I have been thinking of what to focus on with Lori while we wait for a response on her school application. The obvious choice is finding a job. I believe she is already working all the traditional channels, but I am fairly sure Lori would jump at a full time job that was more challenging than the reception/administrative type work she has been doing.

And while Lori has not said this, I do think it is really hard to put yourself 100% behind a job search when you are also pursuing an alternative that might make that effort less valuable, or at least unfocused.

So instead, Lori and I will discuss a plan for doing more social-professional networking & marketing for her freelance business.

Today’s the day. I finished the draft of my writing sample for the master’s program application yesterday and will be polishing it up today and dropping it in the mail. In some ways it feels like a small thing, and in others, it feels like a huge leap. Working on it has confirmed that I’m really looking forward to going to school again, and I really believe it’s the right step for me to take.

In the season of newsworthy remakes (Spike Jonze’s hipster ode to Where the Wild Things Are, Tim Burton’s forthcoming Alice in Wonderland) it's hard to know which films you’re supposed to be dragging the kids to, and which ones you’re supposed to steal away to watch by your nostalgic lonesome. Wes Anderson’s stop-action remake of the Roald Dahl book Fantastic Mr. Fox (now playing in select cities, opening nationwide on Thanksgiving) is the clear winner of this brood: its silly, imaginative, stylish world is for absolutely everyone.

Mr. Fox (George Clooney) spends his life outwitting 3 local farmers -- very different men who share an equal hate for Fox. A life of sinking his chops into live chicks dead-ends in domestication when he falls for Mrs. Fox (Meryl Streep), swears off his life of daring-do, and becomes a newspaper columnist. Alas, animal nature is too strong: One night, he feeds the watchdogs laced blueberries, slides into the coop, and back into a familiar life of crime.

It's a real joy to see Anderson’s style expressed though animation, and every intricate detail has his stamp, from the retro corduroy suit dawned by a Mr. Fox to the smart bluegrass soundtrack. The take-homes are heartfelt, not mushy: Accept your family the way they are, know your true nature, and if you break into a grocery store, remember to do a little dancing before you leave.

Photo courtesy of us.penguingroup.com

Plus: Check out this clip featuring the song "Let Her Dance" from the Fantastic Mr. Fox soundtrack!

I’m an African American mom with brown babies, and I take great pleasure in writing about the issues that moms of color and mothers of children of color face as we raise our kids. And while I happily co-sign the idea that at the base of it, all we moms want the same things for our children -- for them to be happy, healthy, smart, kind, honest, trustworthy, successful human beings -- we simply do not all parent the same, and there absolutely ARE issues that I deal with as an African American mom that white moms would never have to think about if they’re not raising a brown child.

My sisters and I turned out OK, but what
if I screw it up?!

I am one of three girls. I love being a girl. Always have. My parents never treated us any differently because of our gender, especially my dad who had us baiting fish hooks, shooting guns and playing baseball in the backyard practically before we were out of diapers. The thought never crossed our minds that we couldn't do everything boys could do and as we’ve gotten older, we are all still confident, strong and happy with who we are. Needless to say, my parents did a good job. But that was a different time. Raising a daughter today seems…trickier. And it has me worried. Here’s why: