The last minutes of the passing year. It has been a long year for some of us. One of growth and inner peace. For others it has brought hardship and devastation. No matter what the year has held for you, there is always hope for the New Year ahead of us.

In our reflections we will see things that we could have done differently. Choices we should have made without emotion. These are just areas to which we have learned from.

As adoptive parents this may have been one of the most wonderful years of our lives. When we have become parents or added... more

My son is upstairs putting a puzzle together. He loves puzzles and this one happens to be a puzzle of vehicles (cars, planes, trains, etc…). I would be right there with him if it wasn’t for the fact that I’ve already put this same puzzle together with him at least a dozen times in the last thirty minutes. No one will ever be able to tell me that he’s not focused.

So, I left my son with his father so that he could put the puzzle together for the thirteenth time. My husband does not mind. He’s watching the third or fourth football game of the day. I... more

I don't make New Year's resolutions as a general rule (although every year I do strive to be more diligent in entering my finances in Quicken, as it actually makes sense for tax purposes to begin anew at the first of the year). Similar to my reason in being against Mother's Day (although I still expect a card, eh hem!) I feel like one should be able to make changes in their life, or create a goal to reach at any point in the year. January 1st is an arbitrary date. And just like Mother's Day really should be every day, we have the opportunity to say that "today is the first day of the rest of my life" every day of the year. But enough about that.

Although I don't generally make New... more

Continued from here ...

It's not in my nature to suggest a problem without also bending my mind toward possible solutions. Since this spinning thing is my theory, I figure I'd better invest some thought in correcting what I see as a cosmic error.

After all, when counting the blessings of 2006, you may put good health at the top of your good stuff list, but health is only of great long-term value if there's time to enjoy it ... a long term, so to speak. ... more

New Year's Eve, 2006. Since New Year's Eve 2005 happened about five minutes ago, I'm inspired this year to propose a theory ...

We're spinning too fast. Yep. That's all there is to it; there's been a speed-up in the rate of spin our globe does daily, and that's making time go faster than it used to. It's been a gradual process, but year-by-year we go just a tad bit faster and faster until today we're up to about three times the speed we spun in the 1950s.

When I was a child, old folks of fifty-five (my age now) would complain... more

Today, it’s day five of Kwanzaa, or Nia (nee-YAH): to make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness. Think what it is you were put here for? (For surely you were not made for naught.) How shall you make your mark? What is it that you'll strive for, that will help, not only you, but your family, and above all the community? If you are celebrating Kwanzaa with your family, or simply talking about some of the principles, you might want to ask your children... more

It happens time and time again. After an adoption is finalized, paperwork is sent out in a rush to obtain the new, amended birth certificate. Families are told that this can take some time to complete, and days turn into weeks, which can turn into months before they see anything resembling a new birth certificate.

When filling out your paperwork to obtain the new birth certificate, it is important to write down any contact numbers that are on them, and tuck them away in a safe spot in case you have any questions while you are waiting for your certificate to come, you will have the contact numbers handy.

Regardless of time frame that you are told the documents should be mailed... more

The truly BAD of 2006 (the infamous due process hearing) reached heights that can only be described as Utterly Ridiculous. Here they are:

1. The school’s proposed placement of LuLu included going to a room with a man wearing protective gear for 2+ hours each day for 6-8 weeks. This man would “conduct experiments” on her using known triggers, such a loud noises and handwriting, to “figure out” her behaviors – aka behavior analysis. 2. The behaviorist who proposed these “experiments” designed to “provoke” her behaviors testified... more

I should preface this post by saying that these are not resolutions. Even if they look like, sound like and smell like resolutions, they are not resolutions. Why? I have this mind block when it comes to resolutions. If I resolve to do something at the beginning of the year, using those words, I'll freak out and procrastinate. If I say that I'd like to accomplish something but it won't make or break my year, I usually get close to finishing the task.

So, with regard to our adoption journey, these are some things that... more

Families hoping to adopt through foster-adoption do well to prepare themselves mentally before taking the plunge. It’s very important to keep in mind that the primary goal of the foster care program is reunification with the birth family. While foster parents are busy doing their thing, there are parenting specialists, crisis workers, case managers, social workers, rehab specialists and the like, all working with the birthfamily with the goal of putting Humpty back together again. Ideally, this is how it should be. But foster parents should also be aware that they are often at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to weighing permanency placement options; social workers, the... more