Compassion and a Desire to Help Others Becky J. Graham, 51
Katie Marie Graham, 22
Katie: “Hands down, our work is what brings us closest together. We share the exact same passion and that is improving the lives of children with special needs. My mom and I work together as a team, in every environment and every situation; it’s as if we can read one another’s minds.”
Thursday, May 1 to Sunday, May 4 COC Performing Arts Theatre Presents “The Hobbit” Join Bilbo Baggins and his adventurous escort of dwarfs as they go on a perilous quest over mountain and under hill, through caves and forest and slimy dark places, seeking the treasure hoarded by the fearsome dragon Smaug. $10 adults, $5 children; www.canyonspac.com
A Treat as Sweet as Mom Babe’s Very Berry Cheese Tart is perfect for brunch or dessert any time. Even if you choose to eat out, the Tart can be gorgeously wrapped for an edible gift she’ll enjoy later.
Babe’s Dessert Bar is located at 24135 Magic Mountain Parkway, inside Papalino’s; 254-4770. Reserve your tart 48 hours in advance to ensure freshness.
Most new moms truly believe that their love life will return to normal “after.” It’s the “after” that’s the sticking point: after everything heals from childbirth; after I lose the few thousand extra pounds I put on during pregnancy; after I figure out how to live with sleep deprivation. After, after, after… Any time you talk with new parents, both the mom and the dad usually agree that after they had the little darlings their intimate life changed, and not for the better. Unfortunately, if we don’t make our love life a priority it will soon disappear, down the drain just like the baby’s bath water.
A growing dilemma in our society, obesity is a serious, potentially life-threatening problem. Not only does it pose considerable health risks - including heart attack, hypertension, stroke, type-2 diabetes, sleep apnea, and certain cancers - it can also devour a person’s self-esteem, energy level and outlook on the future. For those of considerable obesity, medical science has come a long way in helping them attain slimmer, healthier bodies.
In early December the Wall Street Journal reported that a large new study shows strong links between children’s weight and their risk of developing heart disease in adulthood. Researchers found that as kids ages 7 to 13 gained even moderate weight, their risk of illness increased; the greater the increase in weight, the higher the risk of illness.
With today’s popular enticements of video games, the Internet, high-fat fast food and other “sedentary” habits luring kids away, it’s no wonder there’s an epidemic of juvenile obesity and weight-related health and emotional problems.
All families struggle at times with feeling “connected,” but it can be much more difficult in a blended or step-family environment. When parents remarry and bring together their children from a previous marriage, these children may be hurt or angry and unwilling to accept the new parent. Often, they reject not only the new parent, new siblings, room sharing and limit setting, but include in their rejection displays of love and affection.
Getting your child to brush is quite challenging because children are not motivated by necessity but rather by fun and pleasure. Making this daily activity fun and pleasant for your little one will go a long way in establishing a life-long routine that will keep your child smiling and healthy.
There are few sights as joyful as the look of a happy child.
The excitement and laughter; the big, sparkling grin; these are all affirmative signs of that youngster’s glee. But when a child suffers from painful or unattractive dental problems, they often find little to smile about.
Dental Implants are the Better Alternative to Dentures Implantology is the science of the replacement of teeth that have been lost due to accident or disease. Before the development of dental implantology, patients had to adapt to dentures, removable partial dentures, or bridgework. Patients often complained of not being able to chew food properly or eat many of the foods they enjoyed. Some would have pain and discomfort because of ill-fitting dentures due to bone loss. Until recently, dental implantology only offered some relief by allowing a “snugger” fit of the patient’s dentures. Now, dental implantology offers every patient the opportunity to have much of the natural tooth function restored.
Relieve Joint Pain with Eucalyptus Therapeutic-grade peppermint and eucalyptus are anti-spasmodic and very effective at relieving joint pain, muscle pain and arthritis. Additionally, therapeutic-grade rosemary increases circulation and lavender relaxes the muscles. These oils blended together in a base oil, such as grapeseed, can be massaged on the body to provide fast pain relief without any side effects. Note: therapeutic-grade oils must be used for such massage treatments, as scents do not provide therapeutic benefits.
Congratulations! We’ve lived though the holidays once again. This season, I had the most interesting conversations with absolute strangers. I made a point of starting up dialogue with other women shoppers while standing shoulder to shoulder in those eternally-long checkout lines. As I listened as women shared their stories, common themes emerged. For the most part, they talked about husband stress, shopping stress, buying stress and kid stress.
On her wedding day, nothing “frames” a beautiful bride like stunning hair. Be it a sexy upsweep, a luxurious mane with hair extensions, or a magnificent color, cut, and style, great hair makes for a great presentation.
Attention brides-to-be (or anyone who wants to look great for their own “big day”): Do you want to look your radiant best when you walk down the aisle? Would you like your skin to glow, your hair to be full and luxurious, and your makeup to be perfectly applied? Would you also like to feel relaxed and photographer-ready?
Two thousand years ago, when acupuncture first came into use in China, it was based on principles that many Western practitioners believe in today.
Among the growing nest of Oriental Medicine practitioners in the Santa Clarita Valley is Dr. Joseph Koh, of New Hope Acupuncture Medical Group, Inc. in Valencia.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is considered a backbone approach in the field of psychotherapy. Personally, I think the human condition chooses this approach to life as naturally as they choose eating and sleeping. It’s based on the belief that how one thinks determines to a large degree how one feels and behaves. Thus, our thoughts produce feelings, our feelings produce emotions, our emotions produce actions, and our actions produce habits. So emotional distress - a bad day, bad week, bad month - is often the natural result of our irrational thoughts or beliefs.
Cerec 3D Crowns can Now be Obtained in One Visit Cerec 3D is a computerized milling machine which can fabricate a tooth colored-crown or other dental restoration in less than 20 minutes. Tooth-colored restorations mean no more silver fillings or discolored smiles. The restoration is natural looking, compatible with mouth tissue, anti-abrasive and plaque resistant. There is no need for temporaries or impressions that must be sent to a lab. Because of this, the traditional second visit has been eliminated. Only 7.5 percent of the dentists in the United States offer this technology.
Children crave and thrive on interaction, one-on-one time and lots of eye contact. A child’s social, emotional and academic life begins with the earliest conversations between parent and child; the first time your baby locks eyes with you, the quiet smile you give your child and they smile back... Your child is speaking to you all the time. It’s just a matter of learning how to listen and the biggest opportunity comes through play.
One of my favorite stories of the holiday season, besides “It’s a Wonderful Life” (of course), is that of Ebenezer Scrooge and Tiny Tim and the ghosts - oh, yes, the ghosts - of Christmas Past. Every year the Christmas season starts earlier and earlier and in September I saw a display with an upside-down Christmas tree. I think the clerk noticed me, as I was practically standing on my head to figure out this oddity. Yes, I was reassured, people do buy them.
A strong and flexible back is a precious asset. If you doubt that to be true, just ask someone with back pain how much value they place on a healthy, pain-free spine.
These days, back pain is rampant in our society. Obesity, inadequate exercise, poor posture, improper lifting and injuries are among the numerous causes of this complaint.
When shopping for toys for children this holiday season, don’t forget to consider safety issues, too. There are concerns such as the risk of choking on small parts, strangulation from toys with long strings or cords, and falls from riding toys like wagons and skateboards. Of course, lead-based paint and magnets are hazardous when ingested. If you’re unsure of the toy’s quality, it’s better to err on the side of caution.
I never really believed in Santa Claus, but it wasn’t until pre-school that I could confirm my suspicion as fact. Nearly two decades later, I’m still able to recall the December day of dream-crushing quite well. Let’s revisit it, shall we?
This Thanksgiving, many former residents of the SCV will be returning here. Having forsaken our glorious valley for life elsewhere, I’m not all that sure we should be welcoming them back. But Santa Claritans are a forgiving people, and I suspect most will be only too happy to receive their kids, friends and relatives back home. When greeting former Claritans at the front door, however, I ask one small favor. Hold off on the hugs and “I love you’s” till later; your first order of business is to ask them, “Why the heck did you leave?”
For most Santa Clarita children, the holidays are a magical time. But for some, Christmas is just another thing that reminds them that their family isn’t as lucky as others. Hundreds of children will miss out on a big family meal, the memories of decorating a tree and opening a gift or two because of their parent’s low-income status.
The SCV Jaycees want to change this inevibility for 175 Santa Clarita kids this year. The group’s ninth annual Santa’s Helpers project will benefit children of all ages.
Carpe Deim - Latin for seize the day! I wonder how we can seize the day if we don’t know who we are. Just what are we seizing if we haven’t spent anytime getting to know ourselves?
The identity of one’s self and the time we take to reflect on our identity is crucial for all of us. How can we be expected to have relationships with other people and understand who they are without truly knowing ourselves? We can’t; which is why it’s such an important part of growth - understanding, recognizing and creating an identity that is all our own.
Following are some exercises and tips to help parents stay cool, especially during the often-stressful summer months! A good place to start is with our tone. Are we keeping our cool and speaking respectfully? Try using an "I" statement. They sound a little funny at first (Okay, they sound really funny at first.) but they help with the goal of not losing it! "I" messages tell what is happening, tell what you feel and explain why you feel that way. They use the pattern of "When blank happens, I feel blank, because blank."
Parenting means being responsible for someone other than yourself. A teen parent is responsible for their baby and homework, chores, possibly a part-time job and answering to their own parents if they live at home! All of that can be a pretty overwhelming challenge. How do you graduate from high school and learn how to nurture a child when what you really want to do is see your boyfriend, talk on the phone and go shopping with your friends? Where do you go for support and information?
Summertime will bring a handful of near-absolutes to the Santa Clarita Valley. Ants will invade kitchens. Lawns will turn brown. Electricity bills will break hearts. One of the tradeoffs is that the valley's children will be home from school. For parents, that means no math homework to correct, no reports to edit and no practice spelling tests to give. And for the kids, summer is practically paradise.
This article is a bit different than most as it’s a fill in the blank opportunity for you to do a service check on the relationship you have with your spouse or partner. I encourage you to set up some special alone time with your significant other; fill in your answers, then share your answers with each other. Be open. Be honest. Be humble. It’s not about right and wrong but about opening up communication in order to develop a deeper, more meaningful connection to the person you’re spending the rest of your life with.
Since the early 20th century, psychologist Alfred Adler has promoted the theory that a child’s place in the family may determine his/her personality. I was the oldest, with a brother three years younger and a sister five years younger. I remember my brother and I frequently picking on my sister because we felt that, as the youngest, she got away with everything. One time my brother and I shoved her into the toy box, sat on the lid and wouldn’t let her out because we were righteously sure she never got in any trouble.
Recently, I discovered a great team activity. The team mom for my soccer team suggested that we establish a “Secret Sister.” After a fun and secretive selection party when each of us chose a name, we were able to surprise our selected teammate at every tournament with a small token. I had so much fun with this activity because it was as enjoyable to receive a gift as it was to pick out treats for my Secret Sister.
We've all experienced a bad mood. Everyone understands that occasionally they're going to have a bad day. As parents we become all too familiar with the symptoms signaling when a family member is about to have one. But what happens when a child has a bad day and keeps having them consistently? Depending on a child's age and developmental stage, they may not recognize their own symptoms or understand why they feel and act the way they do. They often can't talk about it or feel embarrassed and scared because they're different than the other kids.
Are you searching for a good book to read? I recommend the 13th book in the "Series of Unfortunate Events" series appropriately titled "The End." This novel in the last book (obviously) in the series by author Lemony Snicket featuring the Baudelaire orphans: Violet, Klaus and Sunny. As the book begins, the Baudelaire orphans are adrift in a small boat in the middle of the ocean with the evil Count Olaf. A terrifying storm quickly approaches, causing their boat to be torn apart and separating the Baudelaires from the villain.
Abortion - A Secret Shame
As in any situation of loss, the effect is personally unique. For women who have been through an abortion, the hurt they suffer afterwards is often confusing and shameful. Many ask themselves, "If it's my right to make this choice why am I in so much pain?" "Why doesn't anyone want to hear about my pain?," is another frequent quandary. I have talked with so many women who have shared their shock at how alone they felt after they had an abortion. This pain is a natural emotional response to grieving a loss. However, often women feel isolated because even though society says the choice is theirs to make, this same society doesn't appear to actually want to hear too many details after the fact.
Teenagers today are plugged in and ready to communicate like no other generation before them via e-mail and cell phones. The popularity of internet sites, such as MySpace.com, has launched a new world that has parents shaking their heads and wondering just how much multi-tasking a kid can do. Ever watch a teen text message a friend? Have you ever seen fingers move so fast? Technology has advanced at a rapid pace and the internet is a wonderful tool, but there are potential dangers facing young adults whenever they are online.
Since winter break is here, I have been asking people what they most enjoy doing over the vacation with their friends and family in the SCV. The following list includes some of the places and activities kids have recommended to me. Doing different crafts such as constructing gingerbread houses are a great way to have fun on a cold or rainy day. Let your artistic talents shine as you decorate your dream house with tons of candy. You can build by yourself, with a buddy or even have a group of friends over for a quick get-together.
Whether it's your screaming child in the grocery store, your young child who won't stop bugging you to buy something during a trip to the mall, or your teenager who's defensive because he was caught coming in after curfew, we all run into the moment of engagement: that brief period of time when a particular situation has escalated and we have to make a decision. The experience feels a bit like looking at a movie in slow motion. Surroundings fade to black and it's just you, your child and the moment of truth. What to do?
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