# Mama Gathering 04 - you know you wanna...



## Snow (Jan 12, 2002)

hey activist mamas, come kick it with us at the Mama Gathering 04. It's open to all mamas whether activist or not of course, but will feature some kickass activism workshops. We will also have a kid component for kid style activism as well as quality child care.
Here's our welcoming statement off the site, and for more, please just go check out our website - it changes daily http://www.mamagathering.org

___________________________

here's what, y'all:

mama gathering is back in 2004 to pack another mean mama punch of the tastiest, sexiest, most defiant fun around.it's the only time of year when you can kick it with your mama homegirls from all over the globe, and this july it will touch down in minneapolis, minnesota, where rest assured it is only cold in the winter. so bring your shades, spaghetti straps, sandals, and something to show off those fab stretch marks, cuz this is gonna be one hot scene.

by day, get empowered at some of the smartest, edgiest workshops around. from parenting topics to social justice issues to artist's offerings, there's bound to be something for everymama. this time is yours to learn, teach, network,_and reinforce that the hand that rawks the cradle truly does rule the world. and while you exchange wisdom and experiences with your mama cohorts, turn your kiddos loose to take part in supervised kid activities and workshops, broken down by age for the best fit available. all workshops and kidshops will be held at the quality inn hotel in downtown minneapolis, where a block of rooms will be mama gathering's home base.

by night, venture out into the city for some lucious night life. both friday and saturday_evenings will feature off site shindigs accessable by shuttle. whether you wanna kick back or kick it up a notch, the gathering's unique, kid-approved venues, gormet grub and stage shows will inspire you to mix it up and boogie down. and where you take it from there...well, that's entirely up to you.

so, come one, come all to the biggest, baddest, most subversive parenting conference and party of the year! whether you're pierced or pinstriped, geeky or glam, a teenage mom or mom of teenagers, whether you drive a beemer, drive a junker, or drive yourself nuts trying to get your stroller on the bus, whether you breastfed, formula fed, or were so sleep deprived you don't remember, this is your gathering, mama.

we'll see you there.


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## plum (Mar 7, 2003)

i can't wait! i want to meet people!


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## plum (Mar 7, 2003)

anyone else going?


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## IslandMamma (Jun 12, 2003)

Ohhh, I want to go SO BAD!!!!

Is anyone going from the Seattle area? I'm wondering how the road trip would be with a (then 13 month old) that hates the car. Maybe I'll look into the train...


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## mahdokht (Dec 2, 2002)

HEY! My hubby might be out of town. I think I'm gonna go.


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## hotmamacita (Sep 25, 2002)

wow. looks great. i wish we could go.


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## Snow (Jan 12, 2002)

hey mamas - we have plenty of car pools forming all over the US and at least one large van that we know of from Canada. I think we actually have more Canadian mamas registered right now than US, and a couple possibles from Down Under and the UK.
The main site will link you to a board where you can hook up w/ other mamas for rides and hotel sharing.

You might be interested to know that so far we have Ariel Gore, Bee Lavender, Maia Rossini (editor of Mamaphonic), Coleen Murphy coming among many other cool workshop presenters. Nina Utne has expressed interest but has to wait till her summer scheduling is done to commit and we are working on some other big names to head up the writing workshops.
For activism we are trying to raise enough money to get Chris Crass's group from CA. We also have MAMA coming from NYC - several kickass mamas who are going to lead workshops on "Beyond Online Activism", "Confronting White Supremacy" and "Women in Prison" among others. There will be an event you won't want to miss on Monday July 19th (for those who can stay an extra day and for those who want to participate) - we'll be at the state capitol staging something exciting. Details will depend on current events at that time of course!

We'll also have some GREAT parenting workshops, some Inspiration in Education, Raising Feminist Boys, College Mamas, Girl Moms, etc. We have several experts lined up for Natural Health & Home, including a lead abatement specialist.

too much to list here - so just keep checking the website!
http://www.mamagathering.org
love,
Sue/Foolsgold/Snow


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## Evergreen (Nov 6, 2002)

Post about it next year :LOL! I will probably be able to go by then.


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## darkstar (Sep 8, 2003)

Awsome, I missed it last year becuase of lack of funds, although this year I am so close. I have to come....


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## Snow (Jan 12, 2002)

Gr8flmom - can't post about it next year because the current admin board won't be doing it next year! I don't even know if there will be one next year - it's a volunteer thing you know? So if a mama or group of mamas at this summer's gathering decides to take it on for '05, then maybe there'll be one.
It's not even an annual event - but so far there have been mamagatherings in Portland, Paris, L.A. and now Minneapolis. No telling when/where the next one will be - it's a HUGE undertaking.

darkstar - there are several mamas from your town coming! We've got a link to an ezboard where some are setting up carpools, room sharing, etc - in case you wanted to post a thread for your area. I hope to see you here! (& remind me of this thread on mdc, ok?)









Registration $ includes all workshops, entertainment, and all meals from Fri dinner thru Sun lunch. We are subsidizing the cost for you thru fundraisers. (Actual cost - about $150-200) Your cost? - just $42.50 if you register in the next few weeks! & yer kids are only $8.50
All in all, much less than you'd pay for meals alone if you stayed home!

hotel cost : also very subsidized (your welcome







) - great hotel w/ pool, jacuzzi, free breakfasts, etc for only $69/night. & you can split it w/ up to 3 other mamas if you want.

edited to add that I'm called foolsgold everywhere else - so come on over to http://www.mamagathering.org & see what you think
We just got ARIEL GORE!!!!


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## MamaFern (Dec 13, 2003)

im going to try my bestest to make it! its far but i think that it will be worth it. islandmama, im in vancouver (or close) id be into traveling with you!


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## plum (Mar 7, 2003)

i have never been able to post on that ezboard and i don't know why. i registered on the board and everything.


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## Snow (Jan 12, 2002)

hey Jamie - I'm sorry the exboard isn't working for you. since it's definitely not my area of expertise (huge understatement!) I'm going to send in a couple other admin board mamas to this thread ok? hang in there...


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## doulamomvicki (Nov 4, 2003)

If anyone in the So Cal areas wants to go pm me. My sis and I going!


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## Oliviasmama (Jul 22, 2002)

Hi!
I just wanted to stop over as another gathering admin board memeber and say Hi.

Jamie, I will see what we can do about the ezboard. Have you contacted the EZ board tech help? They seem to be pretty on top of it. I'll talk to the person who administers our board and see what she can do.

So gald everyone is coming, I am excited to meet all you cool mamas!

(I'm livsmama everywhere else)


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## plum (Mar 7, 2003)

well, i registered on it, both the main board and the local board. i got the 'welcome to MG2004' email but whenever i try to post, it comes back 'this site cannot be found' so i just gave up.

i'm not worried about it, though.


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## Oliviasmama (Jul 22, 2002)

puzzling. I will pass the info along.


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## Gemini (Apr 9, 2003)

I live in the Twin Cities and could host someone or two. I think I will register to go, it sounds awesome!

PM me if you are interested in staying with me.


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## Oliviasmama (Jul 22, 2002)

Hey Gemini,
If you want to go to the EZ Board and post in the room sharing forum, that would be really cool!

Thanks!

Julia


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## Gemini (Apr 9, 2003)

Is it totally selfish that I'd rather have MDc mamas stay??









I actually have one family already staying with me!!









I can host one more person or family. I have a double bed still vacant.


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## Oliviasmama (Jul 22, 2002)

Nope, not selfish at all. Just a suggestion on my part









Glad you are coming!


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## Indigo73 (Aug 2, 2002)

Anyone going from New England yet? I am trying to figure out if I can swing it as a late b-day prez to myself & peanut.


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## littlecurvieme (Mar 15, 2002)

Another board member popping over her to say







: .....finally!!!

I think there are other New Englad mamas coming. I will keep my ears open. I would post on the EZ board site -

http://pub219.ezboard.com/bmg2004

and see where that gets you.......









Who else is coming????


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## witchbaby (Apr 17, 2003)

i'm there! my best friend already reserved the hotel room and i just need to register (next paycheck!). my parents work for frontier and are hooking me up with tickets so the monkey and i can head out! oooohhh, and it's just 2 days after my birthday!


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## plum (Mar 7, 2003)

two months!


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## littlecurvieme (Mar 15, 2002)

Yes it is, oh yes it is!!!









Also just wanted to pop in here and say that the packets for registered people will be going out this week - workshop choices time!!! The workshops are SO FREAKIN COOL! I wish I was going to have time to actually go to them!

And also just wanted to say that preference for workshops that are filled up will be given to people in the order that they _registered_, not the order that you get the workshop sheet back to us. So hop on over and register now!!!!

http://www.mamagathering.org


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## plum (Mar 7, 2003)

oohh. are you nervous?

i'm very excited. i'm hoping i get the workshops i want.


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## littlecurvieme (Mar 15, 2002)

Totally nervous and totally excited all at the same time!

It is going to be great to see everyone enjoying the fruits of all of the very hard work we have been doing over the last year!!!


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## Snow (Jan 12, 2002)

I'm on pins and needles, but am not sure why. We still have much to do between now and then, yet everything is falling into place nicely so it's not like there is anything to worry about, you know? And I'm excited to meet some more really cool mamas in person (like all of you).
I'm also excited to see all these hot workshop facilitators we have coming - it just keeps shocking me that they say yes and then get excited to come to Mpls on their own dime just because they think Mama Gathering 04 is the place to be








(they're right of course - heh!)

http://www.mamagathering.org register now so you can get your choice of workshops!


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## Gemini (Apr 9, 2003)

Yay! Finally registered! Now where do I get to choose workshops??


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## plum (Mar 7, 2003)

i was good. i registered last month.


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## Els' 3 Ones (Nov 19, 2001)

I'm thisclose to registering. It will be me and the 3. I'll be coming from chi-town and have 3 spots in the van, anyone want to carpool?


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## Snow (Jan 12, 2002)

Gemini said "Now where do I get to choose workshops??"

Littlecurvieme and Cattrane (also known as built2spill) are mailing out the workshop descriptions and registrations this week to mamas who have already registered, so you'll get a chance to get in on first wave of selections. For anyone who hasn't registered yet, go to the site and register asap and they'll send you a packet when they receive it, ok?

Check out these recent additions to our guest list!
Freya Manfred http://www.unomaha.edu/~wla/FreyaManfred.html#
Marilyn Wann http://www.stanfordalumni.org/news/m...ures/wann.html
Jane Evershed http://www.janeevershed.com/new/home.htm
Trula Breckenridge http://www.msppress.com/who.html

http://www.mamagathering.org


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## Selissa (Jun 15, 2003)

oh how i wish i had teh money and the transportation to go. I would love love love to go tot this! sigh...maybe if ther is one next year....


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## littlecurvieme (Mar 15, 2002)

Marilyn Wann's website is -

www.fatso.com


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## plum (Mar 7, 2003)

getting close! who is all going to be there? i'm looking forward to meeting some new mamas!


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## Marg of Arabia (Nov 19, 2001)

I am so jealous!!!














:

Well, there is always next year.

I want to see LOTS of pictures!!!!


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## Els' 3 Ones (Nov 19, 2001)

I am attempting to get my picks in as we speak!

I'm registered and booked and psyched!

Me and the 3 Ones will be in early Friday..................


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## Gemini (Apr 9, 2003)

Marg! Come and stay at my house!!!!!!!

I'm excited for Plum to stay with me and to see Els and her 3 Ones again!


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## plum (Mar 7, 2003)

yay! els seems so cool! (and gem, too!)


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## littlecurvieme (Mar 15, 2002)

Yay! Get this thread going again ladies!!!









Gemini, are you registered???


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## Snow (Jan 12, 2002)

Hi mamas!
Curvie - gemini was the mama we were trying to meet up w/ at May Day but then my stupid cell phone died, but she was there too and we just never found her.







So yeah, I think she registered a long time ago!
This is exciting, getting down to the last few days. Am thinking that those who feel comfortable doing so might want to put our various user names on the name tags as well as our real names just to keep everybody straight!


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## Gemini (Apr 9, 2003)

Yep, I'm all set to go.


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