We're famous ...

A few months before Mother's Day, one of Ashley's friends mentioned her friend is the editor of 225 Magazine and she wanted to volunteer Ashley for the Mother's Day issue featuring "working Mothers." Although hesitant, Ashley was able to ensure that she would be able to approve what was eventually published. The best part, though, was the photo shoot!

The photographer came by one day when the girls would be home. They got some great shots ...

After it came out, several people we know stopped Ashley and the girls to say "Hey. I saw you in 225 Magazine!" Pretty cool to be famous! EB was especially excited about it since so many of the teachers at her school mentioned it (even in the carpool line) and her classmates brought the magazine to school to show her and share in the excitement.

Here are the unedited answers she submitted to 225:

My biggest challenge:

... is figuring out how to deal with the fact that I live a state away from my extended family. I love the life my family is creating here in Baton Rouge -- our church home, our careers, our friends, my daughters’ schools and all that they are able to do in this city. But, having grown up with both sets of grandparents in the same city and extended family all around, I never imagined raising my own family in a city without other family members around to be a part of our daily lives. For now, I’m thankful for FaceTime, phone calls, and the ability to make quick trips to Mississippi and Alabama to see our family whenever we want, though it’s never often enough.

My advice for working moms:

... is the same advice I'd give to all parents (both moms and dads that work both inside and outside the home). Namely, that we should think about what is really important to us in the current year or phase of life as well as in the future and to create conversations within our work-places that question the taken-for-granted assumptions we have about our careers and families. I'd also suggest trying to think outside what we're often taught to expect to do -- I know women and men who all want to be great parents and it's up to us to determine (both as individuals and within organizations) what our individual responsibilities should be within our families and workplaces to make it all work better. Those of us who are lucky enough to even consider questions of work-life balance owe it to others to have these kinds of conversations and to re-envision how organizations can work better for moms and dads. We all want and benefit from happy, healthy, and productive families, so we should all be invested in figuring out how it can work best.

What's the biggest thing you learned from your mother:

... that we can show our love for others through our actions. My mom did everything when I was growing up; she was my Sunday school teacher, Girl Scout troop leader, my 8th grade English teacher, shopping partner, Jr. Beta Club sponsor, and was at every school event, practice, and competition, all while teaching middle-school and high-school English for 25+ years. As cliché as it sounds, I appreciate her as a mother more and more each year as I begin to attempt to do all that she did now with my own daughters. If I could go back to high school and change one thing, I'd name her my Star Teacher since she obviously deserved it over everyone else. I've made lots of mistakes as a daughter, and she never let me know it.

How I connect with my kids:

Since my girls are little, we spend a lot of time making Lego towers, working on art projects or building new creations, playing outside and digging in the dirt together, and reading lots and lots and lots of books. But, most importantly, I try to really listen to them and treat them as real people, whether they’re upset or joyful. Their anxieties or frustrations may never feel as important as my own, but they are. I hope that they feel my love for them in how I’m eager to be present and as I try to truly listen.