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I have recently reacquainted myself with TH White’s “The Sword in the Stone”. Its an extremely well written book about King Arthur and it has some truly hilarious Monty Pythonish moments in it (daughter and I almost could not finish reading the jousting scene aloud because we were laughing so hard).

They had a goldsmithing technique that is unrivaled as well...some beautiful work in gold...

Thank you! Have passed it on to fellow Texan compatriots. This whole fascination for our most famous battle has me a bit worried...and what the hell is he doing with all those Alamo artifacts??!?? Inquiring archaeologists want to know...

The link only takes you to the front page and I cant seem to find the article youre talking about...help? please?

My response would have been “as a mother, may I practice on you?”

He was the best part of "Tin Man" and I see him as one of the rare Real Men in Hollywood today.

GOOD ONYA Mr. McDonough!!

Since we spend considerable time trying to understand this fascinating universe that was created, however it might turn out to be, the result is that less and less of the simplistic stories of multiple uneducated people collected in a Book after a Committee decided to throw out quite a number of such stories that did not add up to a consistent story to satisfy the political needs of the Emperor Constantine are of any interest to us. Nor will they ever be.

AMEN!!!!!

I believe his name was Disraeli. He began life as a Jew, but was converted to Anglicanism - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Disraeli

This article lays out the Neo-feudalism that has been brewing since the American Revolution, since Karl Marx decided he wasnt going to let the unwashed masses take away his right to a nobility. How dare the people decide for themselves! The people MUST be returned to their rightful place as peasants whilst the Elect regain their manors!

That must explain the sudden trend to insert vampires and zombies into the Jane Austen books. Oi Vey!!!!!

Wow - that's great to know about Ms. Harris...I had the impression otherwise reading her blog and forum. She is indeed a wonderful Southern lady. I just dont watch True Blood anymore because I think Alan Ball pirated her work and twisted it beyond measure. I keep to the books now.

Im not much into vampires, although Ms. Harris has had my attention now for several years, but I think its because she writes interesting characters and has a great sense of humor. I love that Eric seems like a character she hadnt planned on using much of and he just 'took over.' I love characters like that. But beyond her books, vampires don't really appeal to me.

*sigh* as usual I see the same "shut up and be grateful" schtick. Never mind that there are problems with loss of identity that can NEVER be replaced, medical and genetic information that everyone else of "normal" upbringing takes for granted. Not to mention the IMMEDIATE social reaction people have towards those not born into normal situations. We modern day people like to pretend we're "over with" the morays of our forefathers, but we still have them. Adoptees are reminded EVERY DAY OF THEIR LIVES that blood IS indeed thicker than water.

Why can't people man up and be adult in acknowledging that they participate in turning some babies into second class citizens in the name of making themselves acceptable to society?

If you ever come to America and to Texas specifically, you cant go wrong visiting the old German or Czech towns for GOOD sausages.

I absolutely LOVED England. I tried not to go in with any expectations, negative or positive, and came away thinking I would love to visit again and for a longer period of time. My plan is to stay a few days in Portsmouth and/or Bath, and hopefully toodle my way through the smaller villages. Big cities are always fun, but I believe the heart is in the country. If you were visiting me Id not only take you to NASA, Galveston, and San Antonio, Id also take you to my favorite little 'holes in the wall' like Llano for the best barbecue and Shiner for some not too shabby Czech beer and San Marcos for some fun swimming in the river there and Seguin for a bit of unknown Texas history (and is where my family is). These places are what exemplify what I love best about Texas. Id be looking for that kind of thing in England.

Visited London last Fall and was actually pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it there.

Food - we found a handful of good places, although I will agree that the English have no concept of good sausage. I come from a German background and am used to the smoked stuff we have here in Texas. I KNOW sausage, and I got horribly sick off English sausage. Having said that though, found quite a number of places that sold excellent Cornish pasties, fish and chips, and seafood. I visited a tavern called The Grapes that had a lovely seafood bisque. Ate scones and brownies at a lovely little bakery in Bloomsbury.

My friend and I rented a flat in Canary Wharf rather than stay in a hotel. We cooked our own food some of the time and it was very comfortable. Far better rates than some hotel.

I didnt see Bulgarians - saw LOTS of Muslims unfortunately - made me very sad. Kept getting sent to Whitechapel by Muslim landlord at apartment complex we rented from. He was a nice young man but seemed only know about Whitechapel. After second mistake of going there decided wouldnt not visit that part of London again. The rest of London a wild mix of europeans and so much fun to watch people. I never felt unwanted.

Yeah dirty streets...but hell, the city is over 1000 yrs old - COME ON!!! ALL THAT HISTORY! I got to touch a wall built by the Romans, visit St. Pauls cathedral, looked at all the beautiful buildings, and soaked up the old atmosphere. I love history. I love places that REEK history. If everything was pristine and unused, Id think I was on an alien planet.

We really tried to avoid the cab but there was one instance where it was absolutely necessary. Otherwise, there is this thing called the Oyster Card that did very well in getting us passage onto the subway system. Yeah, its a bit of a trick to learn how to navigate your way through London in the underground, but I loved it. We had only one instance where the rail broke down and it was fixed very quickly.

There is also the BritRail to take to places outside of London - I went to Bath one day, Portsmouth another. It was SO WORTH EVERYTHING to be able to stand on the gundeck of the HMS Victory and still smell the gunpowder smoke from 200 yrs ago. I quite literally cried.

Next trip I plan to spend more time OUTSIDE London though...London has its charms but I deliberately avoided the usual touristy areas (even though my traveling companion tricked me into going by Buckingham Palace after I told her specifically I had no desire to go there.) I was all about seeing the nooks and crannies of London.

Who the frick CARES if they are going to vote Republican or not???? Do they want to uphold our constitution? Do they want to promote freedom and enterprise and those ideals that the Founding Fathers fought for? THAT IS ALL THAT SHOULD MATTER. And if they don’t support freedom and the US Constitution, they should be repudiated as voters and people who are occupying this country. Im tired of people worrying about whether or not they “like” someone. Are you for America or against it? If youre for it, SHOW IT. If not, get the hell out of my country!

JenB, Am so sorry for getting back to your answer so late - have been out of town for the last few days - Saxon was good for introducing my daughter to math concepts but about middle school was when she got bored with their method and I had a very difficult time finding another math program that she could jump into and encourage her developement. The Key To series worked very well for that time period I think, although we didnt cover everything. Right now am looking to get her into dual-credit classes as well. Will you be using the Well Trained Mind curriculum ie classical training? I love the Story of the World series. Have been raving about them to a relative who is pulling her child out for homeschooling. Ive also discovered K12 online.

Agreed - it has been a virtual desert out there for homeschooling material for high school students as far as math and science...really for all subjects. A lot of the homeschool curriculum companies focus on gradeschool level. Saxon math doesnt work for everyone and history has been a real issue for us. Fortunately, Ive been able to look at a variety of things because of forums like FR and some blogs I like to read.

Id like to know which ones of those people mentioned in this article voted for Obama. Hows that hopeychangey working out for ya?

Just saw your mention of meeting your natural mother - good for you, to a point. Have you been able to get your Original Birth Certificate?

Those in the Adoption Triad should be fighting for an adoptees right to get access to their birth records.

ADOPTION REFORM - EQUAL RIGHTS?

WE HAVE A RIGHT TO OUR ORIGINAL BIRTH CERTIFICATES!

Some suggested sites:

Strengthening Families ~ Fr. Tom Brosnan ~ Keynote address, 5/25/96, Catholic Charities USA, 1996 National Maternity and Adoption Conference San Antonio, Texas

The Catholic Bishops of the United States have done just that in their recently published Book of Blessings. Among the many rituals is one entitled "Blessing for Parents and an Adopted Child". The prayer begins: "It has pleased God our heavenly Father to answer the earnest prayers of (this couple) for the gift of a child..." Despite the feeling of joy the words are meant to instill there remains the unasked question, have the events which preceded this adoption ritual, namely the relinquishment of the child by his mother, has that also pleased God? What is missing is any reference to what has had to have taken place in order for this joyful blessing to occur. There is no mention, no acknowledgment of Loss, of the relinquishment that had to have occurred in order for the adoption to have taken place. . . .

For the adoptee, life is adoption. I think this is true whether an adopted person admits it or not. There is always either an active curiosity about where you came from or a strong denial of any desire to know. If anyone asked me while I was in my teens or twenties if I wanted to know who my birth mother was I would have vehemently said "no, of course not." It took me over thirty years to realize what I needed to do. It is the adoptee's dilemma of belonging and not-belonging, struggling between the need to know and misguided feelings of loyalty and gratitude. I can never forget the experience I had when I began my search for my mother over ten years ago. Before I found her I discovered that her brother was a Jesuit priest who had died rather young at Georgetown University. One day I got in the car and drove down to Georgetown. I visited my uncle's grave and decided to ring the bell of the Jesuit residence. The priest who answered turned out to be not only my uncle's classmate but his best friend, having grown up with him in Philadelphia. Fr. Dineen was a very kind man and I spent the entire day with him listening to the many stories he longed to tell of my uncle and their friendship. After dinner he invited me to his room, "to see some old photos," he said. As we were about to open the album, it suddenly dawned on me that this would be the first time in my 33 years of life that I was to see someone related to me. Just last week I had a similar experience when I met with my mother's roommate, Sophia, the roommate she was living with when carrying me. This was our third meeting since my mother's death and Sophia said she had brought me a present. She took out a photograph she said she found accidently. It was a picture of both my mother and father, cheek to cheek, posing in one of those quick-picture booths. I secretly wondered as I studied their faces whether I was there too, still unseen, but forever a part of their lives. The losses suffered in adoption are also always there, whether we acknowledge them or not.

FOR THE RECORDS: RESTORING A RIGHT TO ADULT ADOPTEES Please take note of the points under Principal Findings.

Read about Georgia Tann

Adopted - Abused

The King Solomon Story Applied to Adoption

Adoptee Stereotypes - play the game...if you dare!!

Baby Scoop Era

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The Primal Wound @ Amazon.com

Some other facts about adoption and adoptees:

An infant knows its own mother at birth: smell, voice, heartbeat, energy, skin, etc. Senses the adoptive mother as the wrong mother (not a bad mother).

The child comes into the family traumatized by the separation from the mother.

No matter what we call it (relinquishment, surrender), the child feels abandoned.

The natural order of things is interrupted: may affect child's understanding of cause and effect.

Infant cannot make sense or integrate what has happened to him: world unsafe ... chaos, confusion.

The child is grieving. Mother needs to notice signs: seems sad, depressed, daydreams (dissociation).

Fears another abandonment: anxious, hypervigilant. clingy.

Somatic responses to anxiety may include: irritability, gastrointestinal problems, projectile vomiting, asthma, rashes, sleep disturbance, etc. Often an elevation in pulse rate, blood pressure.

Affect: rage, sadness, fear, numbness, dissociation, constriction, depersonalization.

Adoptive mother cannot mirror the child as birthmother could have: no genetic markers.

Bonding with adoptive mother will be difficult: fear of another abandonment. Anxious attachment (clinging) is not same as bonding. Bonding is enhanced by a mother's understanding, acknowledging, and validating her child's feelings (rather than discounting, defending against, or giving assurances).

Lack of genetic markers makes the child feel as if she doesn't fit, doesn't belong. Child has to figure out how to be in the family. Hypervigilant. Tries to adapt.

As child begins to adapt, he forms a false self. Begins to lose authentic self. Becomes a "chameleon."

Child copes with pain of loss in one of two ways: compliance, acquiescence, and withdrawal, or aggression, provocation, and acting out. If two adoptees in family, there is usually one of each. Behavioral methods of coping have nothing to do with the child's basic personality. May trade off.

Children are not a "blank slate" at birth. Most of personality traits are genetic (but personality must be distinguished from behavioral coping style.) Adoptive parents cannot expect the child to be like them.

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Have you searched for your natural mother and father?