“Starting Over” (“SO”) (their website) is a national daytime reality show which airs daily in the U.S. The premise of the show is that selected women are given an opportunity to start their lives over. These women live together for a period of time in a large house. They are provided with life coaches and the services of other professionals who help them learn how to overcome and/or deal with their difficult life issues.

The problems these women are facing cover a wide spectrum of the issues that people may face in... more

Owlhaven, our Adoption from Ethiopia blogger, suggested that we post about something we experienced in our adoption journey that was "unphotographable." What immediately came to mind for me was Little J's orphanage. We were able to take some pictures, but overwhelmingly, it was the smell that was unphotographable. Actually, it's almost undescribable, but I'll try.

Imagine the smell of old, and of cold, and of disinfectant and cabbage soup and of dust, and underneath it all urine and feces and the tangy smell of anxiety. That was what... more

Today K and I went to a local restaurant that has a nice play area in back. It’s the type of place where you order your food, (nice organic beans and rice, pizza with spelt or wheat - or regular - crust, salads with garbanzo beans, you get the idea,) and then sit down with a number. They bring the food to you when it's ready.

The play area is mainly for preschool children and a lot of stay at home moms congregate there at lunch time. Occasionally I run into someone I know, and often I recognize the other moms.

So, anyway, K and I were ordering. Cheese pizza for her, salad... more

From Cambodia ...

It looks like things are beginning to move toward trials of the surviving Khmer Rouge leaders. Early next month the Supreme Council of Magistracy will unveil its pick of judges for the tribunal that's to hear the cases.

"From June of this year, after the appointments of the judges and prosecutors, the legal process will start," said Reach Sambath, a spokesman for the tribunal.

Actual trials are not expected to begin... more

After reading a post on the Big List I thought it might be beneficial to put a calendar of major holidays that usually close government offices in the city.

May 1: Labor Day. Jun 30: Army Day. Aug 15: Assumption (Guatemala City only). Sep 15: Independence Day. Oct 12: Dia de la Raza Oct 20: Revolution Day. Nov 1: All Saints’ Day. Dec 24: Christmas Eve (afternoon only). Dec 25: Christmas Day. Dec 31: New Year’s Eve (afternoon only).

This of course is a list of holidays from this point on in the year 2006. They are known... more

We all know that restrictions and good parenting always follow age appropriate guidelines. We know that a toddler is not going to be able to handle a longer time out as well as a 7 year old can.

So parenting and setting goals the children can meet need to be in focus at all times when we are trying to teach positive behavior verses negative behavior.

We know that most toddlers get into mischief just because they are curious about their world. They want to see and touch and feel, as well as put everything in their mouth. So it is just as much our responsibility to keep the world safe around them as it is to train them what can and can not be touched.

It is always... more

When I was in Ethiopia, there were lots of moment where I wished I had my camera but it wasn't convenient or seemed somehow disrespectful. I came home with many memories in my head that didn't get onto film, and frankly, had some regret that I wasn't braver with my camera.

This week while researching the Sheraton hotel, I stumbled across this mini-essay: Outside the Sheraton. There are several other essays on the site featuring Ethiopia, so you may enjoy checking more of the site out.

... more

Am I not big on high-tech toys because I'm an old mom?

No.

Sure, way back in the days when I was a kid "Operation" was about the most complicated toy around (the magnet-body part combo being quite sophisticated), aside from giant frisbees of dinosaur poop, of course, and dolls did little more than "drink and wet", which was pretty straightforward a process, but that doesn't mean I'm not savvy.

I swing with the big kids to a certain height on computer usage, can make movies with my phone, program my car CD player AND change the cycle on my dishwasher, so it's not that... more

Recently we have been challenged with a problem. My husband works very hard and he gets up at 4:30 each morning. His day goes well into the late evening hours. So we set a rule in our home that our children can not have telephone calls after 10:00 p.m.

For the last month my middle daughter has given out her phone number (our phone number) to a number of young men who are very disrespectful.

They have called our home at 2 a.m. and have used some very rude words with my husband. My husband usually remains cool, calm, and collected, whereas I answer the phone and find out it is no emergency and tend to dish out some of what they are giving me, right back to them.

This... more

The agency director, whom I have known for years, speaks to me and through the phone I can see her smiles and her body language as I hear her kind gestures as I explain the reason for my phone call. She was a part of my two year search that ended with finding a grave in 1993 and was willing to help us as we consider the journey of adopting a child. After our phone conversation I was discussing the conversation with my husband and started to reflect on everything I know about my birth mother. A few days later I was going through some photographs and came across one of my... more