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Medical advances in alternative forms of reproduction are easily outpacing the
culture, leaving same-sex couples sometimes facing years of frustration.
Same-sex couples starting families are headed to primetime in The New
Normal, a fall sitcom from NBC based on two gay men looking to start a
family with the use of a surrogate. It’s one of the first expansive and
relatable looks into the process. But a local affiliate station in Salt Lake
City, Utah banned the comedy because it worries that this show about families is “inappropriate” to be watched by families.
Even in the show, Bryan and David must contend with the surrogate’s bigoted grandmother. The New Normal might be, as Jonathan Kipp of Oregon Reproductive Medicine, a leading fertility clinic for LBGT couples, “another step in showing Americans that our country’s families are diverse.” But it’s also a hint at what couples who try surrogacy experience when confronted with a culture not yet prepared for a “new normal.”
According to U.S. Census data from 2010, an estimated one-quarter of all same-sex households are raising children. The Census didn’t ask how many used alternative reproduction. But for those couples, the expensive process comes with a host of frustrations and little support during the search for a donor.
Just how expensive — costs associated with alternative reproduction run steep and can prove to be challenging for couples.
• Surrogate fees range from $20,000 to $40,000.
• Insurance coverage for the surrogacy cycle ranges from $15,000 to $25,000.
• Program coordination fees for surrogacy range from $15,000 to $22,000.
• Egg donor fees range from $5,000 to $10,000.
• Program coordination fees for egg donation range from $4,000 to $8,000.
• Doctor's office fees, labs, medications, and the like range from $13,000 to $20,000 and more.
• There will also be incidentals such as attorney fees, psychological and genetic consultations, complication insurance policies for donors and travel expenses that could add an additional $1,500 to $5,000 and up.
April Nelson, 38, an attorney, and Margaret Fiore, 49, a corporate trainer, of Mayfield, Md., began discussing whether to have kids several years into their relationship. The couple of seven years opted for IVF and now have twins, a boy and a girl named Addison and Avery, who are now almost 4 years old.
Nelson and Fiore’s journey began in the summer of 2007 when first exploring
how to get pregnant "the old fashioned way," Nelson jokes, referring to simply
using anonymous donor sperm for insemination. The couple encountered their first
hurdle, however, when it was determined by doctors that Fiore's likelihood of
producing a viable egg was minimal because of her age and hormone levels.
Then the couple spent a few months considering options, and with Nelson still
midway through law school and Fiore having always wanted the pregnancy
experience, they decided to try in-vitro fertilization (IVF) using eggs from
Nelson implanted in Fiore.
"The process was exciting and terrifying and exhausting all at the same
time," said Fiore. There were periods when both were on injection hormones and
making multiple visits each week to the fertility clinic. The couple underwent
mandatory counseling sessions to ensure they "knew what they were doing," and
Nelson had to participate in even more assessments required for egg donors. The
clinic was open affirming, but neither its policies nor the law were truly
prepared for how to "categorize" them.
You can read the entire article here. You can learn all about Surrogacy and more at A Family of My Own Conference. I hope to see you there!
As children grow and their bodies change, it's not always easy for parents to tell if a child falls within a healthy weight range. Body mass index, or BMI for short, is a standard measurement of body fat. Your child's BMI can help you determine if he is at risk for health problems based on his weight. Measuring the waist or neck circumference is another way to measure body fat in kids. Your health care provider may also do this.
The CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend BMI screenings for all kids age 2 and older. Here's what you need to know about checking on your child's BMI and what to do with the info once you have it.
BMI estimates how much body fat you have. Calculating a child's BMI number starts out just like calculating an adult's BMI. It's based on height and weight. But for kids, height and weight alone aren't as accurate as they are for adults. Why? Because kids' body fat percentages change as they grow. Kids' BMIs vary based on their age and gender.
That's why when health care professionals talk about a child's BMI, you won't usually hear a plain BMI number, like 25, but rather a BMI percentile, like 75th. These BMI percentiles show how a child's BMI compares to other children of the same age and gender. To calculate the BMI percentile -- which is also called "BMI for age" -- a health care provider or an online tool like WebMD’s FIT Kids BMI Calculator takes a kid's BMI (along with age and gender) and looks it up on a pediatric growth curve. This gives the child's BMI percentile.
BMI percentiles are grouped into weight categories:
So, for example, a 6-year-old boy with a 75th percentile BMI has a higher BMI than 75 out of 100 6-year-old boys. And though you may think that means he is heavy, he is considered a healthy weight.
Many parents assume that if their child had a high BMI, their pediatrician would tell them. But that's not necessarily the case. Sometimes pediatricians may not bring up weight issues with parents. So if you're interested in your child's BMI percentile, it's best to ask directly.
Some school districts have started to measure all children's BMIs in school. The school then sends home a BMI report card to alert parents to any weight issues. Although some parents don't like the idea of schools sending report cards with their child's BMI, experts say that the point is not to embarrass anyone. It's to let parents know about a health problem with serious consequences.
Studies from the U.K. show that children's BMI report cards can work. One study found that after getting a BMI report, about 50% of the parents with overweight children made some healthy changes to their lifestyle.
How Accurate is BMI for Kids?
Experts generally consider BMI for kids to be a good measure of body fat, at least among heavier children. But there are some cases in which BMI might be misleading. Athletic kids, in particular, may fall into the overweight category when they are actually muscular.
Your child's BMI is important, but it is only a piece of the picture. If a BMI percentile indicates that your child is not within the healthy range, she needs a complete weight and lifestyle evaluation with a pediatrician.
The pediatrician will likely follow up with an exam to see how far along your child is in her development and perhaps tests for weight-related health conditions, and by asking questions about her diet and exercise, whether weight is an issue for her, and your family history. This information will allow the health care provider to determine the best way to respond to an underweight, overweight, or obese BMI percentile.
Experts recommend that kids of all ages and all weight categories follow these healthy guidelines to help keep weight in check. It's easy to remember them as 5-2-1-0 every day.
Here are some other expert-recommended eating guidelines.
Carla Lewis-Long’s first book, WHY I’M SO SPECIAL: A BOOK ABOUT SURROGACY rated a 5 star review by surrogacy expert, Sharon LaMothe on Amazon.com. A good accomplishment, but Carla didn’t feel as the full story was told. According to U.S. Census, there's a growing number of same-sex parents in America today: between 1.5 million and 5 million, in 1976, that number was estimated to be 300,000 to 500,000. And a recent report by CNN, stated that children with same-sex parents should be prepared for questions from strangers and classmates. "After writing my first children's book on surrogacy, I realized that the majority of people that use surrogates are same sex couples and I wanted them to also have a book to read to their children about their journey.” So on December 19, Carla releases the second volume, WHY I’M SO SPECIAL: A BOOK ABOUT SURROGACY WITH TWO DADDIES (AuthorHouse ISBN:9781468500073), and introduces 9 year old, Tyler Simone Newman, who illustrates the book.
Surrogacy for two dad households have been bolstered by the recent news of celebrities such as Neil Patrick Harris having twins Harper Grace and Gideon Scott in October 2010, Ricky Martin having twins Valentino and Matteo in 2008, and Elton John getting the best Christmas gift of all, Zachary Jackson Levon one year ago.
According to the advocacy group, Resolve, 7.3 million people in the U.S. are affected by infertility. Carla Lewis-Long’s fertility issues led her to Creative Family Connections, which helped find a wonderful surrogate to carry her baby. Her first book, Why I’m So Special: A Book About Surrogacy is a story for all parents who used a surrogate to share with their young children, to let them know just how special they are. The second installment focuses on the two dad household and how that journey may be explained to the children.
Besides being a loving mom to Makana Elliott Long, Carla Lewis-Long is VP, Distribution for nuvoTV. She has spent 17 years in television, working at networks such as AmericanLife TV, Oxygen, and USA Network. CableFax Magazine named her as one of the "Most Influential Minorities In Cable."
For more information, visit http://carlalewislong.com
Follow on http://twitter.com/surrogacystory
Like on http://facebook.com/abookaboutsurrogacy
August is National Breastfeeding Month, which is fitting because breastfeeding is once again spiking in popularity among new moms as the preferred method of feeding their newborn babies. Breastfeeding is a personal choice that all mothers make and this trend is very healthy because breastfeeding provides so many benefits to both the mother and her baby. Chicago Healers Practitioner Dr. Marilyn Mitchell, MD, provides some of the benefits of breastfeeding.
It is also smart for new moms to be aware of what they consume while breastfeeding, as it can affect their child. Here is a list of things to up intake of and things to avoid:
Do eat:
Avoid:
Brookie Cookie Bookie: A children's book about friendship, acceptance and celebrating our differences by Robin B. Rosenberg is sure to bring smiles to the faces of small children as they are read to and relate to the pictures drawn by kids their own age. Its large, colorful and the message is timeless. What I particularly enjoyed were the little rhymes on each page telling of another friend of Brook's, the differences they have and what each child has in common. "Siobhan has a BIG family and mine's very small but we both love family time and know it's the most important time of all!" Brookie Cookie Bookie is a great gift for ages 1-6. Read and enjoy!
Expecting 411, Baby 411 and Toddler 411 by Michele Hakakha, MD and Ari Brown, MD are wonderful books for the first time parent and for those with lots of experience! Not only are these books written by doctors they had an advisory board to help them and trust me, no detail is left out! These books are very well organized with sections and chapters and a clear question and answer format along with icons to indicate Helpful Hints, Red Flags, Old Wives Tales and Disturbing Material Ahead to name a few. The Baby 411 and Toddler 411 books have Insider Secrets and Feedback from the Real World. I highly recommend this entire set!
Do you want to WIN your own BRAND NEW set of these great 411 books? Here's how you do it! Visit Infertility Answers, look over the website and recommend it to someone you know(the recommendation button is at the bottom of each page) and then sign into the Guest Book! Leave a comment about the site and your name and e-mail address along with the date and you will be put in a drawing to have this entire set delivered to you by December 17th! This Contest starts today and will end on December 7th 2010. You will be contacted by e-mail on December 11th! Expecting 411 is signed by both authors!
Thank you and GOOD LUCK!
The Surrogacy Lawyer Radio Program Presents “Talking about Surrogacy to the Children of Surrogates”
On October 21, The Surrogacy Lawyer Radio will interview Sharon LaMothe, author of “Surrogacy Helps a Family Grow,” and Tracy Armato, Conceptual Options Program Director
When a woman decides to become a surrogate mother, she will have many conversations: with members of the surrogacy agency team, the intended parents, the medical and legal professionals involved in her care and with her spouse or partner and other adult relatives and friends, to name a few. But one of the most important conversations she will have is with her children, so she can explain the surrogacy process to them.
On the Thursday, October 21 episode of The Surrogacy Lawyer: Your Guide to IVF and Third Party Reproduction, Theresa Erickson, Esq., will be discussing how surrogate mothers should talk to their children about their pregnancies for another family. Ms. Erickson will interview Sharon LaMothe, a former gestational surrogate and author of the upcoming book Surrogacy Helps a Family Grow, and Tracy Armato, program director of Conceptual Options, The Surrogacy and Egg Donation Center and past surrogate. This episode will air on at 11AM PST/2PM EST on Voice America.
Sharon LaMothe is currently the owner of Infertility Answers, Inc., and the creator of two blogs about third party reproduction. She also owns LaMothe Services, LLC, an assisted reproductive technology business solutions service. Tracy Armato is responsible for overseeing the daily operations of Conceptual Options. Having been a gestational surrogate, Tracy has viewed third party reproduction from both angles and is a key support figure for surrogates.
“As a surrogacy lawyer and owner of a surrogacy and egg donation agency, I am excited about this new tool to help surrogate mothers talk to their children about the amazing gift they are giving another set of parents,“ says attorney Erickson. “Having open and honest conversations about third party reproduction is essential, whether you are a surrogate or egg, sperm or embryo donor. I look forward to advancing the conversation about this important topic.”
About Theresa Erickson, Esq.
Ms. Erickson is the managing partner of Erickson Law and the founder and chair of Conceptual Options, The Surrogacy and Egg Donation Center. In addition, Ms. Erickson is the author of the newly released Surrogacy and Embryo, Sperm, & Egg Donation: What Were You Thinking? Erickson was motivated to write her second book so she could educate potential intended parents, as well as the women who become surrogates and egg donors, about what all parties need to know if they are going to become involved in third party reproduction.
Attorney Erickson is a globally recognized expert in this specialized area of law and is a board member of the American Fertility Association and the legal director of Parents Via Egg Donation. For more information, please visit www.ericksonlaw.net and www.conceptualoptions.com.
I will be breif here because the link below says it all....
http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10023.html
When you have a baby, one of the things that should be on your “to do” list is getting a Social Security number for your baby. The easiest time to do this is when you give information for your child’s birth certificate. If you wait to apply for a number at a Social Security office, there may be delays while we verify your child’s birth certificate.
So if you are about to have a baby, through Surrogacy, IVF, or without any help at all go to the hospital prepared with the information to start the Social Security wheels in motion!
Sharon
www.InfertilityAnswers.net
When I read this Special Feature I knew that I needed to pass it along and the response back was tremendous. Really, this article drives home that its the simplicity in the telling of the facts that will make the answers easier to understand.
Sharon
www.InfertilityAnswers.net
In this Special Feature, Dr. Bergman discusses the mechanics of being a happy, healthy, gay family.
I have to confess upfront that this is one of my favorite subjects. I study it. I counsel parents about it. Most importantly, I live it, together with my partner and our two amazing girls. What follows represents a summary of my opinion however, I urge you to contact me directly for more information.
What you have to know at the outset is that your baby is going to be born to you not knowing anything about the world. Your baby won’t arrive with any opinions about how things are supposed to be. They arrive ready to be guided by you as to what’s right and what wrong. They don’t show up questioning what’s missing.
Gay parenting, and surrogacy is not about something missing. It’s not about something’s wrong. It’s not about saying, “We couldn’t do something this way so we had to do it this other way.” It’s not about loss as perhaps adoption can be. There’s no loss. No one has given anything up. It’s about creation.
As far as your child knows, you and your family are complete. Everything that your baby gets about your family, is going to come from you. Eventually the world around you seeps in, but mostly, it’s up to you to help them make sense of their lives.
For this reason, I believe it is profoundly important that you get comfortable with who you are when you have kids. Your level of comfort or unease translates to your child. You set the level.
The story that you tell your children is going to be their truth – nothing else. You can invent that story anyway you want.
Here’s my favorite story:
Daddy and Papa fell in love and got married and lived together and loved each other. We had so much love that we really wanted to have children to share it with.
To have children you need three things:
A Uterus
An Egg
A Sperm
Daddy and Papa had the sperm, but we needed an egg and a uterus. So, a very nice woman gave us her egg and the doctor mixed it with our sperm. Then the doctor put that inside the uterus of another nice woman who very kindly allowed you to grow there for nine months.
When you were born, you came out of her uterus and into our arms. We took you home and you were our baby.
Simple, clear and truthful works best.
People always ask, me
“When should I start telling that kind of story?”
I say: the day your child is born.
You start telling the story even before the child can understand it and there is never a question about what happened. You tell the story in developmentally appropriate terms – so maybe you are not going to say sperm and egg and uterus to a two year-old or four year- old. The thing to remember is to tell the truth that’s developmentally appropriate.
“Who can I consult about what’s appropriate?”
Me. This is my area of expertise. This is my passion.
Surrogacy is a story of people who want to be parents. It’s the story of someone who needed help assembling all the ingredients. It’s a story of collaboration, love and intention. It’s a beautiful story.
Questions
Will your child say: “How come I don’t have a mommy?”
Probably.
When you are a parent, you realize that children always say stuff like that. “How come I don’t have a mommy?” flows right along with, “How come I don’t wear glasses?” “How come our house is smaller than their house?” “How come I don’t have a dog?” “Why can’t I have a horse?”
When our kids ask such a question, too often, we make that mean, “Omigod! They’ve figured it out that something’s wrong with our family!” That doesn’t have to be the case. We don’t panic when our children ask us, “How come I don’t have a dog? Why can’t I have a horse?”
If we are not intentional with our response and comfortable with who we are, that’s when we have a tendency to inflate the importance of these questions. We end up adding negative meanings because we are scared we’re doing something wrong, but we’re not.
When your kid says, “Why can’t I have a horse?”
You can easily say, “I hear that.” “I know you’d like to have a horse. I’d love to have a horse, but we don’t have a horse.” “We can’t have a horse.”
I know from experience that when your child asks, “How come I don’t have a mommy?” you can easily and truthfully answer, “Because you have two daddies.” It really can be that simple.
Creation
What do you need to be a healthy gay family?
Openness
Honesty
Humor
There’s no need to get defensive or scared. Your family is whole and vibrant. You are not coming from a place of scarcity.
You will probably need one other thing. The willingness to take a stand for your family everywhere you are.
Let’s say, you’re in line at the grocery store with 52 little old ladies or men in business suits or teenage hoodlums even, and the checkout lady says to your child “Oh you have such cute blond hair! Your mommy must have blond hair.”
What does taking a stand mean? It means, you, saying in front of that whole entire line of people, “He doesn’t have a mommy. He has two daddies.” That’s what it takes, everyday, everywhere you go.
My partner and I take this approach. What we end up with is my kids correcting people all the time. You say in public to one of my kids, “Oh, you have such pretty, green eyes. Your daddy must have green eyes.” They will say, “I don’t have a dad, I have a sperm donor.” They are as matter of fact as can be. My kids have been saying that since they were three years old.
I don’t mean you have to be on a soapbox. I just believe that you must tell the truth and not allow lies.
When you’re in line by yourself, you can say whatever you want. By yourself you can choose to be “in” or “out.” You don’t have that choice in the presence of your child. If you fail to take a stand, if you don’t say, “She has two daddies,” what your child hears is, “We are pretending that I do have a mommy because I should have one. We are pretending because there’s something wrong.”
So, don’t pretend like you didn’t hear it. Make the correction. Being a gay family doesn’t mean you are “political,” that may not be your intention. In truth, however, it turns out to be political sometimes.
Terrible Teens
Everyone always loves to ask:
“Aren’t you worried that when your kids get a little older they’re going to have really big problems with gender identity and sexuality?”
No. I’m not worried about it at all.
The research that’s been done (which isn’t very much) consistently shows that the children of gay and lesbian parents are just as well-adjusted as everyone else and more flexible. Gender identity seems to be internal. You have heard the classic example, right? Most gays and lesbians were born and raised by straight parents.
But still, won’t your teenager be ashamed to have gay parents?
Yes.
Don’t panic though. Teenagers are ashamed about everything having to do with their parents. Adolescence is about individuating, differentiating and independence. The way that children work through this stage is by pushing against the thing they’ve been so close and connected to. That’s you, their parent.
It really doesn’t matter. Being a gay parent is just as much a pretext as anything else that’s going to embarrass them.
Whatever it is - You’re too strict. You’re too liberal. You dress badly. I even have kids in my practice who are embarrassed because their parents work out and are in great shape.
They will find something. The upside is that being the gay parent of teenager is not going to be worse. The downside is that it’s probably not going to be better.
How do you cope?
You develop a foundation of trust and respect. You instill these values in your child from the day you get them in the hospital. You repeat that they are the most wanted child in the world. You tell them the story of all the planning, the collaboration, the intention and the love that went into their creation. Your child will realize, there may be something different about your family, but there’s nothing inferior or wrong.
They’ll come out the other side of adolescence and love you again. Keep your checkbook handy.
The most common neural tube defects are spina bifida (an incomplete closure of the spinal cord and spinal column), anencephaly (severe underdevelopment of the brain), and encephalocele (when brain tissue protrudes out to the skin from an abnormal opening in the skull). All of these defects occur during the first 28 days of pregnancy - usually before a woman even knows she's pregnant.
That's why it's so important for all women of childbearing age to get enough folic acid - not just those who are planning to become pregnant. Only 50% of pregnancies are planned, so any woman who could become pregnant should make sure she's getting enough folic acid. (and women planning on becoming egg donors and surrogates)
Doctors and scientists still aren't completely sure why folic acid has such a profound effect on the prevention of neural tube defects, but they do know that this vitamin is crucial in the development of DNA. As a result, folic acid plays a large role in cell growth and development, as well as tissue formation.
Lets have pride in our families...one and all! Happy Sunday! Sharon
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Myth: The only acceptable home for a child contains a mother and father who are married to each other.
Fact: Our children are raised in families large and small. There are one-parent, two-parent, and grandparent headed families. There are stepfamilies, blended families, foster families, families of birth and families of intention. There are families with one child, families with ten children, families with no relatives and families bursting with extended family activity. Families are interracial, multiracial, intergenerational, gay and straight. The reality of today is that the traditional definition of the married, heterosexual couple with 1.5 children is only one of the many, many families that our children grow and thrive in. To say that it is the only acceptable home for our children insults all children's homes that do not look like this. We believe that the "acceptable" home for a child is one in which love, commitment, and support are freely given among its members...
Source: Golombok et al. 1983, Green, R., 1978, 1986.
Excerpted from the Family Pride Coalition.
Reprinted with permission.
Sharon
www.InfertilityAnswers.net
..and then bought some dinner for in the room at the food court. (Quiznos) Erika stayed in the room and watched TV while Joe and I played some slots...No I didn't win...but Joe entered into a couple of poker tournaments throughout our trip and came in 2nd in one and 1st in another so he was happy!
...They even had a huge "ice burg" to touch...lots of artifacts...very educational.Titanic Image Gallery Erika liked it...and then we headed back to our hotel to get ready to meet the shuttle. I had some free casino money I needed to use up so Joe took Erika to buy some final souvenirs and I played about 1/2 hour of Roulette...and won...which is nice to walk away from there with SOME money back in your pocket. Then it was back to the airport and an uneventful flight back to Seattle! (rude awakening!!)British woman freezes eggs for daughter aged 10 |
| Katy Sinclair Progress Educational Trust 03 June 2008
The girl has Turner syndrome, where one of the two X chromosomes carried by women is missing, and which almost always causes infertility, although women with the condition can conceive using donor eggs. The syndrome affects around 2,500 girls born each year. In 2005 her mother decided to freeze some eggs for her daughter, to give her the chance of having a baby genetically related to her. The case has caused some to call for a change in the law, as the girl is unlikely to be in a position to want to have children by 18, when the eggs will have to be either used or destroyed. The mother, who is campaigning for the law to be changed, said 'I don't want to put my daughter under pressure, and I don't think she should be having to make that choice at that age. We feel real sadness that, for no particularly justifiable reason, our daughter is going to be put in an impossible situation'. Proponents of a change in the law argue that the ten year rule is arbitrary, with Gillian Lockwood, medical director of Midland Fertility Services, arguing that it has 'no scientific justification at all'. The family's cause is being supported by their MP, Andrew Stunell, who has also raised the issue in the House of Commons. Mr Stunell is considering tabling an amendment to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill, which is in the process of being debated in Parliament. He said, 'my constituent and her family are in a Catch-22. She faces a ten-year maximum storage period, by which time her daughter, who would be the beneficiary of the donation, would not be at an appropriate age or stage in her life'. The Department of Health has said that the storage rule could be changed without primary legislation, and is an issue that will be considered once the new Bill has been made law. Another solution would be for the girl to have the eggs fertilised with donated sperm, and to have those embryos frozen, which could then be stored for a further 10 years. |
The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance; the wise grows it under his feet. 
— James Oppenheim
Memorial Day dawned bright, I'm sure...but I didn't see a bit of light until 10:30 am. Now THAT's a Vacation! We packed up and by 11:30 we were out the door and on our way North through Vancouver to Capilano. I highly recommend a visit to the Capilano Suspension Bridge | Explore the Park . It is beautiful! And well worth the price. We had only thought that the Suspension bridge would be the best thing about it but we loved the bridges in the tree tops as well as the cliffhanger walk. This is perfect for all ages and I really don't think you need to worry about any small child falling through the cracks...there aren't any! It is perfectly safe.....although I saw MANY older people hanging on for dear life! We stayed a couple of hours and may have stayed longer if we didn't need to get back to Seattle. 
Sharon
It takes no energy.
Costs no money.
Takes little time.
Requires no special tools.
It can cause increase in stature.
It can bring renewal and a lighter step.
It can ease stress.
It can lift a heavy load.
It affects every life at every age.
PRAISE
P power packed words of encouragement
r right at any time of day or nite
a always works
i intuitively welcome
s saying something that is positive and personal
e everybody deserves some
Do you want to change things in your marriage, your work, your children, your school, committee meetings, church, relationships??? Try praise. "You will win more bees with honey"
Now I am not suggesting that you make things up. That you slather compliments...brown nose....etc...
I AM SUGGESTING that you begin to practice praise. Start by making a decision to give 1 genuine praise per day per individual. This does not come natural in most cases. So you will need to be intentional to pull it off. You may meet some skepticism in the beginning but don't let it hinder you. Make it a practice.
Children will thrive with praise. You do not need to worry that they will become proud or spoiled...if the praise is genuine it will do it's job.
It can be delivered privately or in a group setting, in a note, letter, with a gift or alone.
Don't let anything stop you. Praise. Praise PRAISE!!
Blessings
Marnie
http://comeinandrest.blogspot.com/2008/04/positive-praise.html
This was posted on AOL....one embryo was transfered using IVF....
By FRANK ELTMAN,
AP
Posted: 2008-03-05 09:25:02
Filed Under: Health News, Nation News
MANHASSET, N.Y. (March 5) - When they get older, Logan, Eli and Collin Penn may blanch at the notion they wore nail polish to their first news conference. But it's the only way their parents know how to tell the boys apart right now. The identical triplets were born Wednesday at North Shore University Hospital on Long Island - an event so rare that an obstetrician estimated it might happen just once in 200 million births.
Ed Betz, AP
Allison Penn looks at her identical triplets Tuesday at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, N.Y. From left are Logan, Eli and Collin. The triplets resulted from just one embryo implanted during in-vitro fertilization. The odds of giving birth to identical triplets are one in 200 million, an obstetrician estimated.
The triplets' mother, Allison Penn, was impregnated with just one embryo through in-vitro fertilization, said Dr. Victor Klein, a specialist in multiple births and high-risk pregnancies who delivered the boys.
That embryo split in half, and then one half of that split again, he said.
"This is the first one we're aware of in the literature in the country in which they only put back one embryo" and a woman gave birth to triplets, said Klein. "Most people put back two or three embryos, and you just never know."
Identical triplets are born at a rate between one in 60,000 and one in 200 million, depending on the research, Klein said.
Allison Penn, 31, said she and her husband, Tom, 46, had tried to have a baby since they got married about four years ago. Although she once thought of having several children, the disappointments over four years revised her dreams downward.
"When it took us so long to get pregnant, I just assumed we were going to have one, and that would probably be it," she said. "So I thought one would be good."
And when she and her husband were told three youngsters were on the way?
"I looked over at Allison and her mouth was wide open and her eyes were like saucers, and she didn't say a word," Tom Penn said. "Then I realized that it was possible, and then I started to laugh."
He confessed he couldn't get over the irony.
"Everything we had done was to have one baby," he said. "Anybody who says God doesn't have a sense of humor - everything we did was just for having one baby, and now we have three."
To help tell them apart, the boys have a dot of maroon nail polish on their fingers. Logan Thomas, who weighed 4 pounds, 12 ounces, has a mark on his thumb; Eli Kirkwood, a 4-pounder, has polish on his forefinger, and Collin McGuire, at 4 pounds, 11 ounces, has a mark on his middle finger. Logan may have a problem with a non-functioning kidney, but the other children are healthy, doctors said.
Allison, an education specialist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said she has not decided whether to return to work.
"That's one of those 'one-day-at-time' issues," she said.
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2008-03-05 09:23:02
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