Sarah Francis
Blog Post List
September 3, 2013
It’s not easy to be heard in Washington, D.C., even about an issue as important as affordable, high-quality child care and preschool. There’s a lot of competition for our elected leaders’ attention: pinstripe-suited lobbyists, 24-hour news channels, and lots of partisan bickering. That’s why we’re getting creative, and we need your help to pull it off! We’re organizing moms and kids from across the country to play a GIANT (like 40-foot-wide) game of Chutes and Ladders on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol. We want your senators to play with us. Can you take two seconds and click a few buttons to...
MomsRising
Together
July 3, 2013
Are you all ready for tomorrow? At MomsRising, we've been setting up the sparklers, the sprinklers, and the BBQ, but there's one more thing we've all got to do to celebrate our nation's birthday: Rally for babies! Rallying for babies and toddlers is a great way to celebrate our nation's birthday, July 4th. Plus, when infants and toddlers get a strong start, our entire nation prospers. *Take a moment now to celebrate July 4th and rally for babies with a quick click of your mouse! Sign on to the open letter from MomsRising, Zero to Three, and many others, calling for investments in high-quality...
MomsRising
Together
April 29, 2013
"Our data show families in financial trouble are working hard, playing by the rules -- and the game is stacked against them."-Elizabeth Warren and Amelia Tyagi, The Two Income Trap . How is the "game" stacked against families in this country? One of the major ways is the lack of affordable, high-quality child care. 68% of moms with kids under the age of six are in the labor force. Full-time child care for an infant or toddler costs more than college in many states [3], and finding affordable, high-quality child care is often an almost impossible task. Help could be on the way! This month...
MomsRising
Together
April 25, 2013
Does this supermarket scene sound familiar? I’ve got a shopping list in my hand, an empty fridge back home, and a wailing toddler at my side whose having a full blown supermarket meltdown. I don’t have time to meander in the aisles: I have dinner to make, a toddler to soothe, and five minutes before this tantrum reaches a whole new volume. My grocery list isn’t the only list that shows up in store aisles. There’s also a list of 100 extremely toxic chemicals called the Hazardous 100+ and because of faulty legislation, they’re allowed to legally appear in consumer goods that we purchase...
MomsRising
Together
February 25, 2013
We Are! A few weeks ago, all U.S. children under the age of five grew to amazing heights. Ok, so babies didn't physically grow to ten feet tall (thank goodness, think of the diapers!), but all young children were raised up to the national stage when President Obama announced his plan for preschool and high quality child care for infants and toddlers. The high cost of child care ( which now costs more than college costs in many states ) is something that has historically been discussed only around kitchen tables, never by a President at a press conference. *Sign on to our open letter to...
MomsRising
Together
August 10, 2012
Yesterday, the the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced July was the hottest month ever recorded for the United States.[1] If you have asthma, then you know how heat can be a major trigger for asthma attacks. [2] For the nearly one in 10 U.S. kids who have asthma, this has been one bummer of a summer. [3] While we at MomsRising can't make it cooler for families across the country this summer, we are working right now to fight against another big asthma attack trigger: Soot. Breathing soot does serious damage. Studies have shown that once you breathe air with diesel...
MomsRising
Together
August 5, 2012
Olympic crafts are fun, easy and everywhere. Simple (but medal worthy) crafts are a great way to spread the Olympic spirit. You can hear all about these Olympic crafts, as well as listen to Olympians, and sports experts on MomsRising Radio with Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner. Find the podcast here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/moms-rising-radio/id533519537 Here are the two crafts we highlighted on this week's radio show: 1. Gold Medals Supplies needed : Craft clay, gold craft paint, and ribbon, Tools needed : Round cookie cutter or juice up, plastic picnic knife, small marker cap Everyone can...
MomsRising
Together
July 2, 2012
Imagine for a moment if antibiotics didn’t work. Unimaginable, right? Unfortunately, it’s starting to happen--and it's even highlighted in today's Washington Post . According to t he Centers for Disease Contro l, approximately two million people acquire bacterial infections in U.S. hospitals each year. [2] About 70 percent of those infections are resistant to at least one antibiotic. [3] The trends toward increasing antibiotic resistance show no sign of slowing down. [4] Why are infections in people becoming resistant to antibiotics? The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease...
MomsRising
Together
May 22, 2012
Right now moms and kids are in D.C. urging Congress to protect our families by supporting comprehensive chemicals reform to keep our kids safe from toxics, and they need your help! * Can you back them up? Tell Congress to be on the lookout for moms today-- and urge them to support comprehensive chemicals reform to protect our kids from toxics by clicking this link now : http://action.momsrising.org/letter/Toxic-Brigaide-5-22/ The Inside Scoop: Right now, our outdated chemicals policy leaves us and our kids exposed to toxic chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects, asthma, & other serious...
MomsRising
Together
March 6, 2012
Early Saturday morning, the Washington State Senate passed a budget that slashes early learning, child care, education and other key programs that Washington children depend on.[1] But the budget battle isn't over yet! Both the State House and the State Senate have less than a week to agree on a final State Budget. The final State Budget must be approved in just a few days, so there's still a little time! What's the plan? Because Legislators will be overwhelmed with messages in these final days, we're getting our message out in a unique way. Right now, we're at the Washington State Capitol...
MomsRising
Together
March 6, 2012
Unbelievable! Clean air standards are under attack, again. A corporate-lobbyist backed amendment to the 2012 Federal Transportation bill would allow boilers to keep dumping toxic pollution into our air. Boilers are the second largest source of mercury air pollution in the nation. This amendment is expected to be voted on in the U.S. Senate within the next few days.[1] If this horrible amendment passes, it would block clean air standards and expose our children to more mercury pollution. Not on our watch! Standards to clean up toxic pollution from industrial boilers are long overdue, now is...
MomsRising
Together
February 22, 2012
This might be a face kids put on to make their friends laugh, but it's never a face parents want to see for real. Respiratory illness is rampant in this country, with more than 7 million kids suffering from asthma. Yet, last week, pediatricians, nurses and families across the country had to stop celebrating the nation’s first limits ever on toxic mercury spewing into the air. What? Why? Because the very same day that the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards rule that families fought so hard for was officially entered into the federal register, corporate lobbyists launched their secret weapon to...
MomsRising
Together
December 12, 2011
I am ready to pluck that juice box out of my kid’s sticky little hands, no matter how big the juice-splosion. It’s not about the sugar this time – oh, no – it's because of the arsenic! A Consumer Reports study just informed me that apple and grape juice constitute a significant source of dietary exposure to arsenic. [1] What!? Arsenic in juice?! How could this be? You see, arsenic and mercury residues from power plant air pollution end up on our fruits (and in our juice!), in our water ways, and in our fish. [2], [3]. These toxins, in turn, end up in consumer products like the apple juice...
MomsRising
Together
October 26, 2011
Congress is getting a little scary this Halloween season. In the budget debate, key programs for families, like affordable child care and preschool are on the chopping block. We've had enough with tricks! We’ve decided to make sure the voices of families are heard in the halls of Congress by spreading a little Halloween treat. Thousands of Parents and kids have already used our fun Congressional-Halloween-Costume-Creation-Station to create unique cards for Congress members with an important message. But we need more electronic cards for moms and kids to directly deliver on Halloween. Why take...
MomsRising
Together
October 19, 2011
On Halloween, kids can be whatever they want to be: From astronauts, to ghosts, to red-nosed clowns, all of their costume dreams can come true for a day. But we have a secret: There’s a little Halloween magic happening all year round. Quality early care and education gives kids the foundation to be anything they want to be when they grow up. Halloween gives them a day of dress up, while early education gives them a lifetime of possibilities. Budget numbers are flying around like bats on Halloween night right now--and we need to make sure Congress understands how important early childhood...
MomsRising
Together
September 29, 2011
My son is a champion dawdler. When I'm trying to get out the door for something important, putting on his coat can become a 15 minute dance. So I've become an expert dawdler-stopper. Now, when a four-year-old dawdles it's mildly frustrating. But when Congress dawdles while they should be creating jobs, it's simply unacceptable. Twenty-five million Americans are searching for full-time work.[1] Congressional inaction, i.e. dawdling, is NOT ok. It's time for parents across the country to unite and stop Congressional dawdling. We've got to get the American Jobs Act passed ASAP. If anyone can...
MomsRising
Together
September 19, 2011
Woah, WA State-- this is big. Our state is applying to win a $60 million federal grant to back critical early child care and education programs. But with only a few Race to The Top, Early Learning Challenge grants available to all 50 states, the competition between states to get this money is going to be fierce. We have to be creative to bring funds into Washington State! So instead of only including letters from muckity-mucks as is usually done for federal grants, this time our Washington state leaders are also going to include a letter signed by all of us! That's right. Parents,...
MomsRising
Together
August 4, 2011
"Eww Eww Toxic" That's our new jingle for Campbell's soup. No more "M'm M'm Good," we now think "Eww Eww Toxic" is more appropriate. Why the "Eww" jingle? Because, according to experts, Campbell's Soup Company still uses toxic Bisphenol A (BPA) in their canned goods, despite the fact that it's proven harmful. In April, MomsRising joined the Breast Cancer Fund and over 20,000 parents to ask three major canned food manufacturers, Campbell's, Del Monte, and General Mills, what they are doing about Bisphenol A (BPA) in their canned goods. Two companies replied, offering rough timelines for...
MomsRising
Together
July 20, 2011
Late last week, I was mesmerized by the story of a mom who saved herself and her baby from a carjacking. After the ordeal, she remarked: “I’m not a hero. I’m just a mom. That’s all.” This story got me thinking-- we all would do anything, without even blinking, big or small, when it comes to the safety of our kids. And today, parents across the country are working to protect the health and safety of our children and we need your help. At this very moment parents, nurses, doctors, college students, and people like you are calling their Senators to ask for common sense limits on toxic chemicals...
MomsRising
Together
June 8, 2011
UPDATE: Did you take action on this one yet? The blogpost and action below shares details about toxics chemicals in infant car-seats, but the sad news is that this issue impacts us all because toxic flame retardants have been found in a wide variety of cushioning from car-seats to couches. And even though my twelve-year-old daughter and fourteen-year-old son have been out of infant car-seats for a decade, they certainly spend "quality time" on couches now and again. Help us take toxic chemicals out of furniture and cushioning! (See details below) We need just 4,054 more signatures to reach...
MomsRising
Together
- 1 of 3
- ›