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Home › Mom of the Month

Mary Lyon

By Melinda Copp

Each month, iParenting.com spotlights a mother who inspires and moves us, who embodies the qualities that we all admire in a person, a woman and a mother. Above all, the Mom of the Month is dedicated to her children. Rich or poor, famous or not, she shines as an example of what mothering is all about.

Many people may recognize Mary Lyon for her career. She was the host of DIY Crafts, an arts and crafts instruction show on the DIY Network. Many celebrities – including Ali MacGraw, Candice Bergen, Jane Seymour, Barbara Streisand and Lily Tomlin – own pieces of her beadwork and jewelry. She writes a regular column for L.A. Parent magazine, and she's author of the popular book, The Frazzled Working Woman's Practical Guide to Motherhood (Starburst, 1997).

Lyon also spent 25 years covering news and Hollywood entertainment for television, radio and newspapers as a producer and journalist for ABC, NBC and the Associated Press. During her media career, she won numerous awards, including five Golden Mikes and three Associated Press Mark Twain trophies.

But underneath all these career accomplishments, Mary Lyon is a mother – and a wise one, at that. Her outlook on parenting is refreshingly laidback, and she approaches motherhood with self-forgiveness and realistic candor that many parents seem to forget when a toddler is screaming in the background.

"You don't give birth to a baby; you give birth to a conflicting agenda," Lyon says. "If you can understand that, it helps put things in perspective, at least for me. You're not going to be perfect all the time; you're going to make mistakes, but with the best intentions." This perspective on parenting not only helps Lyon raise her two teenagers, but also contradicts the high standards that mothers often self-impose.

"We see these celebrity moms who seem to have it all together," she says. "Most people who seem to be doing it right have lots of help from nannies and assistants. Those of us who don't have all those things have to find our own way."

Mary Lyon Explains a Shaker Egg

The Shaker Egg is a real eggshell. The shell is dried, then filled with sounding materials. Layers of polymer clay are applied to the shell to strengthen it. Then original designs are added to make the Shaker Egg look and sound unique. The egg is then fused and hardened in a clay oven and after cooling, a clear lacquer is added if needed to preserve any delicate surfaces.

Raising Teenagers

Lyon has a son who's a sophomore in high school, and a daughter who recently started attending Whitman College in Washington. But when asked about her favorite part about being a mom, she recalls all the little developments that have made her kids the individuals they are today.

"Seeing what they're able to do on their own has always been my favorite," Lyon says. "At first it's using the toilet for the first time or eating a full jar of baby food." Now her son is a musician in a band, and her daughter is experiencing her first taste of life away from home in college. "It's all bittersweet," she says.

The teen years are hard for every parent. "This is when all the lessons are being applied, and boy is that scary," she says. With two active kids, she juggles the activities and rides and conflicting needs that all parents of teens face. But she uses the time she does have with her kids to keep communication lines open.

"LA has the worst traffic, which gives me lots of time to talk, give speeches, pontificate," Lyon says. "I never hesitate to talk about anything." She says that even when her kids ask difficult questions, she tries to give them the whole story.

"When your child asks you for something, it behooves you to give the other perspective so they can make their own informed decision," Lyon says. She takes this approach on all the hard issues, and stresses informed decisions when it comes to drinking, drugs, social situations and even choosing a college major. And seeing how well her kids manage themselves as they're growing up and becoming adults is one of the many payoffs of motherhood.

"I'm glad I did all that talking," she says.

A Green Family

When they're hanging out together, Lyon and her family like to do simple things like cook and do arts and crafts (of course). But they recently took on the task of reducing their carbon footprint by building a state-of-the-art "green" home in Brentwood, Calif. The 6,700-square-foot, three-story passive solar home is equipped with solar photovoltaic panels that generate 9 kilowatts of electricity to run the house, eliminating the need for a generator and offering energy security, and solar heated hot water, which is integrated with an in-floor radiant heating system.

The home takes crafty and resourceful to a whole new level, with 100 percent of the roof tiles and resilient flooring made out of recycled tires. The structure is insulated with material made from post-industrial blue jean manufacturing, and it has palm wood for flooring and bamboo for the ceilings. Bamboo is a fast-growing renewable resource and palm wood is taken from crops of already chopped down palm trees that would otherwise be left to rot on beaches.

The self-sustaining home is "designed to last 200 years," says Lyon, who didn't sacrifice function or her family's comfort with the environmentally friendly design. Lyon wanted the house to be "tailored to the family and who we are. The house doesn't force us to give up anything; it is up to us to fulfill its purpose."

Mary Lyon's Kid Crafts

Here are two crafts to try at home with your kids!

Decoupage Picture Frames
Take an old wooden picture frame or one that you can pick up at a yard sale. Take the glass out and put it aside in a safe place. Cut up pieces of gently used or leftover Christmas wrap. Take the scrap, place on frame and brush on Modge Podge. Continue this until the entire frame is covered. You can also cut out shapes (like the candy canes) from the wrap and glue those on too.

After the frame dries, take a small ornament or toy and hot glue it to one of the corners. Finish it off by putting your favorite holiday photo inside.

The Red Pine Cone Candle Holder
A cool way to extend the enjoyment of (and treasures collected from) a nature walk with your kids. Take a large plastic lid from a coffee can or similar-size container, cover the top with fun foam in the color of your choice. Do the same with a small, empty, cleaned-out cat-food can (this was "Fancy Feast," I believe).

Add some pretty trim around the edges – like the gold braid shown here. Lastly, glue on those cool nature walk finds – pine cones, seed pods and more. Also terrific as an individual place-setting decoration on a fancy holiday table.

Remember to Laugh

Lyon says her best advice to parents today is keep your sense of humor close at all times. "Try and make yourself laugh," she says. "My sense of humor has pulled me out of the doldrums many times."

With her sense of humor and ability to laugh at herself, Lyon has a knack for putting the trials and tribulations of parenting in perspective. And essentially she hopes that mothers and fathers give themselves a break and keep in mind that doing your best is really all you can do – and when it comes to raising children, that's enough.

"When it's over and I'm standing at the pearly gates and giving my report to Saint Peter, at least it will say I tried my hardest, I did my best," Lyon says. "I will at least get an A for effort."



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