Why We Should Embrace the “Extreme Parenting” title

April 23, 2013 | 2 Comments
27269_425111304225225_1671776493_n

Probably before, but ever since Time Magazine’s “Mom Enough” cover came out, people have been labeling parenting practices that are similar to or in alignment with “attachment parenting” as extreme. Most of us laughed it off because there was a clear disconnect between what the families' lives were actually like in these "extreme parenting" scenarios and what society thought went on in their homes. It was (and still is) such a foreign concept to so many Americans, that the general … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Global Community, Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Books for Children and Adults: Homosexuality

April 21, 2013 | 4 Comments
IMG_5885

books on homosexualityHappy Sunday! Here are some of my picks for children's and adult books educating and celebrating same-sex relationships.Children's Books covering the topic of LGBT families (but also some touch on the topic of interracial families and adoption). <3   Gay Christian Reading:  Strengthen or Evolve: Debate and Counterpoint Reading: books on homosexuality … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Global Community, Marriage, Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

Text Messages from a Four Year Old

April 19, 2013 | 1 Comment
text1

Aram asked for my phone the other night, and had his first text conversation. He was so excited to be able to have access to Brian when he was at work.... up until Brian told him it was time to bed, then he wasn't so keen on texting him anymore! ;-) I never thought texting could be useful learning tool, but reading and spelling action is definitely happening .  I am not thinking I should start embracing modern technology for kids (in small doses)! … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Just for Fun, Parenting Tagged With: , , , ,

A World Without Hate- Impossible?

April 14, 2013 | Leave a Comment
armenia7

Have you seen this video by the Anti-Defamation League? The thought of a world without hate is utopic and beautiful, but the video is also a chilling reminder of how monstrous hate can be when it consumes a person or group of people. But can humans change? Hate is expressing in widespread violence, fear, and revenge. However, the roots of hate are in human nature, the mass media, culture, politics, and the economy. -Why We Hate, Jack Levin To eliminate hate we need to understand … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Global Community, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

The Year of Mother Elephant Fathering

April 12, 2013 | 2 Comments
elephant-fighting-hyenas

I think this is the year that fathers get their due respect. Parents who are present are starting to get noticed. Most mothers, whether they have a 9-5 job or “stay at home”, get all the blame and all the credit for parenting. She is seen as present (rightly so, most of the time) and taking an active role in the child’s upbringing. However, dads are generally ignored. Fathers are often called out for vanishing after conception, or not “being there” enough for their offspring during … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Bringing Your Baby To Work

April 3, 2013 | 4 Comments
meme1

Allowing infants to stay close to their mothers, by their side at work, is one of the key components to the happy and well-rounded staff at Henna Preschool in Huntington, South Africa. Peggy O'Mara has a popular quote that isn't technically about bringing your child to work, but I thought was very fitting of this circumstance: “Don't stand unmoving outside the door of a crying baby whose only desire is to touch you. Go to your baby. Go to your baby a million times. Demonstrate that people … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Global Community, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

An Experiment in Creativity – My Son’s Blue Hair

April 1, 2013 | 21 Comments
9094_457333977669624_1249387080_n

Samuel has been asking us for a blue mohawk for about six months.   We used spray, but he was adamant about using a less temporary color on his hair.   Brian and I were on the fence about it, so I decided to pose the question to our Facebook page and received an overwhelming number of helpful and thoughtful responses.   In the end, I sat down with Samuel and had a talk with him about why he wanted blue hair. All of his answers expressed his imagination and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Parenting Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Easter 2013

March 31, 2013 | Leave a Comment
meme2

John 3:16-17 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him." Happy Easter! … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Global Community Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

To Assume Makes an Ass out of (Yo)U and Me

March 25, 2013 | 16 Comments
meme1

  Oh, I remember the days when everyone and their mother was writing articles about this blog without actually reading it. A total lack of understanding for the term “attachment parenting” caused very odd outbursts from journalists against my blog’s name. It was very creepy how they described it as some sort of weird mantra we “attachment parents” *must* have because *all* AP mothers "must stay home" and "refuse childcare"... Except, the name behind my blog is meant to be a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: adoption, Ethiopian adoption, family, Parenting Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

A Child’s Perspective on Same-Sex Relationships

March 23, 2013 | 15 Comments
525155_453451711391184_1808459605_n

I posted the photo above yesterday on the blog Facebook page, and it was the first time I could visibly see the number of “likes” of the page drop within seconds. I’ll give the people who were offended some credit, because they went quietly without any “I’m leaving” announcement (I still don’t understand the point of that. Not every facebook page is going to be one you decide is right to follow. Just unlike the page, don’t make it a big production when you exit.) It has been on … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Marriage, Parenting Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,
«Older Posts