Continued from here, where we were looking at earth-shattering controversies concerning Barbie! Oh, my! Poor Barbie has been banned from Saudi Arabia because she doesn't conform to the ideals of Islam. (And here I've been thinking all along that she could conform to just about anything if you put her in the right outfit!)

"Jewish Barbie dolls, with their revealing clothes and shameful postures, accessories and tools are a symbol... more

It may not always seem like it, but I do a lot of research for these blogs I write. I spend a good deal of time looking up information, checking facts and figures, tracking down quotes, and so on. Much of the time, the work is a slog toward dry toast I serve alongside whatever breakfast I'm preparing for you all. Occasionally, however, I come across stuff that keeps me entertained far longer than I should be. Earlier this week, that happened again.

Not that there aren't a slough (as in swamp-like mess of muck) of adoption-related... more

Back in early November, I was interviewed on adoption issues by a reporter from Seychelles Broadcasting Company's television news arm. The local version of the report aired a while back, but some of it was repackaged and sent to CNN for their, "World Report" segment. I had word this morning that it will be airing this weekend.

There are two versions of "World Report", one on general news, referred to below as 'Program A', and one... more

Continued from here ...

And now ... the gains. African Adoption Blogger, Holly Richardson recently wrote about her daughter, Rachel, describing the events that led her to the family through a disruption and how wonderful it's turned out to be:

... my heart just did flips - she was SO cute and I wanted... more

Continued from here, where we were looking at statistics on adoption disruption and dissolution.

For more details, see the Child Welfare Information Gateway, where it is explained that: No national data are collected on the number of disruptions and dissolutions or the percentages of adoptive placements that end in disruption or dissolution. Most of the data that are... more

Domestic or International, concluded adoption process or not, disruption ... actually called dissolution in cases where the adoption is final, but classed as disruption in the common vernacular ... may present, as in all adoption, both loss and gain.

First the loss. The story of the Minnesota couple who returned their son to the Ukraine has pushed disruption into the headlines lately and thrown a pall over much of the adoption world causing endless... more

Sunday was one of those days that does my heart so much good.

I'm not talking about getting my HDLs higher or my LDLs down, or pumping out forty minutes of cardio. Nope. It's that warming thing that it was all about. The family of the most recent of Cambodia-born babies, home just before Christmas, invited us and another family for lunch.

There were four ... count 'em, four ... children under the same roof in Seychelles, all born in Cambodia and cared for at AOA orphanage, and the sight... more

Some interesting and perhaps helpful bits have crossed my desk, so I'm passing them along today.

First, here is a tax question and answer on IRAs and the adoption tax credit that some might find of use.

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"Choose Life", is now considered a pro-adoption motto, according to the ruling of a federal judge in ... more

I want to go skiing, but we haven’t this year. Or last year.

At Christmas Hubby and I joked about taking our family sledding a few years back – and everyone went, including my parents.

Last year, My seventy years old + dad went parasailing in Malaysia. Even though I wasn’t there, I have the video to prove it. I’ve heard he’s glad he went, but maybe he wouldn’t do it again.

Age should not matter when it comes to sports – and activities we do – but it does matter.

The time just slips away and the priorities have shifted. Living... more

Continued from the previous post ...

Spanking is on the legislative agenda in California, and not everyone is happy about it.

... is asking the government to act as Big Brother and make it a misdemeanor if a parent swats a child. I think that is wrong, because it clearly interferes with what is a parent’s responsibility,... more