In Memorium - Gussie Louise Collins

Earlier this year, Betti King e-mailed Hope Cottage with this message: "I saw on your website that you are looking for the oldest Hope Baby and I think I might have her. It is my mother, Gussie Louise Collins. She was born in August 1922 and is living here in Waco."


Maybe it was the twinkle in her eye. Maybe it was a sense of spunk, but Baby Gussie was adopted from Hope Cottage at the age of six weeks. That was at a time when most babies lived at Hope Cottage until they were six to nine months old to make sure they were healthy and that adoption was what the birth family desired. Gussie's parents were no strangers to the adoption process, having adopted their son twelve years earlier.

Gussie's mother died when she was ten and Gussie was sent to live at Buckner Children's Home until her father felt he could care for her. Two years later, her father remarried and came to Buckner to take Gussie back home to Teague, TX, but Gussie refused to go. She told her father she preferred to stay with her friends at Buckner Children's Home and that is where she remained until she graduated from high school. Gussie had a great sense of adventure working in Washington, D.C. during World War II and living on a military Army base in Alaska, all while raising her three children. Almost her entire career was spent working for governmental agencies. Her children said, "Mother loved people, loved being with them. She always looked like she stepped right out of a fashion magazine."

Gussie with her children (l to r) Betti King, Ralph Calhoon and James Reid Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, non sectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918 Hope Cottage has been building and nurturing strong families through counseling, education and adoption services. If you have questions about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 214.526.8721.  If you are a woman facing an unplanned  pregnancy and would like to talk to someone about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.

Mrs. Collins returned to Hope Cottage in the early 1990's and with information provided by our post adoption department, she reunited with another brother and a sister. She passed away earlier this spring in Waco where she resided near her children Bettie, Ralph and Jim.

Babypalooza!

Yesterday more than 100 people gathered at Hope Cottage for our annual Founder's Day Picnic. Babies and toddlers were everywhere!

Despite the heat and humidity (what can we say - Texas in June!), everyone had a great time. The picnic is one of two events held annually that gives our Hope Families a chance to visit with each other, visit with birth famillies and reconnect with Hope Cottage. DJ Mark Ridlen provided musical entertainment and kept the crowds moving, especially during the limbo contest.  The Therapy Dogs were a smash hit again.   We snacked, we laughed, we smiled and we are looking forward to next year. Tomorrow's blogpost, Picture Tuesday, will feature more pictures from the picnic, but this photo was too good to wait until tomorrow to share.

Dr. Kenneth McIntosh, our oldest living Hope Baby, held our youngest Hope Baby during a group picture of all the Hope Babies in attendance.  We managed to capture this moment.

Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, non sectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918 Hope Cottage has been building and nurturing strong families through counseling, education and adoption services.

If you have questions about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 214.526.8721.

 If you are a woman facing an unwanted pregnancy and would like to talk to someone about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.



Resource Thursday - Adoption Blogs

Blogger was down from Thursday around noon until Friday night, so our Resource Thursday post for the week is a few days late. Never fear - we are here featuring bloggers who write on adoption.


It is proven that we, as humans, benefit from a shared experience. You receive wisdom from those who have walked on the path before you and you receive and give support to those who are walking along beside you. That is why we have support groups. The only person who can know what a cancer patient is going through is someone who has been there and the only people who can really understand your adoption journey are people who have made that same trip.



The advent of the internet has opened up our world. No longer are we limited geographically to support groups in our locale. Cyberspace has made it possible to interact with people from across the globe.  For an information junkie, the internet is like crack.


Blogs came on the scene in the late 90’s. First termed “web log” and then later blogs, this digital form of communication evolved into on line diaries where people wrote about their day, their job, their thoughts and opinions on every subject under the sun, and then some.

The wonderful thing about blogs is they can and should be conversational in nature. Readers post comments, you comment back and soon you have a dialogue. In a quest to share, to vent, to comment, to seek opinions, it is only natural that people would blog about their adoption experience. Here are some blogs that are written specifically about adoption. Please remember that all links are for information purposes only and are not warranted for content, accuracy, or any other implied or explicit purpose.

Help your favorite blogger out.  When you read something you like, comment on it - you never know what kind of dialogue you will spark!  What is your favorite adoption blog?  Share it with us and we will recommend it to our readers.  And THANK YOU for reading our blog!  Be sure to share it with your friends.

Production Not Reproduction – The author has two children whom she adopted domestically. She blogs on her life and a myriad of adoption topics such as open adoption and transracial adoption.

Life from Here: Musings from the Edge – The author struggled with infertility finally adopting her child through an open adoption.

A Real Family - Normal is over-rated and not nearly as interesting or fun. The story of how a young, single White girl and two Black teenagers redefine the traditional family model and become the All-American Family. The author created this blog in hopes of encouraging others to consider adopting older children.

Goggy Coffee – A dad journals his life as a husband, a guitar instructor and a father of a multiracial family.

Peter’s Cross Station – A same gender couple shares stories about their lives with their adopted daughters.

Ramblings of a Single Dad – A single father writes about life raising his son.

Adoptive Dads - A guys' perspective on parenting--blogs from dads though adoption and foster care.


Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, non sectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918 Hope Cottage has been building and nurturing strong families through counseling, education and adoption services.

If you have questions about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 214.526.8721.

If you are a woman facing an unwanted pregnancy and would like to talk to someone about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.

Picture Tuesday - Me and My Mom

Every Tuesday Dallas adoption agency Hope Cottage shares pictures from its archives.  In honor of Mother's Day, enjoy photos of Hope Babies and their Moms.  If you have a picture of a Hope Baby(ies) and his/her mom and would like them to be included in a future post, email the picture to lclay@hopecottage.org.

Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, non sectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918 Hope Cottage has been building and nurturing strong families through counseling, education and adoption services.


If you have questions about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 214.526.8721.


If you are a woman facing an unwanted pregnancy and would like to talk to someone about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.

Resource Thursday - Cooking With Your Toddler

Cooking with your child can be fun, educational (for both of you) and sometimes frustrating.  The togetherness of the shared activity outweighs any hassle there might be.  Preparing food and cooking together reinforces your child's language skills, teaches cooperation and prepares them for a skill that will serve them for a long time - how to feed themselves!  And if your child has turned his or her nose up at a certain "yucky" food, if he/she is the chef that dish might just be their new favorite food - because THEY made it.  Here are a few resources to help you turn your toddler into a miniature chef. 

Here are some things your toddler can do:  (source http://www.webmd.com/ and http://www.familyplayandlearn.com/)

• Scrub, dip, tear, break, and snap (for example, snapping the ends off green beans)
• Spread peanut butter on bread
• Shake, spread, and cut with a cookie or biscuit cutter
• Peel (some items), roll, juice, and mash
• Remove husks from corn
• Wash vegetables in a colander
• Measure and pour some ingredients
• Hand mix
• Cut banana slices with a plastic knife
• Wash and scrub fruits and vegetables
• Wipe off the countertop
• Rip lettuce
• Shake plastic bags of different ingredients
• Pour ingredients from premeasured cups
• Stir or mix ingredients
• Roll cookie dough
• Cut cookies from dough
• Whisk ingredients
• Frost cupcakes (use a plastic knife or a small spatula)
• Crush crackers and cookies to make crumbs
• Dip foods that require dipping
• Place cookies and other food on baking sheets or trays
• Shape meatballs
• Peel bananas

Let your child do the measuring over a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan - that will help contain the mess. 

Here is an article on Squidoo that gives helpful suggestions for making cooking with your toddler easier.  It offers suggestions on equipment to use and other tips.  Scroll further down the page to find suggestions for Mashable Foods to make with your toddler.  Kids like to "mash and moosh" things - why not take advantage of it!

Next week we will share "Toddler Friendly" Recipes.  Bon appetit!

Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, non sectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918 Hope Cottage has been building and nurturing strong families through counseling, education and adoption services.


If you have questions about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 214.526.8721.

If you are a woman facing an unwanted pregnancy and would like to talk to someone about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.

Picture Tuesday - Sitting Pretty Part I

Enjoy some pictures of our Hope Babies as they are "sitting pretty".  Of course Hope Babies are the brightest, the cutest, the smartest and the BEST babies!



Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, non sectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918 Hope Cottage has been building and nurturing strong families through counseling, education and adoption services.

If you have questions about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 214.526.8721.



If you are a woman facing an unwanted pregnancy and would like to talk to someone about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.

Favorite Childhood Books

Early Hope Baby Reader

A couple of weeks ago, Hope Cottage asked its Facebook Fans to share with us their favorite children's books.  Here is what they had to say:

Jennifer:   Oh where do I begin! I have so many favorite books. I bought a TON of books before we ever even had our sweetie home. We read everday. She doesn't have a favorite yet...but I'm sure she'll have many. I love anything by Eric Carle, Love You Forever by Robert Munsch, all of the Little Miss Spider books, The Tale of the Three Trees. I could go on and on, but I'll stop!

Jessica I:  Mine was "I'll love you forever". But I bought one the other day called "why was I adopted" by Carole Livingston that made me wish I had read it when I was little :)








 

Jessica S. ‎"Guess How Much I Love You".....beautiful and touching or "The Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein

Robert T.:  ‎"Winnie the Pooh" as a child. This past weekend I found my Winnie the Pooh story calendar 1974 which brought back a lot of those Pooh memories. My newest discovery and find is a book called "Zen Shorts". Too many wonderful children's books, too little time!









Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, non sectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918 Hope Cottage has been building and nurturing strong families through counseling, education and adoption services.


If you have questions about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 214.526.8721.

If you are a woman facing an unwanted pregnancy and would like to talk to someone about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.

Pumpkin Baby



Dallas Adoption Agency, Hope Cottage, is now accepting entries for the Pumpkin Baby Photo Contest on Facebook.  The rules are simple

• Follow the theme - Pumpkin Baby which encompasses anything fall, pumpkin or Halloween related!
• Child depicted can be any age now, but in the picture submitted, must be age 3 or under.
• Post the photo on the Hope Cottage Fan page by 5 pm October 10, 2010

Here are the winners of the September Photo Contest for Career Baby.  Congrats!



Mr. Professor



Future Teacher














P.S. For those of you in the Dallas area - the Arboretum is in the midst of their Great Pumpkin Festival - lots of photo ops!


Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, non sectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918 Hope Cottage has been building and nurturing strong families through counseling, education and adoption services.


If you have questions about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 214.526.8721.

If you are a woman facing a crises pregnancy and would like to talk to someone about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.

Hope Cottage Receives Grant from Office of the Governor

Hope Cottage has received notification from the Office of the Governor, Criminal Justice Division that it will receive $120,000 over 3 years to launch a new program working with teens who are parents or at risk to become parents. The goal of the program, called Teen Mentoring and Prevention (TMAP), is to ensure that teen parents, pregnant teens and at risk teens know how to avoid behaviors that can lead to incarceration, child abuse, neglect and a life of poverty.

“In September 2009, the Dallas Morning News stated Texas has the highest repeat teen pregnancy rate in the entire U.S. and Dallas is the number one city for repeat teen pregnancies in Texas.”, says Hope Cottage CEO, Sonyia Hartwell, MSSW. “Teen pregnancy causes girls to end their schooling, places a strain on social services and reinforces a cycle of poverty. Researchers have concluded that teen pregnancy will increase in the coming decade and the biggest loser in this equation is the child born to and raised by teen parents. These children are at a high risk to be in poor health, drop out of school, experience higher levels of incarceration and become teen parents themselves, thus perpetuating the problem.” Hartwell continues, “This funding is instrumental for Hope Cottage to expand its scope of services to the community and launch new initiatives to support the organization’s mission of building and nurturing strong families.”

Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, nonsectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918, Hope Cottage has been nurturing and building families through education, counseling and adoption services.

Hope Cottage Announces August Photo Contest Winners

Dallas Adoption Agency, Hope Cottage, is pleased to announce the winners of the August Most Joyful Baby Photo Contest.  Each month the agency hosts a themed Baby Photo Contest on its Facebook Fan Page.  Parents post pictures of the precious tykes following a prescribed theme.  Previous themes have included the Baby in the Biggest Hat, Most Patriotic Baby and the theme for the month of August:  Most Joyful Baby.  Here are the August Winners:

Grand Prize Winner

First Runner Up - Mr. Bubbly

Second Runner Up - Mr. Happy

Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, nonsectarian adoption agency in Dallas.  Since 1918 more than 7,000 children have found loving, permanent homes through Hope Cottage.

If you would like more information about adoption, visit the Hope Cottage website or call 214.526.8721.

If you are a woman facing a crises pregnancy and would like to discuss adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.

Family Traditions

I have a couple of friends from high school who I think are some of the most gifted writers around.  I envy their ability to lay down their thoughts in such thought provoking, entertaining ways.  I read Berry Simpson's blog this morning about family traditions and knew I just had to share it.  Hope Cottage is all about making families and helping them to stay strong.  What family traditions do you have?

My family had a tradition of making home made ice cream with family and friends.  I still remember sitting on top of the hand crank freezer while my grandfather turned the handle.  Sometimes it would be vanilla ice cream, sometimes peaches from his back yard tree would be added.  In the late 60's Helen Corbitt fudge sauce and peanut butter sauce were added to the mix and I do remember Chocolate Sheet cake as an extra treat.  I laugh because we would usually need to make two 6 quart freezers of ice cream when we had the Thompsons over.  One freezer for my dad and Daddy Leon (patriach of the Thompson family) and one freezer for the other 7 of us!  That ice cream was good eating!  A few years ago I dusted off our ice cream freezer and decided to start the tradition again.   I still must have a wooden container, but I have gone electric for the motor!   Hopefully our boys will continue the celebration.

Our ice cream recipe is below, but before I go, I want to ask  - what are/were your family traditions?  Share them with us here!

Lue's Ice Cream
10 eggs
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 cans Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 can Carnation Evaporated Milk
two good "glugs" of vanilla (I kid you not, that is what the recipe says)
1 quart half and half and whatever room is left in the container, top it off with heavy cream

Mix everything well together (I use a hand mixer).  Place in ice cream freezer and freeze.  After the ice cream freezer stops, I have found that I need to then put the ice cream into a container and put it in the refrigerator freezer for a couple of hours to firm up a little more - that is if you can keep from consuming the ice cream on the spot.

Hope Cottage is the oldest nonprofit, nonsectarian adoption agency in Dallas. Since 1918, Hope Cottage has been nurturing and building families through education, counseling and adoption services.


If you have questions about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 214.526.8721.

If you are a woman facing a crises pregnancy and would like to talk to someone about adoption, please call Hope Cottage at 1.800.944.4464 or 214.404.4546.