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Happy Mother’s Day! $25 & Under

Happy Mother’s Day! $25 & Under – Part One

by Sherri Caldwell – The Rebel Housewife®
https://rebelhousewife.com

As a Mom, I could easily rattle off a dozen ways, and more, in which I could be fabulously gifted on Mother’s Day for under $25. (In response to a challenge from NerdWallet — this is probably not what they had in mind, but there you go. I appreciate the great suggestion and motivation to do a Mother’s Day blog post this year!)

Here’s a Quickie: FIVE Best Gifts Under $25 For Mom:


  1. A BOOK (my most-favorite thing!) or gift card to Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble. Specific suggestion? Shameless plug: Rebel Housewife Rules: To Heck With Domestic Bliss! or anything by Erma Bombeck — trust me, she’ll love it.

  2. Lunch at my favorite restaurant. You do know Mom’s favorite restaurant, right? (This Mom’s is La Fonda Latina – Atlanta).
  3. Candles/Flowers (preferably plants) – so many choices! Check this out:
    Candles (BBW) — Ooh, how ’bout them candles? (LOVE those flameless ones for outside!)
  4. CHOCOLATE — and not the cheap stuff you can buy in the check-out lane at the grocery store; at least go to the candy aisle and get some decent truffles. Look for Lindt LINDOR Assorted Chocolate Truffles. Yum.
  5. Jewelry — watches, earrings, bracelets/anklets, oh my! — Amazon Jewelry Sale.
    My top picks — and, coincidentally, Happy Mother’s Day to ME:





There you go…easy! Now, if you want to go super-special, under-under $25, check Part Two for some other thoughts and ideas:

Happy Mother’s Day! $25 & Under – Part Two

Mother’s Day: Thru the Years

As a new mother, 18 years ago, for my first and five-or-so subsequent Mother’s Days, I needed nothing more than TIME — for myself. The greatest imaginable gift for those early, blissful, exhausted Mother’s Days would have been a coupon book or certificate of offerings from friends, family, husband, neighbors…anyone…TIME: an offer to change a diaper; baby’s hour out; nap-time for Mommy; Date Night w/Daddy; 15 minutes to go to the bathroom or take a shower; a delivered meal. All free, or nearly so, but of inestimable worth to the new Mommy. (Of course, jewelry is always appropriate, especially birth-stone jewelry or mother’s jewelry — or diamonds, always perfect! Not necessarily under $25, or under-under, but I digress…)

Five years later (noting I had three children, age five & under, at this point), I treasured every toddler and kid-made arts & crafts symbol of love: the macaroni necklaces, handpainted plant pots; “stained glass” paper creations, thumbprint-decorated cardstock photo frames, ceramic handprints in clay. If my kids slapped glue and glitter paint on a stick, I loved it. I can still visualize those precious gifts, wrapped in simple tissue paper, so eagerly given by those little hands, the super-big-hugs. I still have many of those wonderful, priceless gifts.

As the mother of teenagers, 13 years later, there is a cat’s-in-the-cradle aspect to everything, and the ideal gift is TIME — with my kids. Appreciation. “I love you, Mom.” A family dinner at home (without having to cook or clean up after) — “you take it easy today, Mom.” A kid who might pick up their own dirty clothes, turn their own stinky socks rightside out, even run a load of laundry — woo! Another excellent idea for teenagers: help Mom with the TECHNOLOGY! Set up a ringtone for her; show her how to download and listen to music she would actually like, or a cool app; figure out for her why it’s making that noise, or that light keeps flashing, or why it won’t do what I want it to (whatever it is).

As a Mom, I can tell you– Mother’s Day does not need to be expensive or extravagant — truly, it shouldn’t be — to be special. How these 18 years slipped away so quickly, I don’t know. Everyone said they would, and they were right.

So relax.

The happiest Mother’s Days are completely free: “I love you, Mom. Thank you.”
I need to go get a nose-wipie (Kleenex) now…
Happy, Happy Mother’s Day – Make it Special.

Live Blogging Adventures: Big Data Week



In a week that includes my 7th grade virtual school student going to a very real-world testing location every day to take the Georgia CRCTs…AND my crazy mother packing up and moving from Georgia to Washington State…AND my 10th grade daughter conquering the world with power smashes and aced serves, playing high school varsity tennis as a sophomore — and winning! — in the state championship preliminaries…all this week…

It’s also BIG DATA WEEK:ATLANTA!!!
Hosted by Emcien Corp, a company with which I am intimately involved.
[Disclosure: My husband is a co-founder and the Chief Technology Officer of Emcien.]

This is a Very Big Deal, on a level that I, as a non-techie, could not have expected, in terms of international scope, big-corporate participation, the calendar of activities scheduled, and the number of people involved and so very, very enthusiastic about the Next New Thing in Technology: Big Data.

Big Data is everything, from the location & use of your cellphone, to online transactions, to what you put in your shopping cart at the grocery store, to healthcare, to your social media activities. It is mind-boggling, and in many ways downright creepy, how much information is out there, the extent of our individual & collective digital footprint, and how that information can be used.

So, in the midst of CRCTs, State high school tennis competition, and my crazy mom, counting down the days to high school graduation (exactly 30) and my oldest son’s departure to the Navy (OMG, exactly 60 days from today)…I am visiting the World of Big Data and live blogging my experiences as a non-techie writer in the techie world. Adventures indeed:

Literary Rebel & New Rebel Review – Aug 2012

August 2012 – Atlanta

The kids are back to school already in Georgia, as of August 6th, so The Rebel Housewife is back at it (even though I still have one at home in virtual school with Georgia Connections Academy).

I am pleased to announce I am writing a new blog IRL for Midtown Patch – Patch Media, part of the Huffington Post Media Group, is an AOL company:


Literary Rebel – The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks


“Literary Rebel, Sherri Caldwell, blogs about books, reading and literary events in Midtown. This week, Midtown Book Group ventured forth on a field trip, in search of HeLa cells at Georgia Tech.”

While RebelHousewife.com is not all about books, all the time, sometimes it is, especially on Rebel Reviews, so check out the companion piece (it’s different than the Patch article):

Rebel Review: BOOK GROUP REVIEWS: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
“Fascinating Science – Tragic Biography”

Literary Rebel & Book Group News

In Real Life, as we say, your Literary Rebel coordinates the long-running Midtown Book Group in Atlanta at Barnes & Noble/Georgia Tech. Book group is one of my most-favorite offline commitments and something I look forward to on the 2nd Wednesday of every month — for the last SIX YEARS, come September 2012. I love my book group!

In honor of Six Years of Reading Together in Midtown (and a new blogging gig – Literary Rebel), I am posting The List of Books We Have Read here on RebelHousewife.com in Rebel Reviews for bibliophile reference and consumption(!).

Over six years, our very diverse group read winners & losers, stinkers & the sublime, books we loved & books we hated. Way back in September 2009, the group started rating each book, so I include those Midtown Book Group Official Ratings, as well, and update them each month for our members and The List.

If you are looking for book possibilities, for yourself or your book group, check it out:

Midtown Book Group: Books We Have Read

Furthermore, for your biblio-fanatic pleasure and temptation…

Midtown Book Group: Upcoming Selections

August (08/08/12) – The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
by Rebecca Skloot
Sept (09/12/12) – Atlanta’s Ponce de Leon Avenue: A History
by Sharon Foster Jones
October (10/10/12) – The Snowman
by Jo Nesbo
November (11/14/12) – Fahrenheit 451: A Novel
in honor of the late RAY BRADBURY
December (12/12/12) – POETRY – Native Guard: Poems
by Natasha Tretheway

Happy Reading!

Home Again, Home Again — New Year Ahead


Home again, home again…

It is December 27th, and I am trying to come up with something profound and thought-provoking, optimistic and reassuring for the New Year. Only 4 days to go, and 467 words for this year-ending missive.

Another brand-new year, 2012…so many challenges, so many new possibilities: where to start? I almost wish we were moving – I like to move – the chance to re-organize, deep-clean and de-clutter. But we’re not, and that’s okay, too. There are plenty of good things about NOT moving, like loving our location and community, stability, not having to go through all those address changes for utilities, driver’s licenses, schools, checks, address labels, etc. I like where we are, I just wish we could re-organize, deep clean and de-clutter, get rid of the old big-screen TV (who knew it would be so hard to get rid of what was, a decade ago, the latest in modern technology and home entertainment – and now doesn’t work anymore?!) and buy a new couch.

Since we knew we were not moving this year (our lease was up, we extended), and with our oldest kid a senior in high school next year, knowing we will be losing him so soon to college and beyond, we decided to Go BIG this year for Christmas. Instead of presents and all the usual routine, we took the kids on a fabulous Road Trip & Caribbean Cruise Adventure. We were gone nine days (six onboard) and it was amazing. I can’t write about that, yet, though, in case the major women’s magazine to which I pitched the article responds affirmatively (fingers crossed, everybody!). So…

I can’t think of any New Year’s Resolutions, either. Well, other than to land another article in a major magazine, I’d like to get back to that. And to update and revitalize The Rebel Housewife – it’s definitely time, but that is so overwhelming, I don’t even know where to start. With the 10th Anniversary of the Rebel Blog & Rebel Reviews coming up this year, I feel like a dinosaur. Apparently, I need to make the move to WordPress! Update my logo design! Figure out what to do with all those archives! Develop my Facebook presence – make a landing page! Twitter! Google+! LinkedIn!

Arrrggghhhh! I just did figure out how to add pictures to my blog posts – and how to announce the updates on Facebook & Twitter – let’s celebrate!

As I work my way through the post-vacation laundry, trying to get everything put away, I have decided to clean out my closet, which is certainly a resolution-worthy intention. If only it were as easy as cleaning out my email inboxes, which I did earlier today: from hundreds of messages to about a dozen. The To Do List is calling, including two new Rebel Reviews to close out the year. Perhaps I will come up with another couple of New Year’s Resolutions in that mess…or maybe not.

Happy New Year —
Live, Love & Laugh in 2012!

www.facebook.com/TheRebelHousewife

Formerly Reluctant Facebook Enthusiast

Because of Dear Hubby, the tech geek (affectionately, of course), I have been online and blogging for a very long time…coming up on a decade in 2012 for this blog, as a matter of fact. More and more I feel like the grand dame of bloggers — the sexy, fun, vibrant one, of course. [Congregation responds: “Of course!”] And so, here we are, 10 years later, and everything is different in the blogosphere. Things that were working five years ago, three years ago, even just last year, don’t work anymore, in terms of revenue, interest and technique…to name just a few. It hasn’t even been a gradual evolution of marketing, audience and technology. No, more like an epic revolution — a Digital Spring, if you will, every six months!

While I may have been hesitant to fully embrace change in the past (or just too darn busy keeping up with life in The Real World), as an author, columnist, reviewer, freelance journalist, blogger and now SMM (Social Media Mom), it’s time to update, renovate, rework, repurpose and revitalize the old girl.

Check it out & LIKE (please) — but come right back, because, of course, I have a couple more thoughts on this for you, before I lose you to the awesomeness that is, indeed, Facebook:

www.facebook.com/TheRebelHousewife


Having put that out there, I have been thinking about the Evolution — er, sorry, the
REVOLUTION(s) of Social Media on The Rebel Housewife…

Twitter @RebelUpdate

Twitter seemed to be the first legitimate uprising in Social Media, and I loved it, for a time, as I mentioned in June 2009:

However…interpersonal and professional communication is changing rapidly in the modern technology-addicted age. Even I have noticed. In the past couple of months, it seems everybody, every organization, every company, large and small, is on Twitter and/or one of the other big social networking sites. I am happy to Twitter, and have fairly successfully acclimated to it, but I’m not going to be MySpace-ing or FaceBook-ing any time soon. The biggest reason not: TMI!

In general, I’ve discovered my preference for receiving 140-character updates over longer emails, articles, newsletters, etc. – just the facts, please! I also discovered I like the limitation of 140 character messages when sending – Too Much Information, people. I am trying to simplify my life and suppress my own natural tendencies toward verbal spew…

I twittered happily through the summer of 2009, experimented with the concept of TWOGGING (as in, Twitter + Blogging = <3), but that didn't really seem to take off. I embraced 140-character updates. I liked that it was impersonal, that I could welcome the world to my public Twitter feed and not worry too much about privacy, since those little Tweets disappeared into the Twitterverse in a matter of minutes and really, what could you give away in 140 characters? [As it turns out, quite a lot in some cases, i.e. Anthony Weiner, but that was much later…] I indulged in Following, clicking the yes, please! for every passing interest and tenuous connection.

Twitter quickly became overwhelming. Seriously. A lot too impersonal, like thousands of people standing on line in a huge crowd blurting out soundbites. Twitter = Tourette’s. It became increasingly difficult to engage with anyone or keep up with anything in the constantly-updating stream. I still check in, every once in a while, but I have realized, just as I am not that extroverted, party snippet, ADD-kind-of-girl in the Real World, I’m not that chatty or energetically interactive on the Internets, either. I like conversation and less sporadic interaction.

To Facebook or Not To Facebook…

And so we come to…Facebook. The Evil Empire of Ultimate Exposure and Disclosure, or so I thought, as I mentioned in May 2010:

I fought it for YEARS…but I am finally on the FaceBook and none too happy about it.

It is all so overwhelming: too much information, infinite points of contact and messaging, strangers lurking, inconvenient intrusions and the biggest potential time-suck I can imagine, especially for addictive personalities and compulsive sharers (I am/have been a member of both groups) — no offense to my rabid FaceBook Friends who know how to FB and enjoy it, obviously a great deal.

Ha — or should I say, LOL — what a difference a year makes! I have since had my come-to-Jesus with Facebook, and I love it sooooo…

I joined FaceBook that summer, with a personal profile, for one reason only: to interact with our school community at the time, Georgia Cyber Academy, which was all virtual, with 6,000 students and families all over Georgia. Facebook was the primary means of communication and interaction among parents about school, activities, local offline events and everything related.

Once I joined and put it out there, personally, people found me, I found people and now I have almost 100 Friends, which is more than enough. People take all different approaches to Facebook — from the very personal and intimate profile page to very public profiles and pages, with hundreds or thousands of virtual strangers hanging on every status update (or so they think). I prefer to know and have some connection to the people with whom I am communicating, interacting and sharing updates of my life and family — with photos — on my personal profile, anyway.

I tried to Facebook small, in the beginning. I enjoyed the interaction within the online school community, and then it started getting bigger. I discovered old friends from high school I hadn’t seen or talked to in 25 years. And more found me. I connected with Dear Hubby’s extended family all over the country. And more found me. Local friends and other random, wonderful connections. Ditto. And finally, just recently, on my personal profile, it happened: a Friend Request from a stranger, related by blood — a half-sister, long-lost, which is a long story for another time, found by Facebook. And more found me.

So I am loving Facebook. It shrinks the big world and keeps us connected. To me, that is a wonderful thing. I even set up the private Facebook Group for parents at our new school to interact and keep in touch.

With my youngest former-homeschooler settling into a new school, it came time to get back to work: monetizing the website, new projects and book proposals, magazine articles and freelance work (all that revitalization I mentioned earlier). It quickly became obvious that Facebook Pages, for businesses, brands and public personalities, is the new calling card, online resume and a quick & easy means of interaction…and that’s where we are today, for now, until the next big revolution…

Asperger’s Syndrome & A New Normal

Logging into my blog account today, I was shocked to discover…
it has been many weeks, months, in fact, since I have finished and published a blog article on RebelHousewife.com. Oh, I’ve started many thoughts, on paper, on post-its, in my head, in TextEdit and Word. There are several waiting patiently on the blog as “unpublished” — wonderful starts about kids, Aspergers Syndrome, homeschooling (kind of), the teenager, the learner’s permit (driving?!) and banishing the XBOX 360 from our home. There are others about books, events, recipes and cost-cutting strategies for family financial survival in tough times.

I seem to have a problem, of late, finishing what I start. I’ve never been a non-closer before and yet here I am…

It has been an eventful couple of months.

I actually logged on today to write a thought about Iceland and Vanity Fair and NPR, volcanoes and economic meltdowns and such, only to make this horrifying discovery. I am going to finish this, and fix the Twitter link on the website and then maybe I can get back to that thought about Iceland…

And maybe that’s the answer. Why can’t I finish anything I start lately? Maybe it’s because, every time I start something, something else comes along to take my attention and focus. The constant distractions of life with a busy entrepreneurial husband, three children and Mocha-the-dog. I don’t work outside the home. I can’t imagine how I would. We no longer have the big house or yard to manage, having downsized to our midtown condo and our one-mile live-work-school-play radius (and loving it!). What excuse could I possibly have to be such a slacker?

We started this school year with three kids in three different schools: 15yo Puberty Angst Boy in 9th grade at the high school; 12yo Drama Queen in 7th grade at the middle school; and 9yo ADHD Phenom started the year in 4th grade at the brand-new elementary school.

Ah, there’s another clue to what’s happened: Turns out, our very bright, very ACTIVE 9yo ADHD Phenom is not ADHD at all (okay, well, that’s a whole ‘nother start that I do need to finish, kind of controversial). He has Asperger’s Syndrome, which is high-functioning Autism, so he is our 9yo Aspy Phenom. Not a lot of people know what that is, or have any idea what Asperger’s Syndrome is (we didn’t), so I have some explaining and education to do on that point, I know.

But before I can explain, educate or crusade for a better understanding of Asperger’s Syndrome, I needed to understand it better myself and live with it for a while.

* * An aside: If you are at all interested in Asperger’s Syndrome, please read the wonderful letter Especially for Grandparents of Children With Asperger Syndrome by Nancy Mucklow. It is appropriate and highly relevant for anybody close to or in the life of a child diagnosed with Asperger’s.

So what happened next: In January, we brought the 9yo Aspy Phenom home. The brand-new public school was on a shake-down cruise, getting all of their new-school processes, programs and procedures worked out. We were on our own shake-down cruise, trying to figure out and adjust to this new information and really-quite-remarkable aspect of our son — finally, we had understandings and strategies that were actually working and helping him, whereas the ADD strategies — including the medication he was on for more than two years — never served him well. The school couldn’t keep up, couldn’t meet his needs academically or provide the structure and stability he needed.

He now attends school from home, although he is not technically a “home schooler.” We enrolled him in 4th grade in the Georgia Cyber Academy (GCA), an online public charter school supported by the Georgia Department of Education. As a public school, the schedule and curriculum is established and GCA provided everything we need to attend school from home: books, workbooks, novels, math manipulatives, even all of the materials needed for science experiments! We have a teacher we work with, mostly online, who monitors progress and administers his IEP (yet another complicated issue for another time). We have an abundance of opportunities for social interaction, with field trips and meet-ups and activities all over, all the time.

And there it is: I haven’t been able to finish a thought in months, or devote the time I used to have to lose myself in reading, researching, writing, reviewing or blogging, because I am teaching and experiencing the 4th grade all over again with my 9yo Aspy Phenom. It has been amazing — not EASY, as this has been a HUGE adjustment for both of us and for the entire family. It has been a very challenging transition, but worth it to have the time and opportunity to work with and get to know this brilliant child.

Now then, that’s not such a bad reason to be a slacker, after all.
I’m glad I was able to finish that thought.
I am hoping there will be more!

Really?! An app for this, too?

Testing the Squarespace iPhone App…wow…

I might never have to open my laptop computer again. Well, except to print stuff out — and I think even that capability is coming, too.

And maybe big screen shopping. By that I mean being able to see more shopping options on the screen at one time, whether I am browsing clothing, shoes, books, gifts, whatever — I was not talking about big screen TVs (sorry, guys!).

This is amazing.
I am a total iPhone convert.
Blogatcha soon…