In light of my last post, I think that I will write about this activity that I have been saving for an appropriate time. Today is the day.

My friend Wendy from www.writespirit.com forwarded me this sweet project last week. It would have been great for Thanksgiving as well, but I was a little behind on getting it out.

Remember those garlands that you made, or your kids made, in grade school? They were usually strips of red and green construction paper, linked together and then stapled to make an advent for Christmas. My nephews have brought home others that were representative of math concepts, but I don't remember exactly what... more

A couple of days ago two people reported to San Diego police an ad on Craigslist offering up a free baby. The ad said,

The copy given to police says: “Free baby boy to good home. My ex-girlfriend had him a few weeks ago, but now he just sits in my closet and cries. I'm not too sure how to deal with it, and I'm in a pretty low financial spot. I lost all the baby accessories. Batteries not included. Transaction final. No returns. Guaranteed not DOA.”

If you don't know what Craigslist is, here is the description from www.signonsandiego.com

Craigslist, which started in 1995 by offering free... more

My blog friend Gabrielle has been invited to write an article for the following blog Topics from 192 Countries.

Here is the premise behind the blog:

Topics from 192 countries

I wonder if people from 192 countries across the Globe cooperate to write one blog. Different people, culture, society, politics, products, service... Only one person for One Country ! One Photo for One Story

Gabrielle wrote an article along with a recipe for "satay" to represent Indonesia.

For those who have never tried this... more

Throughout this past year I have been coming across products here and there that would make thoughtful gifts for a woman that is experiencing infertility and loss.

In honor of the Christmas spirit, I thought that I would begin to run these here and there just in case a gift idea was needed.

My first website is called Wear A Prayer. They offer beaded prayer bracelets that represent prayers for women and for girls. The bracelets do run a little much for a casual gift, but would make for a special item for someone who was close to your heart. Here are a listing of their women's bracelets.

The... more

To put a spin on today's message, I thought that I would do a post about a mix of thirteen things that I'm thankful and not thankful for today:

Not Thankful - Spending the holiday meal apart from Chris and the kids as this is the only way that we can make the majority of people happy. Sometimes living in the same town as everyone else can have it's disadvantages. Not Thankful - Stores that continue to be open, although there really isn't that much of a need for consumerism today. I am old enough to remember... more

If grief is a part of your holiday this year, how about doing something different? Something all the way different from Thanksgivings before.

This year for Thanksgiving, no one really felt like cooking. Or having people over. Or doing anything that remotely reminds us of having Thanksgiving with dad. I'm even ready to forgo the turkey! (Alright, that really isn't too much of a sacrifice for me) With all of this said and done, we did want to get together as a family so instead of making dinner, we made reservations!

My sister had seen an advertisement from a local restaurant, offering a Thanksgiving meal in addition to their regular menu. She called me and asked, "How... more

I was trying to come up with some sort of fertility to turkey to Thanksgiving connection to post tonight and couldn't really make the jump into a true link. But I did learn some interesting facts about turkeys and the symbolism that they hold in certain cultures.

From sherrifox:

Turkey - food source, resourcefulness. Its feathers have many spiritual & ritual uses. The spirit of turkey is free, and opens up the channels between us and others on a meaningful level. The turkey sacrifices itself so that others may live, showing us courage and faith in our present life and the next

From www.linsdomain.com

... more

Another way that I have dealt with the anxiety of Thanksgiving day, is to pretend that it is a Thursday. Just a Thursday. Only. No hype, no hoopla, no stress. Just a regular Thursday off of work.

And it worked for some of the time. Especially in the early days of the week leading up to the holiday. I lived my life as I always have done. I would work a regular amount or more at the spa. I tried to avoid the population increases at the stores and would stay away from the "traditional" pre Thanksgiving cooking frenzy. It was pretty easy for the most part.

Now on the actual day of Thanksgivings past, I would tell myself that my family was getting together for dinner. ... more

I read a snippet from an article that stated that the writer was dreading the sitting at the Thanksgiving table and fielding questions from relatives. Can't we all relate? It seems that in one instant, you are living your adult life, and then, with a probing question, you are back in middle school. Expected to tell a relative who may be just one step up from a stranger, the way that your life is heading. And then to add in infertility, it just gets weirder. And worse.

During these times, the way that I would cope for the most part was avoidance. It worked... more

I found this wonderful advice from www.babymoon.com

1) Gather friends around. Go for a long walk with one, see a movie with another, have breakfast with a third. At a time like this, you have every right to call in the troops!

2) Different people need different mixes of distracting themselves and talking about it. Find people you can pour your heart out to, if that suits your style, but feel free to say "OK, let's do something else now".

3) Finding good distractions in this situation... more