Deadlines and Disappointments

Thinking I was going to be able to get back to blogging and post about all the stuff that is piling up in my blog folder, I have once again been pulled away towards other projects with tight deadlines.

First there was an invitation to write a 1,000 word article for Exponent II, a literary magazine for Mormon women. An exciting opportunity for sure, and now I'm hoping that my submission justifies the invitation.

Next is preparing for an online TV show through the online TV channel Bellies to Booties where I will be introducing and describing The Birth Survey to expectant and new mothers and birth advocates.

The details of the event:

Event details:
What: The Birth Survey
When: March 17, 2:00pm-3:00 pm
Description:
Whether you are pregnant, have had a baby or are interested in birth advocacy, The Birth Survey has something to offer you. Learn how to use The Birth Survey data to help you in your choice of caregiver and birth location, how you can add your birth experience to the data and how you can become involved in spreading the word about The Birth Survey.

Description of Presentation:
Jenne Alderks, M.Ed., Regional Coordinator Co-Chair will introduce and describe The Birth Survey, an online consumer reporting resource for expectant families and it brings greater transparency to maternity care services.

Don't tell me if you'll be watching or not, I'm nervous enough as it is!

And in other news, I heard from two of the programs I applied for; Public Health and Women's Studies and I was not accepted to either of those programs. I still haven't heard from Public Affairs but all along I've thought that was the least likely. The reasons I was given were three that I anticipated: funding shortages, competition between applicants and not having a close enough fit with a primary advisor. As I've said all along, if I don't get in its just as well because I'll not miss the time at home teaching and caring for my children while they are as young as they are.

If the last couple of months have been any indication, maybe I'm busy enough and involved in advocacy pursuits enough for my tastes that I don't need to take myself away from them for schoolwork.

As I spent all November and December of last year, preparing my PhD applications, I spent all of October writing a submission to the Journal for the Association of Research on Mothering. Last week, it was announced that ARM is going to be shutting down unexpectedly and the upcoming issue that I submitted to will not be published.

The director of ARM, Andrea O'Reilly has submitted an invitation to anyone who is disappointed by this announcement to petition York University to provide the base funding to sustain the Association.

Hello all,

I am meeting with York administration on the morning of Tuesday March 16. If you are inclined but have not yet done so, please send a letter of support for ARM before Tuesday morning. Names and emails for York administration may be found on the “ARM closure” Letter, (March 2, 2010) on ARM’s website: www.yorku.ca/arm Thank you once again for all the support. Andrea O’Reilly, Founder and director, ARM

To keep updated on ARM's effort to stay open, join the facebook group Friends of the Association for Research on Mothering.

I also discovered that I missed the deadline for submitting a proposal for The National Council on Family Relations Conference on the topic of childbirth trauma effects on family relationships between the mother and her partner and herself, her new baby and other children. Given the derth of information on the topic, it likely would have been difficult to get enough together for a proposal, but I'm especially sad about this one because I won't have a good reason to visit Minneapolis, Minnesota (where the conference is being held) to visit my colleague for Solace for Mothers who lives in the area.