Local moms know how to shop for back-to-school bargains (source: Chicago Sun Times)

Discount-blogging mom Jill Cataldo of Huntley cherry-picks drugstore and grocery-store deals — 9-cent notebooks, 5-cent rulers and a pack of 20 pencils for 19 cents — as she aims to keep her back-to-school shopping budget to no more than $10. “It’s not hard to do. Last year, I did it with $5 and change, but my daughter is in middle school this year and she needs protractors. Now, I’m at $8,” said Cataldo, mother of Angelica, 13, Ben, 4, and Will, 2. Cataldo, featured in the Sun-Times as a super-frugal mom when the recession was first developing, blogs about her couponing tips at JillCataldo.com. She keeps her daughter’s school supply list with her at all times so she can check off an item the minute she spots a bargain. Click her for full story.

Comic mom has last laugh (source: Calgary Herald)

Lori Gibbs will be the first to admit that her entry into the world of standup comedy was not the most glamorous of experiences. Three years ago, the 43-year-old mother-of-three decided she was finally going to chase the comedy dream she had been harbouring since performing jokes about the family cat to her appreciative parents as an eight-year-old. Although not a churchgoer herself, she agreed to perform at a religious gathering at a camp outside the tiny town of Caroline, southwest of Red Deer –population 515 –where parishioners were attending a potentially humourless “women’s healing retreat.” Click here to read full story.

Military Mom starts Pillows for Patriots (source: wtoctv.com)

The conditions for those in the military serving overseas aren’t exactly comfortable for most, so one military mother is stepping up to help them sleep a little easier. Barb Farrior has started Pillows for Patriots. She has a son in the Army, who will be deploying to Iraq soon, and after watching a news story about a similar effort, she decided to start up an effort right here in Beaufort. Beaufort may be thousands of miles away from Iraq and Afghanistan, but the work going on at Harris Pillow Company will help those serving overseas get a better night’s rest. They’re making hundreds of pillows to send to servicemen and women as part of Pillows for Patriots. Click here to read full story.

Hero Central: Military Mom Walks for Soldiers (source: wgrz.com)

A Gowanda Mom walked 6 miles a day to deal with the stress of her son being overseas in Afghanistan. With her son now home safely, she now donates her miles to another military mom. Tammy Utley says walking on the track at Gowanda High School, allowed her to think in private while dealing with her concern for her 19-year-old son. Utley read the June issue of Sports Illustrated Magazine where a mom in Illinois walked and ran for her son, also serving overseas.  The Illinois mother, Vivian Bales, wanted to walk the exact distance between her home and her son’s base in Iraq, about 6,300 miles. Utley read the article, contacted and Bales and offered to donate the 6 miles she still walks every day, to Bales effort, to help reach the 6,300 miles. Click here to read full story.

Moms earn title of ‘buyer in chief’ (source: Tennessean.com)

Regardless of what product or service you’re selling, the person deciding whether to buy it will most likely be a woman. More precisely, it will be a mother.  Moms control 85 percent of all household spending. According to the Marketing to Moms Coalition (M2Moms), moms spent more than $2 trillion on U.S. brands last year. There are 82.5 million mothers in the U.S., and that number is growing. Want proof? Forty percent of the 4 million babies born each year are to first-time moms. Click here to read full story.

Mom blends business and family. Entrepreneur bases decisions on what works for moms like her. (source: OC Register)

When Jennifer Taylor’s two children reached school age, the Laguna Beach mom prepared to re-enter the workforce. Then an irresistible opportunity came up. A friend of Taylor’s mom’s was going to close her business startup because of a family illness. So in 2007, Taylor bought Smart Girls Who Surf, maker of all-natural skin care products.  Taylor had years of experience in sales and marketing in the event planning industry, but like many moms, she wanted the flexibility that business ownership offers. Click here to read full story.

Dollar Wise: Moms band together to organize inexpensive summer fun (source: Dallas Morning News)

There’s nothing like summer camp – all those kids running around together, getting fresh air and exercise, making friends.  But stay-at-home moms who can’t afford camps are making their own by banding together and finding power in numbers.  Lots of kids running around in a sprinkler can entertain one another a lot longer than one child playing alone. Lots of moms putting their heads together for creative, frugal ideas enhance the variety and quality of activities. And lots of families may mean big discounts when you want to splurge on purchasing tickets or arranging playtime at a local kids’ gym. Click here to read full story.

Mom’s cookies send welcome message to troops (source: KC Star)

Linda Relitz’s 27-year-old son Joshua Perry is a sergeant in the Marine Corps and lives by the Marine motto, Semper Fidelis, or “always faithful.” Semper Fidelis is Relitz’s mantra, too, as she sends food and care packages to her son and other American troops overseas. More than six years ago, Relitz started a not-for-profit organization whose primary goal is to support U.S. soldiers overseas. With the help of her husband, Jeff Relitz, her grown daughter, Jennifer Perry, and a group of volunteers, the organization has supported nearly 200,000 soldiers. Click here to read full story.

StartupNation’s 2009 top 200 leading moms in business (source: bizjournals.com)

Superb multi-taskers, cool-headed, wise and all-knowing, moms are a special species. But if you add to that the fact that many of them are the masterminds behind thriving businesses, it’s apparent that moms are able to surmount mountains – while making it all look like a cakewalk. In an effort to honor the triumphs, tribulations and achievements of moms running successful businesses across America, StartupNation.com launched its first annual Leading Moms in Business Competition, sponsored by VerticalResponse, and set out in search of the top 200 moms in business. Click here to read full story.

Lacrosse ‘Moms’ Play for a Cure. Raised monies go toward breast cancer research. (source: Vienna Connection)

What makes for a “cool” mom? An adventurous spirit, guts, will, generosity and out-going personality. A lacrosse stick helps. On June 10, 60 “moms,” parents of Vienna Youth, Inc. [VYI] lacrosse players, gathered for two friendly games of lacrosse at Cunningham Park Elementary School. It was a fun event with a purpose: the LAX [lacrosse] Moms for a Cure raised nearly $2,000 on behalf of breast cancer research. Each participant paid a $5 entry fee and community hands donated goods. “Oh, it’s been fun,” said VYI mom, Carleen Knauf. “It’s for a great cause, and a good time for the kids to watch us try to do what they do. I’m coming back next year.” Click here to read full story.

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