Mommy Blogger
by Rebecca Eckler
2006.04.08

Sick of writing contact information on diaper wipes? Torontonian Nicole Lee was. She now keeps Mommy Cards in her purse at all times.

A play on traditional business cards, Mommy Cards are the latest must-have accessory for modern mothers, desperate to schedule play dates and feel like productive members of society.

Lee's cards, which are sold under her Night Shade Creations [sic] stationery line (http://www.NSCcards.com/), feature sayings such as "Play with Joshua" and "Sam and Ethan's Mom."

But besides the cutesy slogans, they also include all contact information necessary for neighbourhood networking.

"It's impossible to find a pen and write down your number or e-mail while watching your kid doesn't kill themselves while going down the slide at Gymboree," Lee says.

"Women who have worked their entire lives suddenly find themselves on maternity leave or stay-at-home mothers, and feel they've lost their identity. It's a struggle. With Mommy Cards, you feel you have an identity again. And you want to keep in touch with mothers you click with."

Lee has even created Daddy Cards, with pictures of baseballs, for stay-at-home fathers (no takers so far).

Elaine Milnes, who lives in Michigan, also has a booming Mommy Card business (mommybiz.net).

"When I worked in sales, my business card was my lifeline. I handed it to everyone I met. When my business became raising children, I felt I lost that link to networking. What I needed was a new business card that reflected my new 'job,' " she says.

"My new job is Caroline's mother."

Of course, some mothers sneer at such sentiments. "When I tried handing them out, mothers looked at me like, 'What? Are you that snotty that you need a business card? Can't you scribble down the number on the back of your hand like everyone else?' " one mommy blogger wrote.

In her much-talked-about Perfect Madness: Motherhood in the Age of Anxiety, U.S. author Judith Warner says cards just add to the pressure of motherhood, adding that they are a trivial attempt by stay-at-home mothers to seek validation.

Lee doesn't agree. "Every mother I hand my cards out to think it's a great idea." Milnes says it's catching on too. "Mommy Cards are contagious. Once one mom uses them, she buys them for her friends."

After all, parenting these days is a serious business. Why not treat it as one?

Rebecca Eckler

reprinted with permission from Rebecca Eckler and The Globe and Mail