One year ago today you gave birth to “our” son. I can only imagine how scared you must have been. I hope you were not alone. I know so little about you; I can only hope that your employeer who reared “our” son for the first 3 weeks was there to help you bring this amazing boy into the world. I feel guilty to have so much happiness born out of your own sorrow. I want you to know that I think of you often and wished we could have met you while in Ethiopia to express my gratitude for your strength, courage, and love for your child. I want you to know that he is loved by so many people and that he is a very special little man. He has the most gorgeous eyes that are deep and thoughtful. He has brought so much joy to our family and is the blessing that my husband and I had waited years and years for.
I hope that you have recovered from your decision to give up your child for a hope he would have a “better” life. I wonder if you think of him often. I wish there was a way to let you know how wonderful and amazing he is. I know that you are an amazing woman because Minnow is a part of you and he is amazing. You have given us and this world an amazing child who will do wonders and will change the world. He certainly has already changed ours and yours.
I celebrate you on this day. I thank you which is in no way a suffient way to repay you for this most amazing gift.
Thank you,
Minnow’s Mom

will be one year old tomorrow. I cannot believe how fast time goes and how much he has changed over the last 7 months. Preparations are underway for his party tomorrow. It will just be family and a few friends, but that translates into 40 or so people. We went yesterday and had one year portraits taken. Here are a few….

to it’s own power and role. On Good Morning America this morning there was a segment on this disturbing new trend amongst high achieving students who don’t do drugs–asphyxiation. They choke each other to experience the high. This is a dangerous activity and kids get addicted to the high just as they might any other controlled substance. Approximately 40 kids died last year from this activity. In some circles this activity is called “The Choking Game.” Game–people really use the word game when talking about this. I can understand teens and pre-teens using the word game–as so much of life is a game to them. But adults and the media calling it a game give the activity a different undertone. It isn’t a game. It is a dangerous activity. Let’s call it what it is. Just because kids who don’t really understand the finality of death and the consequences that can really occur–we were all teens many of them think they are invincible.
I was so angry at Diane Sawyer and the rest of the people on the show who kept calling it a game. Just because that is what it is known as in teen circles doesn’t mean that the media is absolved of responsibility to really put the activity in its place. It is a lethal activity that kills kids who want to get high but don’t want to do drugs. Please Media outlets know your power. Accept your power. Weild it with thoughtfullness.

Minnow–I promise to listen to you and hope that I do not fail you as a parent. I promise to snoop in your room, and to know who you are hanging out with. I promise you will have little privacy at home–enough to feel safe but not enough to get into serious trouble. I promise that I will work hard to make sure you understand the natural consequences of your actions and will do my best to help you naviagte the increasinlgy dangerous world of being a teen. I will love you and support you and teach you how to make the right decisions.

The first weekend of spring here has been gorgeous–it was 80 yesterday. So we took advantage of that and took Minnow outside to experience the grass. Grass is not his favorite medium to walk on–it is cute to see him unsure, but after much coaxing and walking holding on to daddy, he was brave enough to take it on himself. Hope you all are enjoying Spring.