Recommendations

I've stumbled upon some interesting stuff lately and thought I'd share it here. Unfortunately, it may not be so interesting for all of you in bloggy world, but I'm the one in charge here ;)

My Flesh and Bone (click for the trailer)-Seth and I got this documentary from Netflix and it took us about 3 weeks before we finally watched it. We knew it would be hard to watch, and it was. It documents a year in the life of a family of 14, many of the children are special needs, all being cared for by their single mom. It was very moving. Here's Susan Tom's website.

The Connected Child-This book was recommended by a dear friend who has a daughter that was adopted as an older child. We share stories about the antics of our daughters, oddly, their behaviors are quite similiar. She found this book and called me immediately telling me it is a must read. It's hard, as an adoptive parent, to find a book that helps you parent your child. I don't generally think about Ella as my "adopted kid" but when I'm assessing her behavior, I always think about her past in regards to her reactions. This book has been brilliant in helping to understand why she may be doing some of the things she does. It mentions seizures specifically (last night I read that alcohol in utero can cause seizures in children). Though we'd love to just forget where our kids spent their first years (when in a bad situation), those are the years that most affect how they deal with the present. It takes A LOT to overcome all of the struggles and this book is the first that I've read that moves beyond the--get ready for this, you don't know what you are getting into--stage. It's more of--we are going to equip you to help your kids overcome their first years. I haven't finished the book, but wanted to pass it along while I was thinking about it.



Jane Kurtz I just read about this author on our agency's yahoo forum. I hadn't heard of her, but once I saw her books; I realized that the kids and I have read several of them. We are planning on doing a geography night with a local homeschool group next Monday. I've been trying to get some fictional picture books on Ethiopia (because we are, duh, the Ethiopian table at this shindig) so that Ella and Eli can get a feel for Ethiopia. We've been devouring Ethiopian history books, non-fiction picture books, internet sites on Ethiopia--but a lot of it is over their heads. Eli's favorite thing so far is Haile G, famous Ethiopian runner. Ella's most interesting pick is the bath of the Queen of Sheba (pictured in a book we went through). Obviously we need to delve in a bit more. Jane Kurtz is the lady I've been looking for! She was raised in Ethiopia, when she came to the US as an adult she missed the country so she started writing about it. She's part of a very cool program, Ethiopia reads. Even if you aren't interested in Kurtz, go check out the Ethiopia reads site--it may push you to do something for a kiddo in Ethiopia!



This article from Parade magazine-My sweet Grandma clipped this out and sent it to me. Which was so kind, because I stopped getting the local paper (it served no purpose other than to fill the recycling bin). I had heard about the article, but hadn't taken the time to search it out. If you haven't read it, go take a peek. It's a very eloquent piece written by Melissa Faye Greene about a trip to Ethiopia with her daughter. It will touch you.