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News – Forbes ranks Miami the Sixth Worst City to Live in the USA.

Rebuttal – I sit outside working on my sunny patio all winter long, (unlike clinically depressed family members who live up north and complain about the bitter temps and grey skies!) grow unbelievable organic tomatoes in my yard, eat the freshest citrus fruits in the world, leave my windows open for fresh air, run and walk daily outside, never wear a coat, go to the beach often and take advantage of all the cultural events in Miami year round and much more. I’m not suffering.

News – Tiger Woods apologizes for affairs and demands that the press leave his wife and kids alone.

Rebuttal – I’m all for apologies, and he did do that quite thoroughly and methodically. As far as being disgusted by the press hounding his family, he can blame ONLY himself (and what he refers to as his “behavior” as if that were his sidekick rather than his actions) for that.

News – Stowaway who climbs into the wheel of a cargo plane falls to his death after after plane takes off.

Rebuttal – This man should be the Grand Prize Winner of the Darwin Awards, and hopefully he did not reproduce before doing this. The apple doesn’t usually fall far from the tree, pun intended.

News – Accused killer, Alabama Professor Ann Bishop’s defense lawyer states he is sorry he called his client a “wacko.”

Rebuttal – No he’s not. Because she is.

News – After losing the gold to US skater Evan Lysacek, angry Silver medalist Plushenko comments that his sport is supposed to be “men’s figure skating, not ice dancing.”

Rebuttal – This is an arrogant sore loser talking, without grace and humility. His words are what make him a loser, not his performance on the ice.

Journalist, Dallas Woodburn, from CA interviewed Rachel for her role in creating Lilly Badilly’s music and working for Smart Poodle Publishing. Thank you Dallas! The interview is in the actual October 2009 issue of Listen Magazine and not online. If you are not familiar with Listen Magazine, it is a venue for highlighting teens who pledge to be free of drugs and alcohol and who are contributing to the community in positive ways. The magazine includes feature stories about teens, articles about reaching goals and staying motivated and just making the right choices in life.  What a great concept.

I have reworked a previous article I wrote about Jet Lag, and have made it a bit funnier. Check it out on Wandering Educators.

Click here to read.

I love themed travel! Book lovers will love this too!

Click here to read my article about San Juan’s incredible Del Morro Castle, on the Wandering Educators website.

While cruising the web, I came across this fascinating, but ultra sad story, about a mother of 5 and wife of a deployed soldier, who adopted a baby boy she was unable to bond with. (The story is from April, 2009.) She later terminated the adoption, and the baby was adopted by another family. She wrote a respectfully honest article about her experience. Read the story and some of the comments from readers here and then think about how you would answer these questions:

1. Why would a family with 5 children and a father who is often deployed want to adopt a special needs child?
2. Should a family with 5 children and a father who is often deployed be allowed to adopt special needs child?
3. How long should it take for a baby with special needs to bond with a family? Or is it possible for a baby to never bond with a loving family?
4. Is there a “romantic” vision adoptive parents have of the child they are going to receive?  You know what I mean – the dream that a baby with challenges will make a 100% turn-around to become a perfect, beautiful, bright, thriving child?
5. Was it the mom’s inability to bond that affected the rest of the family’s ability to also do so?
6. Did this mom give up too early?
7. Was this simply about a mom who could not love this baby for reasons of her own, having nothing to do with the baby himself?
8. Can you imagine being in this mom’s shoes? What would you do?

One of my closest friends adopted her foster child when he was 9 years old. He is a  bright adorable 12 year old now, but still struggles in many ways. He has made so much progress, yet new challenges present themselves every day. I can objectively say my friend is the best, most patient, most consistent disciplining mother I have ever met. She should win a “Parent of the Year” award, if there were one.

I could never, ever do what my friend has done. I used to think the main reason is that I already have a biological child of my own with no behavior problems. My friend had no children of her own before adopting her son. But now I realize parenting is more about commitment and consistency rather than about how the child came into the world or whether the parent has biological children as well.

I admire and commend any parent who adopts a child and never considers giving up due to the hard work and challenges that are guaranteed to arise. I also respect the mom in the article for being honest about her experience with her adopted son. I am sure her story was not easy to share. I do believe she should never have adopted in the first place, due to already having such a large family and an absent husband. And although I initially do not agree with her decision to give that baby up, I have not been in her situation, and it would not be fair for me to judge her decision.

What do you think?

Read about Chrissie Maher, a British lady who started a Plain English Crusade in 1979. She was fed up with corporate communications to customers filled with mumbo jumbo words that every day consumers cannot understand.

The Wall Street Journal wrote a great article about her, and I just think she is awesome! It will make you think about the mail you get from your bank and the documents you are asked to sign!

My alma mater, Florida State University, listed The Travel Adventures of Lilly P Badilly: Costa Rica on their Seminole ByLines page. This page features all kinds of books published by FSU graduates and faculty. There are so many books published by grads that it took over 1 year for my listing to show up!

Please read my latest article about Montreal on WanderingEducators.com.

I was watching the local news last night and saw this segment about combatting depression during this bad economy. Here’s the short article on the CBS Channel 4 News site. What I like best is the acronym the doctor uses to help people during tough times. It’s simple, but it makes sense.

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