The Today Show and Me!

...originally posted on April 3, 2008.  Rumor has it that this segment will will air today at 10:30am on the Today Show,  On the Emily front, she has not forgot my mishap and told the teacher's that "mommy forgot to pick ME up because mommy wanted to be in NYC with Matt Lauer".  Yes, I am already putting money away for a shrink. I can see it now: she will be sitting with a psychologist chatting about how "mommy blogged all the time and forgot to pick me up from school so she could be on tv....... What a terrible mother!"

Seriously, you want to talk to me?  Really, about Mommy Blogging?  You want to know about large corporations targeting the Mommy Bloggers because we... well... have a lot of viewers from all over the country (and world) reading our content?  You think I might have something brilliant to say about collaborative blogging?  Why would anyone want to be a mommy blogger?  Why are people reading and "listening" to blogs? Are we making a living from blogging?  I joined my newest, oh-so-fabulous pals Kristen and Mir for three (ok, more than three) hours of filming by the Today Show. Here ye, here ye....NBC wants to know about ALL OF US Mommy Bloggers! I believe the segment will air some time in the next few weeks.  Until then, my friends, go visit this post and this post because Mir can tell the story much better than I....

But... let me share with you a great "Mommy Moment" that happened yesterday while I was being interviewed.  It will show you why I deserve the "Parent Of The Year Award".  During the interview, my cell phone started to buzz. I could hear the vibrating noise, but was hooked up to the microphone and could not get out of my seat.  The phone kept buzzing, but I was busy, dammit.  It is not like every day you get to interview for a little ol' show that MILLIONS of people will be watching.  It is not like every day I get to hang out in NYC with Kristen and Mir.... the call can wait, right?

I missed ten calls in one hour.  Obviously, something was up.....

The first message was from a school administrator:  "Ms. Asher, Emily has not been picked up from school  We are hoping that you will be here shortly."

The second message came from my Husband.... "Uh Jill, I just got a call from the school.  Who is suppose to pick up Emily?  She is in the office".

Then came a string of calls from all my friends.... "Jill, I know you are kind of busy, but I just got a call from the school.  Should I go and get Emily?"  "Jill, was I suppose to get her?"  "Jill, Emily is really upset!  What should I do?"  "Jill, this is the office again, we are REALLY concerned.  We have not heard from you or your husband. Is anyone coming to pick up your daughter?"

Truth?  I forget to arrange a pickup for Emily. 

Great parenting, huh?  Fortunately, a friend went and picked her up.....and Emily is FINE (thank you for asking!).  Gotta love the guilt and the conversations that are going to happen when I get back to Silicon Valley....   

Credit: Picture from Mir's camera! (in order: Kristen, Mir and Jill)

Original post to Silicon Valley Moms Blog

Comments

[Courtney]

First of all, you look fabulous, Jill! I am really looking forward to seeing you on the Today Show. And I am glad that Emily is fine. They're resilient little buggers, aren't they? ;)

[Lia]

You know what? You were bound to forget something, we all would have. You look so great in the photo!

[Gunfighter]

First, let me echo Courtney. You all look great (I'm a man, so I have to be carfeful about the use of the word "fabulous").

Been there and done that... the phone rings (while I am workig with shooters), and it's the school: "Mr Gunfighter? It's Pat, from school? Um, Olivia is in the office, and we were wondering if you were running just a bit late?"

Turns out that I was thirty miles away... but, that's the beauty of a police car, I guess.

It happens, Jill... what can you do? The good thing is that you have a support network in place!

[pamela]

You all look wonderful! That is pretty funny. You will always have that story to tell. I would have picked her up, they should have called me!

[Jamie R Lentzner]

So exciting - I don't think I can wait a few weeks to see the TV segment... I might wet my pants :). Funny story about your daughter - kids are so much more resiliant than we are. Have a safe flight back!

[Leslie]

OMG, what if the buzzing shows up on the audio? What a great story. Congrats on your fame!

[Robyn]

I have forgotten to arrange for a pick-up when there's no fancy TV show interviewing me in a swanky NYC location. So give yourself a break! I'm sure there was a million things to coordinate.

And you do look so great in the photo. Love the splash of color in your shirt!

[Leslie]

I can't wait to brag, Look! There's my client! That's as close to famous as I think I'll ever get.

[Lisab]

Wow Jill, you even look famous! I can't wait to see my famous buddy on T.V. I'm also glad Emily is doing better.

[Adventures In Babywearing]

Oh no!! But Jill- you look FABULOUS! : )

Steph

[Jill Asher]

Thank you for the kind comments... So let me share a little secret. I am challenged when it comes to putting on makeup... so when I arrived in NYC (just a few hours before the taping), I ran over to Macy's and had the wonderful sales person behind the BENEFIT counter put makeup on me... since we were filming at the restaurant, they did not have someone there to do our makeup... and, since I was told to put on "some extra" makeup, I went into a state of panic.

Thank you BENEFIT at NYC Macy's!!!

So there... you have it. I will never look that way (in makeup) again... unless the kind folks at Benefit want to show up at my house every morning - ya know, right before I take my kids to school!

[liz]

wow, you all look amazing. and seriously? who WOULDN'T want to talk to you?
your story only illustrates why the "mommy blogging" community is so vital--it keeps us all grounded and reminds us that we are not just mothers, but HUMAN. sometimes we can't get the phone and sometimes we forget to arrange pickups.

[Tara Manning]

Jill (and all).
I am really looking forward to seeing this interview and I really applaud your efforts for creating this community of bloggers.

I am curious: Do you find the term "mommy blogger" demeaning? Aren't you more than a mommy blogger, and wouldn't you just label yourself and this group a select and impressive group of women bloggers?

I am not trying to put down your efforts, because the list of women in your bio section is impressive, to say the least. I just always cringe when I hear the term MOMMY BLOGGER and I was wondering your thoughts, or the thoughts of your contributors.

Tara Manning

[Nicole/wksocmom]

You do look great, Jill, and what a great idea, stopping at Macy's. I was so excited to have Bliss do my make-up, and all I went to was a park after so I made sure to take some pictures. Congrats, also looking forward to seeing this.

[katrin]

The Today Show.... cool!

I just published a book, Mothers Need Time-Outs, Too and my co-authors and I are going to be on FOx news next week. Can I admit to you that what I am most worried about is my makeup? How crazy is that?

They tell you to put on extra make up, but what if you've never used it and overdo it and turn up looking like a ho instead of a serious woman who has written a great book? Who will listen to what I have to say when I'm bright orange and they're wondering how much money I spent on fake tanning?

I'm only half kidding. The other thing I'm worried about is throwing up. It's a live segment. Not a good idea to puke.

On the other hand, we just did some radio and it went well -- it was a blast actually -- so I'm really hoping I get the swing of things!

Katrin, former silicon valley mom
www.momstimeouts.com

[Jill Asher]

Tara.
Gosh, this could be a post in itself... but let me answer for myself, since I can not speak for the rest of our contributors.

I am proud to be labeled or called a Mommy Blogger. That is what I am! I am a mom who blogs about being a parent. I blog about the ups and downs of raising my family. I blog about personal experiences that I have being a mom and parent. At the end of the day, that is what I write about, and very proud to do so!

Oh yeah - and this is a "mommy blog" - hence the name, Silicon Valley MOMS Blog.

Ladies? anyone else have thoughts on being called a mommy blogger?

[Leticia TechSavvyMama]

Hey Jill! Thanks for sharing your 3 hours of fame with me. I can't wait to see the segment air and well, forgetting to arrange a pickup...You are human! :) Congrats on a great day with The Today Show!

[Selfmademom]

This is amazing!! Go you! I love the outfit you got... can't wait to see the segment air. Congrats!

[xiaolinmama]

You three look gorgeous! I love your post Jill - I've gotten that call before and I was JUST gettin my hair done and didn't hear any of the call under the dryer:)

[Felicity at Cubes]

Glad to hear you are not absolutely perfect, Jill! You are still amazing, and I can't wait to see the show.

[Stacey @Real World Mom]

As parents, we all have those "oops" moments. At least you had a really good excuse! LOL!

[Leslie Morgan Steiner]

Hey Jill! You do look fabulous. Make sure we all know when the segment airs!

My question for your husband: did it occur to HIM to go pick your daughter up from school?

[Jo Jo]

As a child, I was left in the dust of my mother's car at school pick-up. My sister and her two friends threw their backpacks in the trunk and got in the car. I threw my backpack in the trunk after them, and slammed it shut. A second later, my mother stepped on the gas, driving away and leaving me at school. I think she mistook the slam of the trunk as the slam of the second car door. But whatever the case, I was a horrified and shocked as a 3rd grader. My mom really drove away, to return 15 minutes later to get me. I was almost in tears, but remember feeling like, "Mom? Are you serious?"

And, about the title, "Mommy Bloggers" I think it would be different if the moms were blogging about another topic (like the tech industry) and were being called "Mommy Bloggers" because they were working from home. That would be insulting. But mothers bonding, sharing, writing about parenting and family life is blogging about motherhood, so the title "Mommy Blogger" just makes sense.

[Mom101]

Tara, I'm with you. hate it. Makes me cringe. No one calls Michael Chabon a daddy writer. But I think that we are all entitled to call ourselves whatever we want.

As for me, I do blog about more than parenting. But I don't mind the moniker Parenting Blogger because I think I do connect to the community because of our shared parenting experiences. Woman blogger is far too broad for me.

Here's my 2 cents (more like 47 cents) from a couple years back, with some excellent discussion both pro and con: http://mom-101.blogspot.com/2006/07/mommybloggings.html

(Sorry for gratuitous self-linkage)

And Jill you look SO freaking fabulous there. I hear you were utterly brilliant with the show and cannot wait to see your piece. Whatever you call yourself in it, it rocks.

[Jill Asher]

Hey Mom101.
First, it was amazing meeting/seeing you (again) in person at CBS. I am such a big fan of your blog, so I feel like I am in celebrity presence every time I see you.... thank you so much for joining us on Friday and for the very kind comment. I am just praying that when they edit the piece, I don't sound like a rambling ass. :)

See/twitter/blog with you soon!

[Jamie]

Congrats on the Today Show appearance! It seems like those school pick up calls always happen at the "best" times. ;)

It was great meeting you last week! I'm looking forward to hearing more about the Deep South Blogs group (or whatever the final name may be!)

[Maria Rivera]

I happen to watch the feature in Today Show and I have it on video. It's at: http://www.bloggingmama.com/dooce-guests-at-the-today-show/

[Kim]

Great comments. Regarding Tara's concerns - I guess I would ask, why is it demeaning to be called a Mom? I have never thought of it as demeaning - and so many of us would argue that it IS the hardest of all of the "jobs" we do. I have never been embarassed to be called a Mom or afraid of having it define me ~ my greatest challenges and greatest acheivements come under that moniker. I don't think it would be demeaning if more women took as much pride in it as they do anything else.