Foster2Forever

Archives for February 2013

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Fun Memory of Grandpa’s Dr. Seuss Food Menu

Dr. Seuss’ birthday is March 2nd and touches a special memory in my heart. Every year, I celebrate with my kids with a special edible Dr. Seuss food menu…because of my dad’s epic fail…

My Daddy was shy, rarely appearing in public. But he had a quirky sense of humor.

On a March 2 evening in my youth, I came home late from school to find my dad in the kitchen already preparing supper. (I grew up in a single-parent home with my dad and two younger sisters)

He informed me that it was a special day – a special day, indeed! It was Dr. Seuss’ birthday!  He added that since we didn’t have any Green Eggs and Ham – that he had a better Dr. Seuss food idea and would be serving another delicacy:

GREEN CHICKEN!

My sisters and I just looked at each other as he proudly placed his colorful, culinary masterpiece on the table. We tried to eat it – we did – however, we just couldn’t get past the color to eat GREEN CHICKEN!

The funniest point of the evening that made us laugh as a family even years later is –

EVEN OUR FAMILY DOG WOULDN’T EAT THE GREEN CHICKEN!

My dad passed away from brain cancer just a few years later. He never met his grandchildren (or his sons-in-law).  My children will have no memories of their Grandfather; however, I want them to feel as though they knew him. One way I’m creating a connection with their deceased grandfather is to preserve that silly memory of Dr. Seuss food on March 2nd with my children.

Over the years, Dr. Seuss’ birthday, has been commemorated by National Read Across America Day. (In fact, next week, my son will celebrate a Seussibration week at school.)

Our family has our own unique celebration of Dr. Seuss’ birthday – to celebrate a Grandfather.

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DR. SEUSS FOOD MENU IDEAS & RECIPES

  • Green Deviled Eggs & Ham Rolls
  • Red Fish, Blue Fish Tuna Sandwiches
  • The Cat in the Hat Parfaits made with Strawberry Jell-O & Cool Whip
  • Seussibration Splash made with Strawberry Jell-O, Berry Blue Jell-O, and Sprite (sugar-free Jell-O floats)

For more ideas, check out my Dr. Seuss Pinterest Board!

What ways are you creating family memories? Do you celebrate Dr. Seuss’ birthday? What food ideas do you have for a Dr. Seuss party or shower?

 

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The Blessings of an Adoption Baby Shower

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Adoption is such a blessing! For those wanting to add to their families. For those birth mothers overwhelmed by motherhood. For the children who need a stable place to belong…forever.

This weekend, I was blessed to be part of a celebration of a child joining a family. I attended a baby shower of a close friend who received a call two weeks ago for a baby abandoned/relinquished upon birth at a Houston hospital. The birthmother went to the hospital because of extreme abdominal pain and was told she was in labor. She didn’t even know she was pregnant!

My sweet friend and her husband were in the last stages of their adoption paperwork when they received the call for this baby girl. They had to rush out to complete their fingerprinting before they could pick up their daughter.

The baby was referred to as a “drop” baby (as in unwanted) and placed in a foster home when she was released from the hospital.

The irony is that the adoption agency is Alternatives in Motion, the same adoption agency that my husband adopted his son, 21 years ago. Two other couples I know from Houston are listed as waiting families, although Amy & Tim recently added a baby boy to their family a few months ago.

This Christmas, in their newsletter to adoptive families, AIM sent a plea for help for birthmothers. Our Sunday School class sent a Christmas love offering.

Isn’t it amazing how blessings come full circle?

I am thrilled for my friend who is a natural at motherhood.

Last week, I asked fans on Facebook about gifts for an adoption baby shower. Thank you for your suggestions! Here is the haul (I did have to explain some of the items to this new mom!)

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When Do-Overs Don’t Work: A Child’s BIG Emotions

I have a defiant child!  His challenging behaviors can be so frustrating as a parent attempting to help him.

Last month, I discussed the “Do-Over” as a technique to teach your child appropriate behavior as an alternative to other forms of discipline.

However, sometimes, such as during this scary blow-up rage at church, DO-OVERS JUST DON’T WORK!

My son, JD, was in full rage mode & nothing we could do was calming him down. We were desperate, and racing to the local hospital for help. In fact, he didn’t calm down until we actually pulled up to the hospital.

A few months ago, I read The Whole-Brain Child along with Lisa Qualls and a few of her readers of One Thankful Mom.

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One of the helpful strategies that I began using during one of JD’s meltdowns is:

Whole Brain Strategy #2: Name It to Tame It: Telling Stories to Calm Big Emotions.

Name It to Tame It helps children not be overwhelmed by their feelings. The authors note that we can: “name and tame the emotions we are experiencing, rather than be{ing} overwhelmed by them.”  This storytelling process can help a child make sense of their experiences.

One thing that we’ve noticed with JD’s rages is that they usually occur when he hasn’t eaten a good meal in a while.  During these rages, I’ve began repeating to him: “oh, you must be hungry…you get really grumpy when you’re hungry…what would you like to eat?”

By adding these narrative details while JD is raging, I’m hoping to help him make sense of what he’s experiencing with these BIG emotions and what he’s feeling in his body.  Then hopefully, one day, he will realize that he’s hungry and just say “I’m hungry!”

That scary blow-up at church was so perplexing to us because he had eaten nearly two grilled cheese sandwiches before church!  That intense rage (the worst in over a year) frightened us more than ever about what could be going on inside our little boy’s brain.  I was in tears holding and praying over my son as we drove that ten minutes to the hospital.toddler-tantrum-foster-child-trauma-bonding-attachment

After that ordeal, when we finally made it home and walked in the door, what do you think Stinkpot said to me? Yes! That’s right!

I’M HUNGRY.

How do you help your child deal with BIG emotions?

You can read The Whole-Brain Child on your Kindle or listen through Audible (how I read it).

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Mindy McCready Commits Suicide While Kids Back in Foster Care

Country singer Mindy McCready is dead after an apparent suicide, just one month after her boyfriend commits suicide.  Her children, Zane (age 6), and Zander (age 10 months) were placed back in foster care last week, as McCready checked herself back into rehab.

In November 2011, she made national headlines when she kidnapped her then 5-year-old son the boy from her mother, Gayle Inge, who had legal custody with her husband, Michael.  McCready had taken her son to her home in Arkansas, saying she had “concerns over his safety”.

After authorities found Zander days later hiding with his mother in a closet in her home, the Arkansas Division of Children and Family Services took custody of the child and placed him in foster care.

In December 2011, she won back custody of her son, instead of her mother. She met her “soulmate” David Wilson, gave birth to his son, Zander, less than a year ago. However, her happy ending didn’t last long.

On January 13th, David died of what was first ruled a “self-inflicted gunshot wound”; however, police were still investigating last week.

On February 6th, a judge had ordered her committed to a mental health facility after she admitted she had been drinking too much, and her sons were placed in foster care again. Her father said she was also abusing prescription drugs again.  McCready spent just one day in rehab before she was allowed to go home.

She was found last night dead of a gunshot wound at the same location her boyfriend had died. She shot the family dog before turning the gun on herself.

Please pray for Mindy McCready’s sons who still remain in foster care in Arkansas!

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Chat with Foster Parent Nia Vardalos on Wednesday

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Writer and star of My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Nia Vardalos firmly believed she was supposed to be a mom, but Mother Nature and modern medicine had put her in a headlock. So she made a choice that shocked friends, family, and even herself: with only fourteen hours’ notice, she became an instant mom to a preschooler through foster care.

Instant Mom is Nia’s hilarious and poignant true chronicle of her attempts to become a mother. With her signature wit and candor, she describes her and husband Ian Gomez’s bumpy road to parenting, how they found their daughter, and what happened next. Nia includes a comprehensive how-to-adopt section and explores innovative ways to conquer the challenges all new moms face, from sleep to personal grooming. She learns that whether via biology, relationship, or adoption—motherhood comes in many forms.  Some families are created in different ways but are still, in every way, a family.


You can also view the trailer for Nia’s book, Instant Mom, here.

LIVE CHAT WITH NIA VARDALOS ON WEDNESDAY

This Wednesday, February 13th at 2pm EST/11am PST, you can live chat with Nia about her book on Twitter. Just follow @NiaVardalos and the #InstantMom hashtag.

You can win an autographed copy of Instant Mom by tweeting your questions for Nia in advance to @HarperOne with the #InstantMom hashtag. [Official Rules]

You can pre-purchase Instant Mom (due out April 2nd) via:  AMAZON, BARNES & NOBLE, BOOKS-A-MILLION, or IBOOKSTORE!

Do you “tweet”? Will you be joining us on Wednesday? Add your Twitter handle below!

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