Do your teenagers have a Christian radio station that they will actually listen to even when they are alone? Would they turn it on and listen to it if you didn’t make them. Would they switch to a different station if you left to go shopping? I guess if a radio station wanted to get teenagers to listen to their station they would probably have to play popular rock and rap songs, wouldn’t they. They might also need to offer concerts, contests, and prizes that would appeal to teenagers. I hadn’t thought about it much until last week when our Christian radio station... more

Malaria can be deadly. Biting mosquitoes spread it and more than 1 million people, mostly children, die from Malaria each year. Malaria is preventable and it is treatable. Unfortunately, many areas that are affected by Malaria are impoverished. Therefore, the people do not have access to the medicines or tools to keep themselves and their families safe. Malaria is endemic in more than 100 countries and territories. World Malaria Day, April 25, hopes to build awareness to help put a stop to malaria... more

I was working last night on the computer and didn’t feel like listening to the Television so I let the computer randomly play songs from our music library. Starts with Goodbye by Carrie Underwood came on. I’m sure I have probably heard this song before as I’ve listened to the CD multiple times, but it never struck me the way it did until today.

The song is actually about moving on and getting over an ex-boyfriend or husband, but as I listened to the lyrics, especially the chorus, I couldn’t... more

I just commented on one of Marie’s blogs last week about this, “It's Not Always About Adoption!” I confessed to Marie that after 14 years of foster care and adoption I sometimes still cannot tell the difference between an adoption issue and a child issue. I made the wrong call today, a couple of times. Bring out the crow; I’ll eat it for supper. My 10-year-old daughter, adopted in November, was having quite a day. I thought her behavior was passive aggressive. Yup, I thought she was... more

Children have been removed from their parents’ home by child protective services. The children have been placed either in a licensed foster home or with an approved relative for temporary care. Unless the children were removed for extreme reasons, the original permanency goal of foster care is usually reunification with the birth family. Within a couple of weeks after the children are removed, the parents will meet with the foster care worker who has been newly assigned to their case. The foster care worker will review the reasons that the children were removed... more

I was recently reading the blog of a friend and fellow birthmom. In one of her posts, she talks about attachment and whether or not birthmoms attach to their babies. In a nut shell, she said that she tried not to attach, but she did, because it was almost impossible for her not to.

I tried not to attach myself to Supergirl. Boy, did I. I tried to tell myself that I was not pregnant. You couldn’t tell me that I was. I fought about it. I denied it.

I tried not to attach but then I was... more

I posted last week about my misgivings regarding my favorite show, One Tree Hill, and a new adoption storyline. I just got to watch this week's episode last night. (It's normally on Monday nights but, well, if you have children then you understand the need for Digital Video Recorders.) I had actually managed to forget (or block, perhaps) the possible adoption storyline. However, it didn't take long to surface in this week's episode.

Just a few minutes into the show,... more

That's right. I watched the movie. Even though I said I wouldn't. Even though I knew it was probably not in the best interest of my mascara. Even though I felt like I was dissenting against the sisterhood of birth mothers worldwide. But, last Friday, I rented it. I watched it. Alone. (Not the best choice, by the way.) And I didn't hate the movie. Again with the dissenting.

There were things I liked and things that didn't sit so well. This week I will be covering thirteen things that I liked in the movie. You know what next week will bring! Oh, and before... more

Once a child has entered the foster care system a review hearing must be held every 90 days. Information must be submitted to the court at these review hearings about the parents’ progress towards the reunification goals. The reunification goals are established at the beginning of the case, usually when a foster care worker is assigned to the case, after the adjudication hearing. I will cover reunification goals more thoroughly tomorrow in another blog. The child has goals established to achieve while in foster care, as well. The child’s progress towards those goals is reviewed... more

In my last post, I wrote about the movie Juno and the few positive points that I found in the movie. I found far more negative aspects to the movie than positive ones. Below are a few of the issues in the movie that made me cringe.

1. They really did not go into any issues that birthmothers face post adoption. The movie was pretty much over once Juno had her baby. I’m guessing this is because it wouldn’t make very good entertainment but to not really show or mention that at all gives... more