I’ve been thinking a lot about Dr. G.’s post on weight and energy.

Being smaller, gives you more energy - plain and simple. Eating healthy means living longer – or at least helps you feel better.

I really should loose about ten – or maybe 20 pounds.

I’m just not motivated and I wonder why.

Actually, I know why. It’s work. It takes focus, concentration, energy.

Over the last few years... more

This message (in part) was on the over 40 adoption forum this morning:

…… When you first adopted were you able (financially) to do the baby’s room exactly how you wanted too - Another words did you go out and purchase all new things- Or got some second handed things (like the bed) ……?..

This was my answer:

Oh my gosh! Don't go into debt or try to keep up with your neighbors by doing your kids room. I bought... more

Although the concept of yin & yang goes back to at least 400 years before Christ, the actual symbol -- the taijitu -- shows up in China around the 1100s or so.

But, funnily enough, it was a military symbol in the Roman Empire in the 400s. Which is kind of strange.

Holy Roman yin-yangs, basically.

I just thought it was interesting.

There's a new film coming out called "The Italian," which was made by Andrei Kravchuk. It's been getting quite a bit of critical acclaim and I am very interested in seeing it...although since I'm living in the sticks I'll probably have to wait for Netflix to get it on video.

I've read quite a bit about this film, and although to me it sounds sad it's apparently not sentimental or maudlin and most people who've written about it say that it's a universal story and not as depressing as you'd expect.

Here's a bit about it from The Australian News:

Kravchuk describes it as... more

What is your passion? I sat in a church service and we were asked that question. So many things came to my mind but one thing never left. I am passionate about raising awareness of adoption (both domestic and international). It has become part of who I am...a big part. So how to I show that to others? Well each day I think that at least one conversation I have had deals with adoption. I am so fortunate to write for this awesome blog (it's awesome because of you all!) I think for Adoption Awareness Month I need to go the extra mile though and I... more

“Woe is me” – hmmmm, I have to say the whole birth mother experience does scream “victim” in many ways. It is not nearly as simple as a woman walking into an agency and saying, "Here, take my baby, I do not want it." That is not what generally happens. Women resort to adoption from a place of desperation, not because it is what they want. It is a great deal more complicated than merely saying that they "want" and "choose" adoption.

When a woman is tricked, pressured, shamed and lied to in order to get her baby,(as is sometimes the case) the word... more

I almost don’t know what to do with all my time.

The kitchen is remodeled.

K is potty trained.

I’ve filled out the paperwork.

My fingerprints are being checked.

We wait.

Anyone got some good recipes I could try out?

Parenting 101 usually means it is on the job training. Sure you may have read a book or two, and gotten some great tips from Great Aunt Mary, but no one is there with the books to tell you exactly how to handle it when your toddler suddenly gets diarrhea in the bathtub.

You instinctively know to yell for Daddy.

…..And when that doesn’t work. You deal with it..

The first years are the hardest – at least from an exhausted point of view. I’ve been known to put toilet paper in the freezer and the formula in the... more

Part 1 Here are some specific obstacles I've discovered as to why it's so hard for parents of special needs children to advocate on their child's behalf:

1. Shame. Ok, I said it. Society still has lots of stigma attached to lots of special needs. There are still plenty of people blaming ADHD on bad parenting, still people who look askance at parents of Down Syndrome children, and even more so at parents of... more

Part 1 Part 2

What about the frequency of visits? Again this is something that you may have covered prior to finalization and it may be in your post adoption contact agreement if you have one, but is still an issue that may come up over the years as lives get busy.

I think determining the frequency of visits is tricky. You have to consider what is best for the child... more