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It’s not uncommon to experience the “baby blues” after giving birth. The sudden shift in hormones, the lack of sleep and the transition into parenthood can all contribute to feelings of anxiety – even sadness, or being overwhelmed. Postpartum depression can be more than just a serious case of the blues; it can interfere with [...] Read full story
July 16, 2013
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The most classic definition of ‘Skin-to-Skin Care’ (which is the same as ‘Kangaroo Care’) refers specifically to sessions of 60 minutes of continuous touch between baby and mom in the first moments, hours and days after baby is born. First, baby is placed on mother’s chest immediately after birth, where the cascade of normal hormonal [...] Read full story
July 15, 2013
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After helping my youngest daughter apply sunscreen, I sat in a lawn chair as my children did cartwheels and played ball in the front yard. That’s when it suddenly occurred to me—maybe I’ve been too hard on myself. Maybe I’ve been too hard on my children. And maybe, just maybe, it doesn’t have to be [...] Read full story
July 12, 2013
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My child sat down at the picnic table delightedly admiring the heaping sno-cone she held in her hand. Suddenly, a look of worry came across her face. “Do I have to rush, Mama?” I could have cried. Here was my child simply wanting to enjoy her icy treat, but she feared she would have to [...] Read full story
July 11, 2013
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When my daughter was three, someone told me during a toddler art class that I needed to “toughen her up” because she was too sensitive and “would have a rough life ahead.” When my daughter and I got home, I looked into my child’s big brown eyes that held so much promise and declared, “I [...] Read full story
July 10, 2013
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I will never forget the day I was with a group of girls and they declared my arm the “biggest” one of all. I was only a child, but those words stuck with me and forever changed my self-perception. What I had considered to be an average-size frame was now “big.” Even at my smallest [...] Read full story
July 9, 2013
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When my child was fourteen-months-old, she had an aversion to shoes and preferred “walking” everywhere on her knees. I worried that she’d still be using this unconventional form of migration to cross the stage at her high school graduation. But alas, my once knee-shuffling child now has no problem wearing shoes and walks on her [...] Read full story
July 8, 2013
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What is transracial or transcultural adoption? In a nutshell, it’s the placement of a child from one culture or ethnic group with adoptive parents of a differing culture or ethnic group. My family and I know first-hand what this experience is like. For us, it’s a wonderful and enriching experience. Of our six children, our [...] Read full story
July 5, 2013
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Have you heard the saying “parenting isn’t for wimps?” Well, that’s especially true for parenting a child that you’ve adopted as an older child. Older child adoption brings on a whole set of challenges that infant adoption doesn’t. Older children come with a history, personalities, anger and hurt over what has happened to them and [...] Read full story
July 4, 2013
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Parents who want to adopt have to make choices. Infant or older child, domestic or international, private or foster care are among many decisions they have to make and each is a very personal decision. My husband and I decided to adopt domestically through the foster care system. Since then, I’ve heard lots of reasons [...] Read full story
July 3, 2013
