Perspectives in Parenting

I absolutely LOVE Christmas time. Yes, I am one of those crazy Christmas decorators who have their decorations up before Thanksgiving (gasp ... another elf apparently bites the dust). I love everything that the holiday season brings to my family and having decorations around just makes me HAPPY! Shoot, I'd have that beautiful lit tree up all year long if I wasn't such a clutter freak. Celebrating Christmas with all the wonderful components of it (baking, decorating, gift giving, spending time with family, going to church, etc) is the highlight of my year. My cut back on my children's gifts from "Santa" all began about 7 years ago. Back then, I had a 3 and a 1 year old. Christmas morning of 2007, I...

Everyday our daycare fills out a handy form about Sam’s day. What he ate, when, and if he ate it all. Diaper changes. Naps. Supplies I need to bring. It’s great. I always give it a quick glance when I pick him up and usually ask the daycare teachers how his day was. We don’t talk long as I’m ready to be home, and their eyes are on the other kids in the room. In the mornings it’s easier to talk to the teachers because Sam gets there before the room is full, but I am also on a time crunch to get to work. So, most of the time we don’t exchange that much information. General pleasantries, and...

For my husband and me, adoption and foster care has always been a consideration. The reasons are too many to list here, but I will say this: In my own life, I have experienced sickness that left my body tired, my mind weary, and my spirit broken. I have also known a depth of healing that replaced my restlessness with contentment, reconciled fractured images of myself with the truth that my value is not dictated by my circumstances, and breathed wild hope into otherwise deflated, stale dreams. Also, over the course of our marriage, Isaac and I have watched some of our dearest friends navigate foster care and adoption. We observed victories in the lives of their families that,...

I met my husband what seems like ages ago, way back in 2005.  I was seventeen, fresh out of high school and working at his grandfather's construction company.  He, five years older, was also working for his grandfather, not so fresh out of high school, and had a few more life experiences than I.  I was just seventeen with my whole life ahead of me and he...he was the boyfriend with a child from a previous relationship that was just going to hold me back.  What started out as a friendship at work and grew to something much stronger.  Naturally, our relationship was judged....looked down upon... taboo to most.  We both had our fair share of unsolicited advice from others. We were...

It's that time of year again. The leaves are trying to change (or rather fall off here in south Louisiana), pumpkin spice flavored everything is stocking the store shelves, moms everywhere are pulling out their kids' winter clothes from last year (praying they fit for just a few more wears), and everyone around is sniffling, coughing and sneezing. Before I was inducted into the "special needs moms club" I LOVED this time of year. However, I now dread it. Okay, I don't dread it, I HATE it. You see, my kiddo is part of the approximate 20% of children in the USA who are considered to have complex medical needs. My Connor was born with multiple "specialties" that cause him...