Flashback Friday: Role Mommy’s Favorites from 1985

My daughter is currently a freshman in high school and she loves One Direction, Modern Family, and Urban Outfitters. I’ve been vicariously living through her, so I decided to take a ride in my time traveling DeLorean (let’s be real my Mazda 323) to remember what was popular during the prime of my high school life. Here are some of the things I came up with…
1) FAVORITE TV SHOW: FAMILY TIES

2) FAVORITE FOOD: TOFUTTI SOFTSERVE– Imagine my disappointment when I found out it wasn’t dietetic
3) FAVORITE MOVIE: THE BREAKFAST CLUB

4) FAVORITE FASHION: DEMI MOORE’S HAIRCUT IN “ABOUT LAST NIGHT” – If anyone is keeping score, this movie actually came out in 1986, but we had to give a shout out to Demi’s hair…it was and still is fabulous!

5) FAVORITE SONG: ST. ELMO’S FIRE BY JOHN PARR

What were some of your favorite things from 1985? Tweet @Rolemommy with some of your high school obsessions #1985.

Refreshing the World, One Idea at a Time


jill.jpgThis past summer, I had the incredible opportunity to spend time with a woman who is truly a visionary – Jill Beraud, CMO and president of joint ventures for PepsiCo Americas Beverages, who is responsible for integrating the brand into worldwide initiatives that will make a global impact. I met Jill at BlogHer in Chicago when I participated in an incredible panel discussion that she and Lee Woodruff (one of my favorite people in the whole wide world) moderated about living life with purpose.
After the session, I was supposed to race back to the airport to catch a plane but lucky for me, I received the invitation of a lifetime – Jill was headed back home to Westchester, NY and she offered me a lift – on the Pepsico private jet! To say I was elated was an understatement of the year, I jumped at the chance to find out more about Jill and spend some quality time with my friend and mentor, Lee Woodruff, who in my eyes is the Role Mommy of the Millennium.
For the next several hours, I was riveted as I found out about Jill’s passion for helping others as she talked about the many philanthropic and life-changing pursuits she and her family were involved with over the years. So it did not surprise me when I received an email a few days ago from the team at Pepsi, unveiling one of the most incredible initiatives undertaken by a major consumer brand – the Pepsi Refresh Project.
First Page of Toolkit.PNGThe Pepsi Refresh Project is a groundbreaking effort to foster innovation in social good, which will award more than $20 million this year to fund great ideas that refresh the world. The program launched on January 13 and has already exceeded expectations by receiving the monthly limit of 1,000 submissions in less than seven days with at least one from each state in the U.S. Joining the effort are actors Demi Moore and Kevin Bacon, who have generated their own ideas for Pepsi Refresh and are competing for support in the Pepsi Refresh Celebrity Challenge, which launched this week.
The Pepsi Refresh Facebook page also featured an exclusive opportunity to watch the Pepsi Refresh Everything through Great Ideas Brainstorm live from New York City. The Brainstorm brought together Demi Moore, Kevin Bacon, Jill Beraud; advisory board member, Majora Carter; as well as college students from the New York City area to discuss ideas that they believe will positively move the world forward. Below is the Ustream feed to this incredible brainstorming session:

The exciting opportunity behind this project is that anyone with a great idea can enter and potentially win a grant that will help others. According to Pepsico spokesperson Lauren Hobart, the whole premise behind the initiative is to empower people worldwide to vote for the ideas they believe deserve to be funded and the ideas with the most votes can win a grant. This is not a project that will be funding established charities but instead, one that puts the power of giving into the hands of the people.
The Pepsi Refresh Project can be found at www.refresheverything.com, on Facebook at or on Twitter, @Pepsi or #pepsirefresh.
“The overwhelmingly positive response we have received since launching our campaign has been incredible and we are confident that this program will only continue to flourish in 2010,” said Beraud. “This is the people’s project, it’s in their hands. We encourage all individuals to submit their creative and innovative ideas to the Pepsi Refresh Project and cast their votes for the ideas that they want to see come to life.”
I love it when a Role Mommy comes up with a campaign that will truly change the world in amazing ways. Kudos to Pepsico and to Jill Beraud for recognizing that individuals do have the power to make a difference.

The Glamour Reel Moments Premiere!

IMG_2248.JPGSo it’s 1:03 am (technically 4:03 am east coast time) and I am wide awake. Why do you ask? Simple, I’m feeling a little bit like Audrey Hepburn in “My Fair Lady.” You know the scene when she comes back from a social outing and she’s on cloud nine and starts singing “I Could’ve Danced All Night”? That’s how I feel about now. I just spent the night gazing at stars. Literally. Everywhere I looked, I saw another celebrity. Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox, Demi Moore, Lisa Kudrow, Anna Faris, Kirsten Dunst, Ashton Kutcher, Matthew Perry, David Arquette, Rachel Griffiths and many more attended the premiere of Glamour Reel Moments sponsored by Suave.
Joined by my BFF mom bloggers, Amy with Mom Advice, Dawn at Because I Said So, Liz at This Full House and Michelle at Scribbit, we spent an amazing day sightseeing, and then raced back to our hotel to glam up for the event.
of=50,590,442.jpegMeanwhile, I was determined to find myself a cute clutch bag so with only 30 minutes to spare, I hit the mall, wandered into Macy’s, loaded up on cosmetics at the Chanel counter (they have a new red lipstick that’s simply divine) and used my intuitive GPS system to lead me straight to a fabulous Calvin Klein bag. I then raced back, took a quick shower and then attended the Suave cocktail party where I got one more chance to hang out with hair stylist Luke O’Connor – did I mention how amazing he is? Well he is, and I’m hoping when he comes to New York to start becoming one of his regular customers if he can squeeze me in between Brooke Shields and one of the Gossip Girls.
Bloggers.jpgOnce we arrived, we had the opportunity to walk the red carpet and then stood off to the side as we watched the parade of stars enter the theater. When it was time to take our seats, it felt like a scene straight out of “Entourage” or “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” As I glanced off to the right, I noticed that Matthew Perry was in our row, Lisa Kudrow was four rows ahead of us and Demi Moore was only about 20 feet away. Meanwhile my seatmate, beauty blogger Cindy from Hello Doll Face, kept slipping away to the bathroom and managed to have encounters with all the directors – too bad I have the bladder of a camel.
Thumbnail image for Bill_Jean_directors.jpg(Photo Credit: Lester Holt/Wire Image for Glamour). When the lights began to dim, Bill Wackerman, the Publisher of Glamour introduced the three fabulous directors who came out to say a few words and he then gave a shout out to the Glamour readers whose stories were inspired by the short films (can anyone say dream of a lifetime). And then, following a short video about Film Aid International, which is sharing classic films and teaching video production in third world countries, it was show time.
Directors.jpgThe first film, directed by Courtney Cox and written by Courtney Cox and Thea Mann was called “The Monday Before Thanksgiving” and stars Laura Dern as a single woman who after a chance meeting on the one year anniversary of her mother’s passing makes a surprising realization about her own life. The story was inspired by Glamour reader Teresa Lowrey of Queens, NY.
The second film, “The Spleenectomy,” directed by Kiwi Smith, stars Anna Faris, Larry Smith and Ron Livingston and was written by Kiwi Smith and Marc Klein. The comedy centers on an aspiring mom/community theater actress who accidentally embarks on the audition of her life. The story was inspired by Stephanie Holcomb of Vinton, VA (met her and she is sooooo nice).
The third film was “Streak,” directed by Demi Moore and starring Rumer Willis, Brittany Snow, Madeline Zima and Sarah Wright and tells the story of a college senior’s brave act on her path to self acceptance. The film was inspired by reader Jenny Smick of Sedgich, ME.
After the film, we stood outside the doors of the theater and watched as Hollywood A-listers mingled and chatted with friends and family. Dawn got the chance to brush up against Matthew Perry and I was thisclose to Jennifer Aniston. Gotta love that one. I have to say, most of my favorite actresses looked absolutely gorgeous and it was a total thrill to have the opportunity to see Demi Moore and Courtney Cox in person. I am always in awe of women who have managed to do what they love while raising a family, so a big Role Mommy shout out goes to both those amazing moms.
Now onto the after party at the Chateau Marmont. I piled into our four seater surburban with beauty bloggers Nadine, with Jolie Nadine and Lianne, The Makeup Girl, and we were whisked over to the party. The moment we arrived, we were handed a glass of wine and a few minutes later, we stepped inside the party for an evening of people watching.
At first, we stood in the back near the bar and right over my shoulder, Kirsten Dunst was hanging out with a friend, while David Spade was off in the distance making his way through the crowd. But in the middle, now that was where the action was happening. We walked over to Suave’s VIP table where we chatted with Luke and Jean Lee and suddenly I thought I heard some familiar voices. When I turned my head, I realized I was standing right next to Courtney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, Matthew Perry, Laura Dern and so many more stars that I started to feel faint. Okay, maybe I’m a bit dramatic – I was just giddy with excitement. Plus, the DJ was blasting music from the 80’s and 90’s all night long so I felt like I was sent back in time to relive my past. If only Michael J. Fox were there too.
Anyhoo, next, I hung out with some of the fabulous Suave representatives including Janna, Jillian, Heather and Sara who had made sure that every aspect of our trip was picture perfect and gave us the star treatment these last few days.
So in a nutshell, the Glamour Reel Moments premiere was truly a night to remember. It would have been nice to have met some of the stars, but you never know what the future may hold. At the stroke of midnight (literally) it was time to head back to the hotel and start packing. But the celebrity sightings didn’t end when we left the Chateau Marmont. When we were about to head to our rooms, one of the Jonas Brothers (I believe Joe) walked out of the elevator and Dawn (oops…I meant Liz!) let out a scream. “It’s the Jonas Brothers!!!” Now that was a flipworthy moment – was just a little slow on the draw for that one.
Here’s a little video from our amazing night – unfortunately, I couldn’t include anything from the party because it was too dark and the Flip doesn’t come with a flash, but hope you enjoy what you see. Thanks again to Suave, Glamour and Weber Shandwick for this incredible experience. Now it’s back to reality and time to start decorating pumpkins. Guess you could call our tale a modern day Cinderella story – and thankfully for me, my Prince Charming was home watching the kids. For more on my adventure click on the following links:

Let the Makeover Begin

My Glamour Getaway Part II

My Glamour Getaway: Part III

I Got A Golden Ticket!

images-1.jpeg“I never thought that I would be…”
Yes, I’ve been humming that tune all week ever since I received a fabulous invitation by Glamour Reel Moments and Suave to be one of only 8 mom bloggers in the United States – yes, only 8 of us were selected – to be flown to Los Angeles on an all expense paid pampering trip where I’m going to get a makeover, manicure and pedicure compliments of Suave and then be treated like a celebrity when I attend the premiere of Glamour Reel Moments with films directed by…get ready for it…DEMI MOORE!!!! And COURTNEY COX!!! And Kristen Kiwi Smith (who wrote Legally Blonde and the House Bunny) – plus I’m going to get to have breakfast with Kristen too along with some blogger friends that I’ve met virtually and can’t wait to connect in person!
Oh, and did I mention there will be an after party at the famed Chateau Marmont that yours truly will be attending too??? Since I have always been the one to schlep talent down red carpets and babysit them at events, I can’t tell you how excited I am to be given the chance to be treated like a princess for a few days. In fact, they even asked me for my shoe size the other day…wonder if I’m getting fitted for a glass slipper.
Nevertheless, Role Mommies, sometimes when you put yourself out there and share your deepest and darkest thoughts about your struggles with weight, parenthood, career stress and more, you never know what magical things could happen for you!
And so in the next few weeks, I’ll be shoving off on my trip and mark my words, I’ll be sharing every minute of it with you – in photo and video. What a great way to spend my birthday. Thank you Suave and Glamour Reel Moments, for making a mom like me feel like a star…even if it’s for just a few days. Moore (that’s Demi to you) to come!!!