I believe I have posted before about my love for the Supernanny show. Not only do I feel better about my own family when I see those out-of-control children, but I also think that Supernanny Jo gives real, solid parenting advice. Plus she looks fabulous in her purple suit. If I get a job I may have to get myself one.

I found out earlier today that Supernanny is having a casting call - and they are looking for an adoptive family to profile!

May be cool, or may be awful. It'll depend a lot on... more

Hey everyone - Something very disturbing happened on the way to my job interview this a.m. (see my recent Hoping to Adopt blog post on that little foray out into the real world.

I was listening to the radio, trying to remember why I'd chosen to wear 2-inch heels and wondering how women managed to actually drive in them (with my standard transmission I had a hard time getting the clutch close enough to the floor to actually change gears) when what do I hear but someone... more

We are in the process of getting Little J potty-trained at night.

He's a little over 4 1/3, so I think we're approaching this rather late, especially since he's been day-time trained for more than a year, but you have to understand something critical about Little J: if he's given any latitude at night, he'll take advantage.

By that I mean that in the past, if we've so much as left his door open at night, he's taken this as an invitation to get up and walk around the house. He doesn't want to sleep with us and he's not upset - but he will play. He'll play all night! He won't... more

In Little J's preschool the theme of the month is Family. This is actually excellent timing since his grandparents just visited and tomorrow we're having our annual Family Day party. Family Day is really Little J's adoption day (or rather, adoption month, since we couldn't pick a day for our party closer to his actual adoption day in September)but it takes the focus away from just Little J and towards our entire family.

Anyhoo, one of the activities for Family Day was to make a poster about Little J's family. That was as specific as the guidelines... more

I've been writing this blog for almost 8 months now! That's over 350 posts. Surely there are some that deserve a second look!

Here are a few that I'm kind of proud of. I like them because they capture a mood or a scene and I think I expressed myself pretty well. Sometimes they're about my children and something especially fun or sweet that happened.

If you have a few minutes, please have a look.

"The Loggerhead Hatch, or, Our Children as Sea Turtles" - part 1, part 2

"Little... more

This is 100% off topic. Sorry. But read it anyway. It will serve as a warning to you....here goes:

When someone in my house does something dumb there's a little song I sing. It's the chorus of that old Robert Palmer song, "Addicted to Love." Remember? The one that had the sexy, anonymous women in the black dresses and red lipstick behind Palmer as he sang? In the 80s? Anyone? Anyone?

Anyway, it goes like this: "The lights are on, but you're not home." Yes, I am mocking when I sing this, but it's meant only in the kindest possible way.

But... more

I am a proud mama today.

Little J has been nominated to represent his pre-school for "Responsibility" this month!

At the elementary school that his pre-school is associated with, each month they celebrate certain good character traits. It's called "character education." I don't know if it really works to promote good character, but it certainly makes the child who's nominated to represent his/her class feel really good.

Little J has been chosen to be "Responsibility" because of a not-so-nice thing he did which he took responsibility for.

Here's... more

Hot off the press: The American Academy of Pediatrics urges parents to give kids more free time to play.

Thanks for the back-up, docs. That's what I've always believed.

Here's what my kids have in their schedules: school, 5 days/week. Soccer, 1 day/week. I'm thinking about adding in an art class for my older son, but only after soccer is over since it meets at the same time.

We've done more in the past. Both Big J ad Little J have done the 3 day/week soccer that's done through one of the local leagues. Little J has done gymnastics, too, although that was just one day/week. I think physical... more

A new report from the Evan B. Donaldson Foundation came out a couple of weeks ago: "Adoption in the Schools: A Lot to Learn" Here's the lowdown:

[The report] for the first time brings together research and years of broad experience on a range of issues that affect millions of boys and girls nationwide. It points out that, as adoption becomes increasingly normalized in the United States, more and more adoptive families are confronting challenges when their children attend school - and it offers recommendations for how educators can better meet those challenges.

I facetiously... more

In my last blog entry I referred to a certain "fit of spirit" I had the other day, largely directed at my husband (poor man). Here's what I was so worked up about: getting a job.

I'm writing about this in this blog because I think that for many women who've been stay-at-home moms there comes a time where they must make a decision about going back to work or continuing to stay home. For me, that decision seems to come up every month! It has been very much on my mind in the past year.... more