November 2007

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Welcome to the Carnival of Family Life, hosted at On the Horizon for the first time!

Make yourself a nice, hot cup of coffee, cocoa, apple cider, tea or whatever else suits your fancy. Then get comfortable because it is going to take you awhile to read this week’s excellent entries!

Giving Thanks

Suzanne presents Thanks Giving at Adventures in Daily Living.

Holly Ord presents The I’m Thankful For . . . Day at Menstrual Poetry.

Jenn presents the only fictional work submitted this week, Thanksgiving at Mom’s at Mixed Metaphor.net.

Super Saver presents Giving Thanks to My Parents at My Wealth Builder.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents “a Thanksgiving post I wrote last year which I’ve continued to reflect upon in recent days,” entitled Things More Valuable Than Riches at The Digerati Life.

Robert Bach says, “The turkey comes home (work) to roost” in presenting Journey of a Turkey at Kintropy In Action.

Family Lifestyles, Life Choices, and Ventures

Christine offers “cheap ways to see great films!” via Film vs. TV, Why We Opted to Turn the TV Off, plus Frugal Tips for Movie at Me, My Kid and Life: An American Single Mom Living in France.

Renae presents I Quit Reading Better Homes and Gardens at Life Nurturing Education.

Loraine Lawson presents A Community Makes Time for Family at Time for Family. She says, “School and community take up the majority of your child’s time which makes it hard for families to relax and connect. But one community decided to call a time-out by establishing a weekly family night. I dare you to try it!”

Fred Black presents Dust Off Your Tutu! at Fred Black: Internet Business Blog.

WhatWorksForUs presents Bliss Like This at What Works For Us.

Family Relationships, Self-Improvement, and Faith

Marco Richter presents Help Yourself to a Better Relationship at Self Improvement Emporium.

Carole G. McKay describes “how parents can teach us something about ourselves and how to grow even long after they are no longer able to implement change in their own lives” in Holding On at McKay Today.

Hueina Su presents The Balancing Act: My Radio Interview at Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s Soul. She observes: “These days, work-life balance seems to have become an impossible dream for most people. This radio interview will help you gain new perspective and provide you with strategies for better time management and more life balance.”

James DeLelys poses an age-old question, “What is Love?” at Healing Through Words.

Leisa presents The Real Thing at Down With the Kids.net. Every parent will relate!

Jenny-up the hill presents It Is Well at Up the Hill Gang.

Lori Prokop presents How Do I Let Go of Negativity from the Past? at Raleigh Pinskey - Branding Publicity PR, offering this introduction: “Everyone 30 and older regrets a ton of stuff – mistakes we’ve made; things we’ve said; ways we’ve handled relationships. We’ve all had painful experiences that we can easily recall. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to overcome them.”

Edith presents 99 Life Lessons Learned from Quitting Corporate America at Edith Yeung.Com: Dream. Think. Act.

e-Mom explains how “meaningful communication will help you achieve The Purpose-Driven Christmas” in Simplify the Holidays without Saying “Humbug”! at Chrysalis.

Pinyo Bhulipongsanon presents Public Declaration at Moolanomy, declaring, “Showing your affection is more important than you think. I publicly declare that I will hug my parents every day.”

“New parents often find that their sex lives have changed. Some find they no longer have one,” according to Kate Baggott, who presents Has Sex Really Left the City? at Babylune.

Warren Wong provides “some practical tips you can use now to feel better and be happier” in How to Feel Better and Be Happier at Personal Development for INTJ’s.

David B. Bohl presents The Secret of Fatherhood at Slow Down Fast Today! He explains, “I was reading Dana Glazer’s (Director of The Evolution of Dad) post For Charlie, on His 4th Birthday the other day. I really liked it, and it unearthed a memory of mine: That of writing a similar letter to my son shortly before he left home for college.”

JHS presents The Remnants of My Misspent Youth at Colloquium.

Family Health and Diet

FitBuff presents What Is Healthy? at FitBuff.com’s Total Mind and Body Fitness Blog, noting, “What is healthy? At first, this may seem like an easy question to answer. However, when you actually stop and think about it, it’s not easy at all.”

Jared Hoylman presents The Price of Happiness at DadThing.com.

Doris Chua presents Soft Drinks and Tooth Decay posted at Doris Chua: Organics & Your Health.

Pickel presents Billing Codes May Prevent Autism Screening at Discussing Autism.

Aparna tells us that “water, the best of all natural resources, not only refreshes, but also heals, purifies and cures” in Water to Cure Minor Ills at Beauty and Personality Grooming.

Here’s an article you will want to bookmark or print and keep handy next time you travel. Sagar presents Top 50 Vegan and Vegetarian Restaurants in the World at Travelhacker.

Expectant parents will find Anna’s article, 5 Reasons to Not Circumcise at Our Family Village extremely interesting.

mom & dad present Helicobacter pylori Rears its Ugly Head at raising4boys.com. Never heard of Helicobacter pylori? You’re not alone, so you should definitely read this article and learn about it.

Family Playtime

MomG presents Why the recent massive toy recall doesn’t scare us posted at The Parenting Diaries. It’s an interesting article and one that’s sure to generate some controversy, since MomG announces that she does not give her child toys: “We don’t need toys to entertain our kid. We are her toys!”

Grace describes “visiting a theme park that’s history in the making!” in A Visit to Dubailand at
Sandier Pastures.

Holiday Shopping and Gift Giving

For those of you who are shopping for toys this holiday season, Tiffany Washko presents a
Lead-Free Toy Guide at Natural Family Living Blog.

Abel Cheng lists this year’s Hot Toys and Who Is Playing With Them at Parent Wonder.

“Have you ever seen something in a magazine and thought, ‘Oh, I can make that for Christmas and I know just who I can give it to’?” HowToMe says, “That happened to me this week and I can’t wait to tell you how my $5 investment turned out” in How To Sew a Warming Scarf at HowToMe.

“Holidays and birthdays always come as such a surprise, don’t they?” asks Rolf F. Katzenberger. He tells us about “gifts to avoid, gifts you can do yourself, and appropriate times to start” in GPD: Getting Presents Done at Evomend: Timeless Resources for Personal Organization.

Kevin Heath presents Christmas Crafts for Kids at More4kids.

“Grandparents love gifts made by the kids.” So Stephanie share with us a great gift idea that works “even when mom isn’t very crafty!” Read An Easy and Frugal Grandparent Gift at Stop the Ride!

Parenting Tips, Guidance, and Anecdotes

Karen Shanley presents Of Brick Walls and Petty Tyrants at her self-titled site.

Laura presents Name Police Karma at Adventures in Juggling, a humorous description of her effort to influence the selection of a name for her unborn grandchild.

Mandy presents Teaching Your Child Patience at Building Blocks Blog, acknowledging that it will “take lots of patience — on your part.”

Carole Fogarty presents Nine Things You Don’t Know About Your Children’s Bedroom at The Healthy Living Lounge. “If your children have trouble sleeping, restless nights, wake up feeling tired, complain of aches and pains, foggy thinking, generally feel unwell or constantly ill then the solution to any of these ailments could quite well be found lurking somewhere in your son or daughters bedroom,” she writes.

Karen Alonge offers “a simple strategy for soothing your baby that also helps him learn to calm himself” in Getting Baby to Sleep Longer at Night at Advice for Parents.

Eric Ellen presents How to Get Your Newborn Baby to Sleep through the Night: Applying Dr. Karp’s Five S’s at Husbandhood.

Dawn Adams presents Eavesdropping at Day by Day Homeschooling.

An Ordinary Mom presents Scheduled Down Time with the Kids at An Ordinary Mom.

Carol Holder presents Flowers at Can’t Holder Tongue. Just when you think you’ve heard it all, your kids will surprise you, as Carol explains.

Jaimie presents It’s Hard to Watch Your Child Be Bullied at Hug Twice.

Paidtwice presents Why Can’t I Trust Our Programmable Thermostat? at I’ve Paid For This Twice Already . . . remarking, “Sometimes I am very silly about technology!” Aren’t we all? If you have ever fought the “thermostat wars” with your spouse, you will empathize.
Christina presents Sesame Street is Inappropriate for Small Children. (pause) Huh? at Solo Mother saying, “When I found out that the original episodes of Sesame Street have been deemed inappropriate for young children, a lot of things about me started to make more sense.”

FamilyBriefs presents Creating Order in Your Disorder at Family Briefs.com.

A giant “THANK YOU” to all the talented writers who submitted articles for this edition!

Next week’s Carnival will be hosted at imaginif. Submit your articles for next week’s edition using this form:

Interested in hosting a future edition? You can review the hosting schedule here and drop an e-mail to familylifecarnival at comcast dot net!

On the Horizon

The Next Step

and A Proverbs 31 Woman Wanna Be

proudly present their first-ever Group Writing Project:

“I am thankful to be a Christian because . . . “

We invite you to read and be inspired by all of the wonderful submissions included in this Group Writing Project! Please take a moment to leave a comment letting the authors know how much you appreciate their efforts. Share some of the reasons why you are feeling grateful this Thanksgiving.

Here are the posts included in this Group Writing Project:

• e-Mom at Chrysallis is thankful that “Jesus has promised me a rich, abundant life in the present, and an unending eternal life in the future.” She shares the “Top 13 Christian Books Every Thinking Christian Should Own.” Check out her list and note how many of them are on your bookshelf.
• My delightful co-sponsor, Shalene, at A Proverbs 31 Woman Wanna Be literally uses her fingers to tick off five reasons she is thankful. “Being a Christian has taken my focus off of myself, and put it on those around me,” she writes.
• Tami, my other partner in this Project, is an elegant writer with a unique voice. She also shares her thoughts about thankfulness with us, observing that “[n]o matter the circumstance, I can be happy.”
• Donetta at A Life Uncommon explains why she is “thankful for a relationship that is a friendship with God.”
• Sandy Carlson of Writing in Faith also submitted a post. Click here to read her article in which she describes her faith and challenges us to look at our own: “Imagine it. With a glad and grateful heart, imagine it.”
• Denise of Shorty Bear’s Place is well-known among Christian bloggers. She is a dear spirit, wonderful friend to us all, and needs our prayers this Thanksgiving as she is not feeling well. Nonetheless, she submitted a post for this Project that will bring you to tears. Make sure that you stop by and read Denise’s testimony.
• JHS of Colloquium explains that she is thankful she is a Christian because she does “not know how to be anything else.” Click here to read her entry about growing up in a Christian home and maintaining her faith over the years.
• Lori at All You Have to Give describes in an eloquent and heart-felt manner how Christians are able to endure the challenges of living in a world that can be “incredibly bad.” Click here to read her devotional.
• Dan King, aka Bible Dude, is thankful to be a Christian, in part, because his faith makes him part of a community that, in his estimation, might just approximate “what Heaven might be like.”

Feel free to copy the above list and publish it on your own site. I’m sure that all of the participants will appreciate your sharing their work with a wider audience!

“The purpose of Christianity is not to avoid difficulty, but to produce a character adequate to meet it when it comes. It does not make life easy; rather it tries to make us great enough for life.”

Here we go! The holiday season officially begins this Thursday, Thanksgiving Day. The hustle-bustle of shopping for presents will be the norm for many folks. For most of us, there will be too many parties, school programs, and other obligatory appearances to make between now and December 24.

Many Americans, especially women, are so tired from all the preparations that by the time Christmas arrives, they are completely unable to enjoy it.

Holidays also signal another unique kind of stress: The “oh, my god, we have to spend time with the relatives” variety. Sadly, this time of year is all-too-often rife with anxiety, consternation, and emotional upheaval because folks are expected to spend time with their extended families, as well as a variety of friends, neighbors, acquaintances, business associates, and, last but not least, fellow church-goers.

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