I'm in love with ya baby...

Sunday Jan 31, 2010

I'm in love with ya baby...

...and I don't even know your name.
-Alan Jackson, "I Don't Even Know Your Name"

Regular readers, I'm happy to report that this blog posting has nothing to do with class, social networking, or organizational communication. This will be a straight-up old fashioned "What's new in baby-world" kind of report.

So, I have a problem. It's the same problem I had 2 years ago - we simply cannot decide what to name this baby! We're leaning toward one syllable names, since that works well with Jay. Jay has my initials (JMF), so we considered giving this lil' guy Derek's monogram (DMF). Derek doesn't seem to care about that, but I think it would be kinda cool. We'd like some sort of family tie-in, either with the first or middle names. (I'd feel sorta bad that Jay Michael gets a first and middle name that have special family connections, and CheezeDoodle just gets 2 random names we pulled out of our heads. Or pulled off of the snack aisle at Kroger.) Boy names are just so much harder than girl names!

Here are some of the current contenders:
Luke
Benjamin (would call him Ben)
Drew
Greg
Zack
Dylan
Russell (call him Russ?)
Brent
Reid (was in the final 4 when we picked Jay)

Thoughts? Opinions? We've only got 5 weeks to decide (and I would sure like it to be less than that!!!). Help!

Posted at 06:15AM Jan 31, 2010 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[14]

Hey, you, get off of my cloud

Saturday Jan 30, 2010

Hey, you, get off of my cloud

Hey, you, get off of my cloud
Don't hang around cause two's a crowd
-Rolling Stones "Get off my cloud"

Our second class this week was on social bookmarking. What's that, you ask? Well, I assure you that I'd never heard of it before class. (I may be getting the hang of blogging, but I've never been one of those people on the leading edge of technology. I mean really, my family did not own a single CD or CD player until about a decade after all music was on CD. My dad kept waiting for digital tape to become the big thing.) Delicious.com is one of the more popular social bookmarking options. (Want a demo? Check out this neat YouTube video.) It allows you to save your bookmarks in "the cloud" and allows others to view things that you've bookmarked. You have heard of life in the cloud, haven't you? It's the concept of storing data on web servers that can be accessed from anywhere, not tied to a particular computer. I think it's a cool concept, and I really like the idea of keeping my bookmarks so that I can get to them from anywhere. The social component of social bookmarking is not that exciting to me, though.

Honestly, that's not how I find cool sites. Mostly, I find interesting sites from other people's blogs. Many blogs have a list of "my fave blogs" or something comparable. A lot of those that I read are medically-related. We "heart moms" are frequent bloggers, and many of those that I follow are friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend's blog. But it was especially comforting early on to read about others' experiences with heart surgeries for their babies and to read success stories.

Beyond that, many of the sites I look at often are people who are in real life friends who blog about their day-to-day stuff. I don't look much at organizational blogs - honestly, I don't care what they're up to (even with my favorite companies and nonprofit orgs). Just not really my thing, I guess. I find lots of interesting articles from Slate.com, and a lot of cool sites I discover the old fashioned way - word of mouth.

How about you? How did you discover my blog? How do you find other interesting sites? What websites do you check regularly?

Posted at 03:25PM Jan 30, 2010 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[2]

I wanna talk about Pee...

Wednesday Jan 27, 2010

I wanna talk about Pee...

(just a slight adaptation of the Toby Keith song from my last post!)

In my last post, someone commented that reading my blog was like reading my diary. And it's true - the communication revolution that we're in is all about the blurring of public and private space. Our class this week was about ethics, and I think that blending of public vs. private is a big part of that. Maybe other people don't want me to post pics of our cute kids together - I usually don't because I don't want to put others in a place they aren't comfortable. Maybe friends don't want to be identified by name in my blog - I usually try to use nicknames. Maybe my dear hubby doesn't want me to talk about our family with strangers - he'll get over it. So, where do you draw the line? What information is too much to share in a public forum like this?

Here's a funny story that I would not typically say to a stranger on the street (the same stranger who is completely welcome to stumble upon my blog and read a discussion of our family's bathroom habits). You decide - TMI?

So, we all know what eating asparagus does to you. It makes your pee green, and it makes it smell really funky. Oh, come on - admit it. You totally know what I'm talking about. Well we had asparagus for dinner earlier this week, and Jay was all over it. Like, all over it the way normal kids are all over french fries. (Sidenote - you're wondering how I get my toddler to eat asparagus? My awesome friend TOJ is a nutritionist and has recommended a couple of fantastic books by Ellyn Satter: Secrets of Feeding a Healthy Family and Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense. I am a total devotee - Satter says give your kids what you're eating, and they will learn to eat a variety of foods. And it's totally worked with our kid! My mom says kid #2 will eat nothing but potatoes and vanilla ice cream. We'll see.)

Okay, back to the story. So Derek and I were laughing about how amazingly fast asparagus starts to work its funky smelling magic. And then we began to discuss what it would do to the little man. I mean really, 2 stalks of asparagus in a person with a body weight of 33 lbs has GOT to have a stronger impact than 3 or 4 stalks to a grownup! (No, I am not going to disclose my weight on this blog. See - why do I draw the line there, when I'm willing to talk about my bodily functions?!) So, anyway, we were making bets on how green and how horribly funky the diaper was going to be in the morning. But you know what? There was nothing unusual about the diaper the next day! Babies don't get the funky asparagus pee!

So, weigh in: Too much information? Or funny story? Or interesting scientific discovery?

Posted at 08:19PM Jan 27, 2010 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[5]

I wanna talk about me...

Sunday Jan 24, 2010

I wanna talk about me...

Wanna talk about I
Wanna talk about Number 1
Oh my me my
What I think, What I like, What I know, What I want, What I see...
-Toby Keith, I Wanna Talk About Me

(**grrrr - just wrote a lovely blog post & then got kicked off, and it disappeared! I love technology, but I occasionally want to chuck my monitor out the window! Oh wait. I'm in my window-less office. You know what I mean.**)

So, why I am I here? Not "Why I am I here on this planet?" in the existential sense, but "Why am I blogging about my life online?" Why can I not stop talking about myself?

This blog originally started when I was preggers with my first little one. A few other friends (especially you, Peggy Sue!) had started blogs, and it seemed like a good way to keep friends & family updated about the pregnancy. But after Jay was born with a major heart defect and in the ICU, this space became my lifeline. Your comments gave me encouragement, support, love and really kept me going during one of the most difficult times of my life. Just writing about the experience was therapeutic, but your comments created the dialogue that I needed most at that time. I could log in at 3 a.m. and have a conversation with you, or re-live the conversation we'd had earlier that day. Knowing that you were there and cared about the tough times we were going through was incredibly motivating - it motivated me to keep writing more, and motivated me to keep moving in spite of the fear I faced about my new baby's health.

I think that's part of the reason I've been so slack with blogging lately. When I don't get any comments, I feel a little like I'm talking to an empty room. Who (beyond the grandmas) even cares what cute thing my kid did last week? So, keep those comments coming! (And not, not because I need to collect comments for my grade - though that's a nice side effect...!) The Web 2.0 phenomenon is all about connecting online - not just pushing information in 1 direction, but having an ongoing conversation about what's important in our lives. It's not about me talking to you, but about us talking together in this fancy online space.

I've thought a lot about the phrase "social media" and what it means. Frankly, this blog and Facebook have completely changed my social experience, and it's easy to see why they are changing the experience of companies & nonprofit organizations. All organizations are made up of people, and if people are changing the way they relate to each other, organizations by default have to change the way they relate to one another and to the public.

So talk back to me!

Posted at 04:38PM Jan 24, 2010 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[7]

It's late September...

Saturday Jan 23, 2010

It's late September...

and I really should be
back at school.
-Rod Stewart, "Maggie Mae"
(one of my fave songs!)

Hello world - I'm about to re-enter the regularly posting blogosphere. Why you ask? Yes, I know I've been the slackest blogger on the planet with my every other week posts. But I suddenly have motivation to blog (and it's not kid news this time). And no, it's not my mom's cancer recurring, which many of you are aware of. You can keep up with her updates on her CaringBridge page, which I'm working hard to keep current.

It's class. Huh? Yep, my Communication class this semester is about how social media (blogging, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) are being used by organizations to connect with people. Piece of cake, right - a class on blogging and Facebook?! Well, like any grad school class, there's a little more to it than that. So, I'm going to make every effort to connect my everyday musings on my life to what I'm learning in class, 'cause my grade will depend on it. (Though I think I may struggle a bit to find PR song quotes to intro with!) Here's the other thing - I need comments. Like 100 of them in the remainder of the semester. (Is it cheating to ask for 'em, Dr. W?!) So, tell me what you think. Tell me what you want to know more about. Tell me that you'd rather me dump the academic info & just see more kid pics. I will ignore that particular request, but I promise, there will be some kid pics, too.

So, first topic - what is PR? What is advertising? What is marketing? What do you think, faithful readers? Frankly, I think most people use the 3 interchangeably. We communication people tend to see ourselves in the PR business as somehow "holier" than those in the marketing business (who just want to SELL stuff) and those in the advertising business (who are willing to *gasp* PAY for airtime to sell stuff). We're out to manage the image of the organization. We help the organization relate to the public. We find effective ways to communicate with stakeholders (employees, volunteers, donors, customers), discovering their needs and helping to match them to what we offer. It's not about the $$$ - it's about managing the relationship. Y'all buyin' that?

Posted at 08:01PM Jan 23, 2010 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[4]

Comments:

To me advertising=marketing, and PR is what you do when the CEO/president/big wig is caught in bed with someone other than his wife. At least that's when I notice PR firms the most...

Posted by Derek on January 24, 2010 at 01:48 PM EST #

Jen, like you, I have come across PR practitioners who hold the 'holier than thou' view - that we are not selling/marketing our product explicitly the way our peers in the advertising and marketing line do. A possible reason for such a view could be that they have to work hard to build media contacts to get a story published vs buying ad space in a newspaper. : )

Posted by Neha Chhabra on January 24, 2010 at 05:33 PM EST #

I imagine that marketing creates the awareness of need of a new product and that advertising shows a product that fulfills that need. While they serve slightly different angles of the same process, they fit "hand in glove" to sell a product. PR is not so much to sell the product but rather to establish a customer relationship or reputation of the business so that the product they sell is well received and therefore accepted. Customer communication in all its forms is critical for the ultimate success of the business.

Posted by laura on January 25, 2010 at 08:01 PM EST #

To me, PR is the larger segment of what an organization does to create, protect or enhance it's image to the public. It crosses all it's activities and products or services. Yes, it is the higher level of the three, but is not immune from the $$$. PR costs money to deliver, just like the other two.
Marketing is the setting and implementation of a strategy to improve the organizations ability to deliver products or services.

Advertising is a part of delivering the marketing strategy. The "paying" part.

Hope this helps!

LYTB

Popper

Posted by Popper a.k.a Dad on January 30, 2010 at 03:04 PM EST

So much to say, so much to say, so much to say

Thursday Jan 07, 2010

So much to say, so much to say, so much to say

Sometimes I find it's easy to be myself
Sometimes I find it's better to be somebody else
-Dave Matthews Band

Wow - how in the world did it get to be January already? 2010? A month since I've blogged? Wow - I really do have much to say, so I'll just give you the highlights.

CheezeDoodle is growing and growing and growing! According to my vegetable-loving friends @ BabyCenter, he's currently the size of a jicama. I'm betting he's WAY bigger than that. And what's a jicama, anyway? I'm getting to that foot-swelling, hard to turn over at night, 24-7 heartburn, whiny stage. Derek is thrilled.

Still no name yet for CheezeDoodle. We had a few front runners, and a few that didn't make the cut for Jay that are still under consideration. When we ask him, he suggests "Clifford." Nothing against anyone out there reading this who might be named Clifford, but I don't think I could name a kid after the big red dog.

Home remodel is 99% done. Kitchen is fully functional, half-bath is completely done, and the tools have migrated from the pool table into the laundry room. We're not there yet, but with another couple of weekends, we will be. Hallelujah! Pics to come. Really.

Christmas was wonderful, though the break was (of course!) too brief. Jay got a tricycle and promptly fell off and got a bloody lip. Those legs need to grow just a bit to really reach the pedals. He also got the whole 'Tato Head family (his pronunciation - adorable!) including Mr., Mrs, and their little ones, Chip and Julienne. Those names crack me up every time! From grandparents, he got a new kid-size table which is his new favorite place to put scribble to paper, and a tool bench which has seen more hammering than you can possibly imagine. He's a happy kid.

Being pregnant at Christmas is really an amazing feeling. Makes me see advent through a different light - the season of expectation has new meaning. I whined about Derek putting me in a car (with heated seats!!) for 3 hours. Can you imagine saying "Sure, I'll throw my pregnant self on that donkey and ride. No reservations? No problem!" I'm not Catholic, but I certainly have gained a new respect for the Blessed Mother.

Ringing in the New Year at the beach is the best way to start a year. We went with both our families, including Jay's cousin, Camden, who is the same age. They clearly loved hanging out together, if you judge by the number of times they screamed "MINE!" while ripping toys out of one another's hands. "My hammer! My book! My toy! MINE! MINE! MINE!" So, I totally thought they hated each other, except that every morning Jay woke up looking to play with cousin Camden. The social dynamics of toddlers are still a bit of a puzzle to me.

So, happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year to all of you. Here's wishing you all the best in 2010!

Posted at 09:14PM Jan 07, 2010 by Jen Foster in General | Comments[1]