Even in spite of rages from my children who are angry at the way the world once treated them or in the face of uncommon emotional battles, I still try my best to have that old attitude of gratitude.

I’ve been reading, Thanks by Robert A. Emmons which is about the new science of gratitude making one happier, and today I came across Deborah Norville’s new book Thank You Power: Making the Science of Gratitude Work for you.

Maybe... more

I receive emails from folks, over the years, expressing their interest in having a large family. More than an interest really, I hear of deep dreams and strong desires to accomplish this in their lives.

No one, including me I suppose, has a specific number of children in mind. I truly didn’t set out to become this large, and I believe that I knew when to stop adopting. I have room in my house now for more children, as so many of mine are grown, but I don’t feel called to add to my family anymore.

I’m often asked for advice regarding how to prepare for this type of... more

“Why am I being punished?” she screamed at her dad.

“You’re not being punished, you’re being parented,” he quietly responded.

I was cleaning the kitchen and overheard that encounter on the TV show my teens were watching. Engrossed in, Lincoln Heights, they still noticed that I grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down those lines after I cheered the father on loudly.

One doesn’t see that kind of parenting on TV very much. I was impressed.

Parents are afraid of their children nowadays... more

I find Nancy Spoolstra’s recent posts on disruption very interesting. Sometimes I don’t know when to comment, as I am so wordy, or when to blog a response post instead. I’m fairly neutral on the issue, able to empathize with both sides.

As I was driving all day yesterday I was thinking long and hard about disruption as my perspective has greatly changed over the last twenty years while living with severely traumatized children.

Some children that I poured all that I had into never responded to my love, attention or attempts at finding resources and treatment for them. They never responded... more

I heard the traffic reporter on the radio today claim that she was too blessed to be stressed. I ran the words through my head over and over until I realized that in spite of my very bad attitude lately over the huge battles I’ve fought in getting mental health services for my kids, I feel the same way.

Just physically making it through each day ought to be indication enough for me, adding in all the other outsides stressors and challenges, but then meeting each one head on, often with a pretty good resolution, reminds me of how blessed I really am overall.

I spent all day today again in my truck moving my seriously disturbed son from a crisis respite center three hours away... more

I’m trying to keep my life in perspective as I wade through defiant, mean children while juggling an admittance to a psychiatric hospital, not for me but for a son, realizing another son got locked up last night for not having car insurance, and learning that a friend of mine has an inoperable mass on her liver.

That absolutely stops me in my tracks. My problems here will someday cease, and will certainly ease up at some point, but my friend is battling for her life. I need to get a grip.

My kids will hopefully overcome most of their issues before the next... more

I hear folks exclaiming mightily over the cooler fall weather. “It’s my favorite time of year,” I hear joyfully proclaimed by many to me. They must be out of their minds I wonder to myself.

Fall weather seems to be The Dying Season to me. Leaves shrivel and fall off the trees; frost takes my delicious vegetables, decimating my garden, burning the flowers, leaving a trail of destruction. Baseball season ends this month with the World Series, pools are closed down, and night comes way too early.

We shut the windows, drag out the extra clothes that weigh us down,... more

I have way too many heroes, folks whose books I devour over and over again, it’s a tough job to keep my spirits up at times when I seem to be faced with so many obstacles and challenges each day.

A favorite author of mine, Og Mandino who I have to read slowly so as to better comprehend his thoughts tells us all,

“Never again clutter your days or nights with so many menial and unimportant things that you have no time to accept a real challenge when it comes along. This applies to play as well as work. A day merely survived... more

I recently read about a very novel idea about exploring a new career.

Brian Kurth founded VocationVacations and it offers clients a risk-free chance to test drive a new career. In a three day vacation they are matched with a mentor and immersed in a different profession. The top ten are chocolatier, dog trainer, songwriter, PR Director, wine maker, fashion buyer, Bed and Breakfast owner, sports announcer, Not-For-Profit Director and TV Producer.

I didn’t see Adoptive Mother to a Large Family of Traumatized Yet Adorable... more

The founder of Craigslist expressed a little astonishment at learning that his site was the seventh most visited site on the net, with more than seven billion page views per month. Craig Newmark started Craigslist in 1995 and now has a multimillion dollar company.

He was interviewed in this month’s issue of Success Magazine and I liked the manner in which he summed up his company,

“We’re flawed, we... more