Vickie Tate and her husband were at a funeral visitation when their grieving friend left them with these words: “No matter what, when it’s all said and done, you need memories because sometimes that’s all you have left. You need to take those trips with your kids. Every single one you talk about.” Ever since...

As of 2017, there were nearly 48 thousand children living in out-of-home (foster) care in Australia, a number that has risen every year since 2013. Of those children, more than forty percent of them remain in the foster care system for five years or more [1]. A 2013 survey found that while over eighty percent...

Growing up in the foster care system is difficult. The day a child is adopted out of that system is an incredibly joyous occasion.  Now imagine what it must be like to be in foster care, get adopted and spend seven years with a family, only to one day have them abandon you. This is,...

Every parent or grandparent wants their young ones to succeed in school. From getting good grades to getting even better friends, it warms the heart when that “perfect student” flies through school with flying colors. Reality is, more often than not, students struggle a lot throughout their studies. Fortunately or unfortunately, a student’s “success” usually...

Whenever you take a deep-dive into house cleaning, you’re almost guaranteed to find some reminder of a time gone past. Sometimes these memories are happy ones, others are more bittersweet. Bittersweet is the best way to describe what Zelda Williams found while doing some quartine-cleaning at her home.  Old photos bring back fond memories While...

When our children are babies, we wish they were old enough to sleep through the whole night. When they are toddlers, we wish they were old enough to stop throwing tantrums. When they are elementary school kids, we wish they were old enough to stop picking fights with their siblings. When they are teenagers, we...

Divorce is a difficult and draining phase of life for anyone to pass through, but what’s even harder is learning to co-parent amicably after separating. The transition from couple to divorced co-parents is not always as seamless as we assume it to be.  Endless negotiations, mediation, blurred lines about the future of the children and...

People make references to the month they were born in all the time to explain certain aspects of themselves. “I can’t stand the cold! I was born in July, I guess I’ll always be a summer baby at heart.” “If I had to choose snow or sand, I would always choose snow. I was born...

When musician Eric Clapton got the call that his four-year-old son had a fatal accident, he worked through his immense sadness by writing music. One of those songs, Tears in Heaven,  became one of his all-time greatest hits. (1, 2, 3) One of the most horrific experiences a person can go through is the death...

Do you remember going through a “phase” when you were a kid?  Maybe when you were two years old you developed an intense interest in trains, or maybe your sister was obsessed with the solar system. There are now a myriad of television shows out there, like the Ellen Degeneres Show, or Steve Harvey’s “Little...

As a parent, you are constantly on high alert for things or situations that could harm your child. You dutifully cut their food into small pieces so they don’t choke, put plugs in every light socket in the house, and you try to keep dangerous items out of reach. Sometimes, even when you do everything...

Your baby is constantly trying to communicate their needs and desires to you. Without the ability to speak, however, it can sometimes be difficult to understand your baby. For parents, determining whether their baby is hungry, uncomfortable, happy, or scared can often feel like a guessing game. Every baby is different, and will communicate with...