Conscious Mom

Maia's vocabulary has exploded over the last two weeks. Everyday she says at least one new word, usually three or four. Yesterday's new words were 'Panda' and 'China'. She still only says one word at a time, so there are no subtleties in her communication, no analogies or idioms. Just one word to express exactly what she wants. If she keeps this up into adulthood she will be considered refreshingly direct. Or shockingly rude. Her favorite word is still 'more', which can mean either 'more' or 'again'. When she uses the sign, it can also mean 'cheerios'. This gives her an unprecedented level of power, after finishing applesauce: 'more', after reading a book, 'more'. Besotted first time parents, wanting to encourage ...

On June 4, bloggers around the world will be devoting their post of the day to the annual Blog Blast for Peace. If you'd like to see the details, get a globe to decorate, and sign up to participate, go here.

A Father's Day photo for June's photo contest at The Twinkies. If you are looking for my peace globe, go here.)

Inadequate safety specifications of the trailers used to house people displaced by Hurricane Katrina have led to tens of thousands of illnesses, including cancer cases and some deaths. FEMA trailers tied to illnesses. I'm guessing if Katrina tore through an upper middle class, predominantly white community, more care would have been taken. And it's Tuskogee all over again... Toxic Sludge Tested as Lead Poisoning Fix in Poor Black Neighborhoods. Why aren't we rioting in the streets?

Raven had an open tag for this meme. When was the last time I... Laughed: Earlier today, listening to a podcast of 'Wait, wait, don't tell me.' Cried: I don't cry much, I often tear up when reading 'Readers Write' in The Sun magazine. But the last time I had a long cry, complete with snot and sound effects, was our last night in Ethiopia. Maia had spent the day with a nanny who loved her dearly while we took a day trip outside the city. When we went to get Maia that evening, the nanny was rocking her and crying, knowing it was their last time together. With the emotions of the trip, the lack of sleep, the enormity of ...

The mainstream media has finally gotten around to reporting on the famine gripping Ethiopia. Here is CNN's story. The New York Times describes the reasons behind the famine, and discusses other countries in the Horn of Africa affected by it. The Washington Post has a good article, too. Every news story features a family and child suffering to try to put a human face on the catastrophe. This post is no different. Last March we were in the affected region when we visited Maia's birth family; here are some of the people we met while there, some of the people that now might not have enough food or water: ...

In the year I've been keeping this blog I've come to think of all my readers as my friends, even you lurkers (who are welcome to say hello any time, or just keep reading quietly). And even though I know many of you have never met, not even in the blog sphere, I've come to think of you all as one anothers' friends, too. So it seems natural, fitting, that we all celebrate together when two of us have monumental, life-changing events. After years of preparation and over a year of "official" waiting, Katy has just become the mother of delightful twin girls, and Anna has just become the mother ...

I just found out that today is Bloggers Unite for Human Rights day. It's almost the end of the day, and in some parts of the world it is already tomorrow, yet I don't want to let this event pass by without participating, and bringing the famine in Ethiopia to people's attention. Ethiopia is currently experiencing one of the worst droughts it has had in a long time. The death of livestock, failure of crops, and rising worldwide food prices are leading to massive starvation in the southern part of the country. Warming trends due to climate change are said to be causing the drought. A few days ago I blogged about this from a personal ...

Sometimes I wonder if my heart will ever be big enough to embrace the extremes of human experience. Some friends are very close to becoming parents. (If you think I am talking about you, yes, I am!). The pace of referrals of children in our agency's Ethiopia program seems to have picked up and my friends are now much closer to beginning or enlarging their families. I am so excited for them I could jump out of my socks. Literally. When they announce their referrals, you will see some medium-sized women's socks floating down from northern New England- those will be mine. That's the one extreme. On the other is this: Ethiopia: WFP Cuts Assistance to Malnourished Children, Mothers. Apparently the ...