Why I'm Thankful - Reflecting On International Day Of The Girl

Last night, I spent a more-than-expected amount of time reading this UNICEF report about FGM/C, or Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, a practice that is highly prevalent in Africa and perhaps occurring elsewhere.

Yesterday was the International Day Of The Girl, a United-Nations-declared day that seeks to 'recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world'. Girls' rights to Education is this year's focus but FGM/C is another pressing issue that girls face too amongst a list of others. The numbers and data are staggering and so very sad. Over 125 MILLION girls and women are subjected to this cruelty.

I had vaguely remembered reading about this horrid practice in a women's magazine once but couldn't remember the details (or maybe I didn't want to). In brief, according to the WHO (World Health Organization), FGM/C is defined as 'all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons'.

The horrid procedure can be performed at varying degrees— cutting, removing, pricking, sealing, to name a few— but to whatever degree, it is heart-wrenching and traumatic to even hear about. Even more unfortunate is to hear about the hardships these girls and women have to endure for the rest of their life, if they even survive— forced marriages, rape, beatings, denial of basic human rights... the list goes on. And on.

It's scary to see some of the data that shows the opposition of the desire to end these inhumane practices. Even scarier, many of them are women. Did you know, daughters of women who were cut are more likely to get cut than those whose mothers have not been? As hard as it is to understand and even fathom, I guess this sort of makes sense. Brutality breeds brutality. Ignorance breeds ignorance.

To take away from this on a personal level is to reflect on my own life and situation. It reminds me how good I actually have it, some reasons why I'm lucky, and how thankful I am that I and my daughter have been born in a society where this is the not the norm.

My daughter is at the forefront of my thoughts. While some of these issues are not commonplace in my country, there is still hate. And no matter where we go, it will always be a threat. Give me the opportunity to answer the infamous Miss Universe pageant question— What do you wish for the world?— and it would be to eliminate all hate (and ignorance too)... followed by a Why can't we all just get along? :>

But, as I gripe about things like not getting my daughter's year-long portfolio of artwork from her previous school ('Some school/education, hmph!'), I quiet myself, turn course, and quickly let it go. Instead, I smile because she's sitting next to me, smiling back, happy, safe, and HealthyButJuicy.

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Happy Healthy Juicy Girls!


This piece is authored by piecesofm, who blogs about parenthood, tech, food, fashion, and inspiration.

Kourtney Kardashian TaKes her Kid on a Karb Krap Spree!

Kourtney Kardashian is just so excited to be a mom. She recently shared the above pic of her kid and this on her blog:

'Every first is so exciting and so much fun to take pictures of and experience!

This is Mason’s first trip to the grocery store. Yes, I know it has been 8 and a half months and I have not been to the market. It has always seemed like such a hard place to take a baby – the germs, the people, and before he was big enough to sit, pushing the stroller and cart at once… all just a big task.

We had so much fun and Mason loved it!! Things that would never seem like they would be meaningful or exciting have a whole new meaning when I experience them all over again for the first time with Mason.'

The germs, huh? What about the...

Whole Corn, Vegetable Oil (Contains One or More of the Following: Corn, Soybean, and/or Sunflower Oil), Salt, Cheddar Cheese (Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes), Maltodextrin, Wheat Flour, Whey, Monosodium Glutamate, Buttermilk Solids, Romano Cheese from Cow's Milk (Part-Skim Cow's Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes), Whey Protein Concentrate, Onion Powder, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and Cottonseed Oil, Corn Flour, Disodium Phosphate, Lactose, Natural and Artificial Flavor, Dextrose, Tomato Powder, Spices, Lactic Acid, Artificial Color (Including Yellow 6, Yellow 5, Red 40), Citric Acid, Sugar, Garlic Powder, Red and Green Bell Pepper Powder, Sodium Caseinate, Disodium Inosinate, Disodium Guanylate, Nonfat Milk Solids, Whey Protein Isolate, and Corn Syrup Solids.

..in just the Doritos alone??

Phew. [pause]. Catching my breath..

And wondering who's the one who really had 'so much fun' and 'loved' the shopping experience? I mean, at least white bread would have been more cushiony..

It's not really surprising to see this celebrity mom binging on crap, though. Earlier this summer, the reality star blacked out, saying:

'I was just running down the beach like I always have been lately. And then I just woke up. I didn't eat anything this morning.. I'm so embarrassed that I punished my body for a photo shoot.'

She admits: 'I've been obsessing about this weight thing a little too much.'

Just a little..

In the ongoing celebrity race to lose the baby weight ASAP, Kourtney reportedly lost about 33lbs in just three months after delivery. She then flaunted her superficial 'victory' on the cover of Life&Style trash, with flowing hair, a big pearly smile, and all.



The Kardashian sisters are said to have become [gulp] role models for many girls/women. Let's just hope this 'weight thing'/'experience' is not one they will follow.


Happy Healthy Juicy Nourish You & Your Baby Better Than Krap!

Pretty Woman Shares Insight on How to Age Pretty

Julia Roberts has been working the media circuit as of late to promote her new film, Eat Pray Love, out this Friday. Her promotional tour includes a slew of appearances, including one on the September cover of Elle magazine.

In her interview with the fashion magazine, the soon-to-be 43-year-old comments on aging,

'We live in such a panicked, dysmorphic society where women don't even give themselves a chance to see what they'll look like as older persons.'

So how does this mother-of-three feel about injecting paralyzing neurotoxic protein [the same that causes botulism] into her face in the name of vanity? In response to Botox, she says,

'I want my kids to know when I’m pissed, when I’m happy, and when I’m confounded. Your face tells a story... and it shouldn't be a story about your drive to the doctor's office.'

Looks like this Pretty Woman just keeps on getting prettier.

Hopefully her comments will be fashionable enough to sway the over 2.5 million people [yes, women AND men] in the US that got it last year from being repeat offenders and the many more that are even thinking about, or might be influenced into, doing it.


Happy Healthy Juicy au naturel Faces that can move!

But we are like cows, see..

Earlier this week, the Daily Mail UK revealed that Gisele Bundchen will don the cover of Harper's Bazaar UK September issue, along with tidbits from her interview. Their opinion about the supermodel is blatant, as the article's title reads: 'Smug mother Gisele Bundchen says there 'should be a law' forcing women to breastfeed for six months'.

The title targets Bundchen's comment:

'I think breastfeeding really helped. Some people here think they don't have to breastfeed, and I think, "Are you going to give chemical food to your child, when they are so little?" There should be a worldwide law, in my opinion, that mothers should breastfeed their babies for six months.'

Forget law, instead, what she got was worldwide backlash. To date, the article's post has accumulated nearly 700 very opinionated comments, the majority of which were not in support of the super glam, super rich, super married-to-Tom-Brady, super claims-an-easy-birthing, super rapid-baby-weight-loss mom's opinion. Shocker!

Ok, perhaps 'law' wasn't the best choice of words but readers are taking what she said a little too seriously and personally, and are missing the point. In line with what she said about diet during pregnancy, all she's doing is advocating breast milk/feeding, as nature intended. Shocker, I know! But it's true: breasts aren't just decor, props, things to grab, things to fill with silicone.. ..things to salivate over, perhaps.. if you're a baby sucking the milk out of the mammary glands which are contained within. And what about this milk?

From the Surgeon General's Perspective, 'Breast milk is the best source of infant nutrition.' According to the WHO,

'Breastfeeding is an unequalled way of providing ideal food for the healthy growth and development of infants; it is also an integral part of the reproductive process with important implications for the health of mothers. A recent review of evidence has shown that, on a population basis, exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months is the optimal way of feeding infants.'

Is that to say everybody can breastfeed? and for that long? [Rhetorical questions] No and no. It's meant to convey though, that it's 'optimal', or favorable— as they say, 'breast is best'— for most women [hence 'population basis'] and, more importantly, people [men and women both], in the least, should be educated about it.

So, power to Bundchen for encouraging breastfeeding! because I don't think enough people with the power to influence do.

The article goes on to 'report':

'..Gisele's comments are at odds with the experience of other celebrity mothers.. Denise Van Outen, 36, recently admitted that she gave up breastfeeding her three-month-old daughter Betsy after less than a month, claiming she didn't like the idea of being spotted nursing in public. ..TV host Kate Garraway said she struggled with breastfeeding her daughter Darcey. 'After three weeks I certainly didn't feel sexy, I felt a bit like a milk cow who existed only to provide food for her child,' she said.'

Umm, Garraway? Case and point. Breasts ARE meant to provide food for children! Her child included. And we ARE like milk cows! Shocker! ..While it may be difficult to accept humans as anything less than higher beings, we are— like cows, pigs, goats, dogs, cats, horses, rats, etc.— all, commonly known as, mammals. And the fact that females can make food is a pretty cool thing, almost superpower-like. I don't understand why people, women especially, don't embrace the power of the bosom but are, instead, so against [and even embarrassed by] it. Moreover, how is drinking milk from one's own species more intolerable than drinking milk from another animal altogether? Just wondering..

In response to all the hubbub, Bundchen responded with this 'special message':

'My intention in making a comment about the importance of breastfeeding has nothing to do with the law. It comes from my passion and beliefs about children. Becoming a new mom has brought a lot of questions, I feel like I am in a constant search for answers on what might be the best for my child. It’s unfortunate that in an interview sometimes things can seem so black and white. I am sure if I would just be sitting talking about my experiences with other mothers, we would just be sharing opinions. I understand that everyone has their own experience and opinions and I am not here to judge. I believe that bringing a life into this world is the single most important thing a person can undertake and it can also be the most challenging. I think as mothers we are all just trying our best.'

So you see? Gisele isn't the boobie monster. All she wants is the best for children— hers and, yes, even yours. Is that really so bad? Those quick to judge need to, um, relax, then take some courses in, say, nutrition, anatomy & physiology, business [because that's what formula is produced out of], and perhaps anger management. A toast! To Mama's milk! from Mama herself!

Happy Healthy Juicy Bundchen Breasts! ..oops, I mean, Team Bundchen! Breastfeeding! Rah!