economy car, and regularly putting aside $25 to $250 to build a savings. Unfortunately, too many of us are looking for instant gratification fixes or someone else to solve the problem, but the truth is those real, simple, and practical solutions are what more of us need to think about if we want to realistically get ourselves out of debt one family unit at a time.
Thinking about this and several other sessions at Blogalicious I am reminded of the positive changes we as individuals can make within the black community through our blog portals. Your blog is your newspaper, your television, your radio outlet to teach other people and support positive projects. I strive to do this very thing on my own websites and encourage you to do the same. As individuals and also collectively as the black blogging community we can work towards creating the positive changes that we seek.
I'm ending today with two very interesting clips of the Almighty Debt Documentary which will be airing on CNN soon, so look out for that as well.
CNN: Almighty Debt - Are African Americans Happier?
CNN: Almighty Debt - Are African Americans Happier?
Uploaded by thatsfunny. - Watch the latest news videos.
CNN: Almighty Debt - Hundreds Of Applications, No Job
CNN: Almighty Debt - Hundreds Of Applications, No Jobs
Uploaded by thatsfunny. - News videos hot off the press.
Related post: Single Black Women Worth $5?
For all 30 Blogalicious lessons learned, read my series of Blogalicious 2010 Adventures.
A few weeks ago the family and I went to Seafood Fest NC. While driving I overheard my son (age 3) and his aunt (age 10) (I know crazy right) in the back of the car. It sounded like my son was playing with her DSi, but that couldn’t be right because he’s only three. I say to her, "Is he REALLY playing or is he just pressing the buttons to be cute?" She told me he was actually playing the game and I couldn’t believe it! I promptly told my hubby, “Get the camera out! Take a picture of this moment. My boy is growing up!”
The week before that, we were having our usual family fun on Saturday and I was looking for things to buy him for his upcoming birthday (November 18th). At Best Buy he took a liking to the Leapster, so I added it to the list because I LOVE LeapFrog’s educational toys and videos. BUT when I saw him having so much fun with the DSi on our trip, I thought maybe that was the better choice? BUT I quickly decided to stick to the Leapster, because I really wanted to focus on learning games.
While at Blogalicous 2010, I was introduced to Sesame Streets new series of learning video games for Wii and the DS. I couldn’t believe it! I recorded a few video clips below to show you the Wii games in action. They have some great new video games plus they created a bigger, kid-friendly stylus for the DS. I was also lucky enough to snag this 10% coupon code for Sesame Street, if you purchase them on their website, use the code MOMMY at checkout.
Blogalicious: Sesame Street Games For Wii and DS
Did you watch the two videos above? Man, my decisions just got harder. I’ll keep you posted on any new developments. I really want to figure out which handheld game system is better for my toddler AND will give me the best bang for my buck. So for now its Leapster vs Nintendo DS. Hopefully I don’t discover something else to make the picking process even harder.
Before I forget, please remember to vote for my Bedtime Story in the NatureMade Contest. Thanks in advance for your support!
On any given day my work at home mom life is filled with conversations. I respond to emails from followers and clients. I am reading comments and making calls. As fulfilling as it is to work at home, I often miss the hustle and bustle of the 9 to 5 world, the water cooler conversations, and the great connections you make when you meet someone new. Going to Blogalicious reminded me that making an effort to go to events helps me to both see and be seen by the people within my online business / blogging community.
You know how people say, even with new media, word of mouth marketing will never die. I believe the same statement is true about real world networking. Social networking is great, but nothing can compare to meeting face-to-face. At events you get a chance to be apart of those groups of women you feel like you can’t reach online. You get to meet people you’ve known for years, but never met in real life. You also get to meet people who have been following you online for years and you never knew! That by far, was one of the best aspects of my trip. I felt like one of the popular kids in high school. Women I never knew, knew me. I got lots of hugs, lots of “thank yous” for the information I share online, and so many wonderful stories from amazing women entrepreneurs and mom bloggers you should know.
Below I have 15 Amazing Mom Bloggers of Color to share with you. I decided to list 5 women who I knew before the event and 10 women that I met for the 1st time at Blogalicious.
5 I Love These Gals – Absolutely Fabulous Mom Bloggers:
1. Ronnie Tyler is the cofounder of Black and Married with Kids with her husband, Lamar Tyler. I’ve had the pleasure of working with this dynamic duo in the past, but this was the first time we actually met in person. They are doing amazing things online not only through their blogs, but also through their documentaries on black families and relationships.
2. Sherrelle, aka FunkiDivaGirl is a fellow mom blogger and Disney Magical Mocha Mom. I had the pleasure of reconnecting with Sherelle at Blogalicious and meeting her husband, social media expert James Andrews, who just happened to be one of the conference speakers! He discussed the Relationship between Social Media and Television (youtube video link). It was a great session.
3. Lorraine aka AskWifey is also a fellow Disney Magical Mocha Mom and creator of the BlogRollersClub. Lorraine is truly one of those proactive, community building mom bloggers you need to know. It’s always great to see her at an event.
4. Kimberly Seals Allers is one of my idols. She is an award winning author and creator of MochaManual.com. Kim knows this already, but when I was pregnant I purchased and read her book, “The Mocha Manual to a Fabulous Pregnancy.” When I read the chapter in which she decided while pregnant that she wanted to work for herself, I decided to officially become a work at home mom. She inspired me to move forward in actualizing my dream. She surprised me when she joined my social networks and interviewed me for inclusion in her second book! She’s consistently been helpful to me participating in my online parenting events and also connecting with me when she has resources to share. We officially met for the first time at Blogalicious and I got her autograph! I will cherish it always.
5. Onica (Nikki) the creator of Mommy Factor is my partner in positivity and fellow Disney Magical Mocha Mom. We met at the Disney event and have been friends ever since. Trying not to tear up when I write this, but Onica has been one of the few women I’ve met that so genuinely get me and support what I do. Being the information giver, my world is often filled with people asking me for help (which is great), but its rear to find someone like Onica who graciously takes so much time to help me, connect me to people within her circle, and take part in taking my business goals to the next level. We roomed at Blogalicious and had a blast! We hung out in Brooklyn this summer, took our kids to Coney Island, and had a blast there too! She is so sweet, such an amazing mom, and truly my sister-friend for life.
10 First Time Meetings – Absolutely Fabulous Mom Bloggers:
6. Jennifer James I’ve followed for years, but never really met. She is the creator of MommyToo Magazine as well as the very popular Mom Bloggers Club.
7. Leticia aka Tech Savvy Mama is truly a technology pro after my own heart. She is doing some amazing things over at bitmoms.com and I can’t wait to work with her in the future.
8. Boni is a career coach! We both are INROADS alum and we both coach women about their careers, which is very cool!
9. Kim is a fellow mom blogger and creator of imnotthenanny.com. We had a very thought provoking conversation about raising black sons and the unique experiences of not just black mothers but mothers raising biracial children in general.
10. Meeting Jessica, aka That Tech Chick was one of my most memorable moments. She told me that reading my blog (sistasense) has been very motivational and it showed her that she could add more of her own personality and flava to her own blog. Even though I know people read my blog, folks aren’t in the habit of leaving comments about why they read, so meeting many of my readers at Blogalicious, was a great experience.
11. Jeannette is a fellow mom blogger and the creator of TodoBebe! She told me she created this particular website because there was not enough information about toys, books, and other products that were specific to the interests of Hispanic parents. As she spoke I knew we had an instant connection because I created the black parenting blog for similar reasons.
12. Christie cofounded the blog rollers club with Lorraine aka Ask Wifey and she is the host of the BlogTalkRadio Show The ChatterBox Show. As busy moms who often work at home, we had a few funny stories to share about trying to make calls when the kids are trying to get our attention (banging doors and all).
8. Meeting Akilah, aka Execumama, a member of my social network BBWO was also a thrill! Again, I cannot express how personally gratifying it is to hear her say that my work online has helped her. Akilah is a fellow mompreneur doing amazing things online, so being a resource to her (and to you) is truly an honor.
9. Dierdre aka Savvypreneur is an attorney passionate about working with solopreneurs. In addition to sharing this common passion she is also one of the amazing women in my circle. I clearly remember sitting in one of the Blogalicious sessions and Dierdre came to say hello; letting me know she’s been following my journey for years. She even purchased some of my eBooks! How cool is that!
10 - 12. I had to finish this list but not 1 but 3 mom bloggers. The Justices, Fergie, Jonesie and Ny are the mompreneurs behind Blogalicious and MamaLaw. Words cannot express how truly amazing these women are for sharing their vision with us and supporting women bloggers of color in ways that have not been done before.
For all 30 Blogalicious lessons learned, read my series of Blogalicious 2010 Adventures.
A few days ago, I was just browsing through my email and saw a message from lulu.com about a contest from NatureMade to write a bedtime story. I love writing. Before I got so busy writing ebooks world, I started by self publishing some of my poems and children's books on lulu, so I thought I would try my hand at this contest.
I just wrote my entry, a bedtime story entitled, "Let's Play A Game" dedicated to my son Chris. I would love for you to read it and vote for it if you like it. Then share it if you love it! I'm not so lucky when it comes to contests, so I could use ALL the help I can get (lol).
For my fellow entrepreneurs and mommy bloggers I have one final thing to say, always stay in the loop and be aware of what other people are doing in the online world. You might learn something new or earn something new that could make your day a little better than it already is!
Thanks for reading this post and an extra thanks for clicking here to read my story. TTYL -lh
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LaShanda Henry, creator of the Black Parenting Blog shares why you should join the Jump Start Read for the Record Campaign AND her giveaway of this years book: The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. Click Here to Enter Giveaway.
