The Oregon Women's Report - Women's News from Oregon

By Erika Weisensee, booklover
Milwaukie writing mom,

“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”  -Cicero

This quote combines two of my favorite things, reading and being outside in my garden. In fact, I love to read outside. I have written before in this column about my love of good books and the fulfillment I get from being part of two book clubs. Good books have the power to transport one to another time and place, to inspire, to challenge and change minds. While I read plenty of book reviews, the best book recommendations always come by word of mouth. Here are some books people are buzzing about:

“The Help” by Kathryn Stockett
A debut novel, “The Help” is set in Mississippi in 1962. Stockett, who grew up in Jackson, Miss., creates a work of historical fiction that reveals the lives of black women—”The Help”—who were hired to care for and nurture white children. Though tackling serious themes, this book is winning praise for its storytelling, and for the inspiring, even humorous, tone of this new author.

By Randall W. Haveman, DVM, MS
Sunnyside Veterinary Hospital, PC
Happy Valley, Oregon

There are many reasons for giving pills to our pets.  It can be one of those times when your cat can seem like an exotic and wild beast.

The old joke is that to pill a dog is two steps:
1.)    Wrap the pill in a treat like peanut butter, baloney, or cream cheese.
2.)    Toss it to the dog and you’re done

Giving a pill to a cat is much more difficult, because they are “the cat” and have the royal entitlement that goes with their species.  Here are some tips to medicate a cat.

by Sandy,
Reluctant Entertainer Blog,
Oregon author

Many times I’ve been inspired by comments that I get from readers. One friend was getting ready to speak about hospitality in her church, and she emailed me for advice. I loved her heart when she made this statement to me, and I could just visualize what a beautiful, thoughtful person she is!

When people come into my home, I want them to know that I have spent time preparing for them and that they are important enough to me that I would take time out of my day to do something to make them feel special.

The video story of the week is the national mockery of the 7th grade teacher who showed up to class drunk and was later arrested.  We know that kids can drive teachers crazy — but can they drive them to a drunken binge?   Video below (pardon ad) shows the details.

By Jean Tracy,
NW writer
Kids Discuss.com

What happens to discipline when your child argues with you? Does the discipline become a battle? Learn 3 ways to model character and practice the winning formula for solving arguments. It’s time you get the respect you deserve.

The Discipline Problem: Endless Arguing between You and Your Kids:

Arguing with kids is like a spinning top. It keeps spinning until you give up, tip over, and say, “Yes” when you want to say, “No.” Kids push arguments to senseless heights. Be rational when they’re not, otherwise your discipline will fail. They’ll win. Why? Many kids argue louder and longer than their parents. If this is the way your kids get what they want, you can change it.

Let’s look at 3 discipline solutions for ending arguments and solving problems, but first let’s look into your past.

‘Waterwise’ plants are beautiful and efficient
Oregon State University Extension Office,

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Some of the most popular garden annuals and perennials are “waterwise” plants, which once established, survive in gardens with little or no irrigation. They include lavender, blanket flower, black-eyed Susan and California fuschia, for example.  “Often these sturdy plants are planted in mixed perennial or shrub borders and given the same care as the surrounding plants,” said Linda McMahan, Oregon State University Extension horticulturist with Yamhill County. “But this intermixing uses more water than is necessary and does not take best advantage of the drought-hardy plants.”

HealthDay News — Recent calls for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to clamp down on tanning bed use will heat up again Thursday as an agency panel debates new restrictions on the devices, which some health experts say contribute to cancer.”We are hoping the FDA will reclassify tanning beds,” said Dr. Allan Halpern, vice president of the Skin Cancer Foundation.

Currently, tanning beds are classified as class I medical devices, “which means these cancer-causing machines are in the same category as tongue depressors and elastic bandages and subject to few regulations and little oversight,” the foundation noted in a news release.

By Evergreen,
Oregon writer

Someone had the time and treasurer to examine 50 different paintings of the Last Supper.  The various paintings spanned over 1000 years.  What the researcher found was that as time went on the meal portions grew in size.  Consider it a very odd window into people’s meal portions throughout time.  This is provided if it truly reflects the times.   Part of it makes sense, since as societies became more prosperous over time their adaptations for luxury and excess would grow.  Below is how Health Day News described the study.

“The Last Supper” might serve as an early warning sign of bigger appetites: Over the past 1,000 years, researchers say, paintings of Christ’s final meal have shown increasingly larger portions and larger plates.  The change in artistic depiction shows that people have slowly been increasing their portion sizes over the millennium, a phenomenon that can encourage overeating, Brian Wansink, a professor of marketing and applied economics and director of the Food and Brand Lab at Cornell University, said in a university news release.

By Erika Weisensee
Milwaukie mom,

When spring finally arrives, Oregonians are eager to get outdoors. For many of us, that means barbecuing, working in the yard, and relaxing on the back porch with kids, family and friends. For a number of years now, home decorators have promoted the idea of the “outdoor living space” being an extension of one’s home. That is great in theory, but outdoor kitchens, elaborate decks, and matching patio furniture ensembles can cost a small fortune.

In fact, it doesn’t take a ton of money to create a lovely spot just outside your home. Here are some affordable ways to make your outdoor space more livable:

•      Think about how you use the space and plan accordingly. Do you read outside, play with the kids, cook, entertain or play sports?

By Christina Rainey,
Oregon mom
- Take our Hug-ban survey here, Survey also includes Tiger Woods, Bad Resturant questions)

A Portland middle school recently captured the national spotlight with their decision to ban hugging.  The so-called “hug ban” was highlighted in a recent USA Today article, illustrating a national trend of placing restrictions on disruptive behaviors in public schools, such as hugging. Schools in Alabama, Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, New Jersey, Texas and Virginia have issued similar bans or restrictions on hugs.

By Kelli Warner,
KMTR-TV Morning News anchor, Springfield

As women, it seems we are always looking to find balance in our lives.I know as a working mother, this has been a struggle of mine for some time. Because—let’s not sugar-coat it—motherhood is a big job.

Think about it. You are responsible for sustaining the lives of said amount of human beings, keeping things clean—from clothes to bathrooms—and making sure everyone is loved, nurtured, included, and on- time to wherever they need to be at any given moment, on any given day.  And should you falter at any of those tasks, you’re faced with that gnawing question: “Am I a good mother?”  All those books and parenting “experts” will say yes, but your head doesn’t let you off the hook that easy.

And sometimes—neither do your kids.

HealthDay News– Dogs perform lifesaving jobs every day. They sniff out bombs, locate lost children and even find people buried by avalanches.Now another type of specially trained working dog has emerged in recent years. Comfort dogs come to the emotional rescue of people who are suffering in the aftermath of disasters or battling the difficulties of daily life. Their job is deceptively simple: to get people to open up and talk about what happened.

Amy Rideout, president of HOPE Animal-Assisted Crisis Response, a national organization with more than 100 certified dog-handler teams, said engaging in a discussion about an experience is healing and helps a person to overcome a traumatic event.

Actress Lindsey Lohan has sued E*Trade for their Super Bowl commercial saying the baby girl named Lindsey is taken from her “likeness, name, characterization, and personality”. The suit alleges it violates her right to privacy and asking for $100 million in damages. You can watch the video yourself below. Is Lindsey just foolish and money hungry or foolish and publicity hungry?

By Oregon State University Extension Service,

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Gardening doesn’t have to be expensive, especially if you can listen to the voice of experience. The following light-hearted tips for thrifty gardening are passed on from Oregon State University Extension Master Gardeners.”The advice might save you money, and you could get to know your neighbors better, but it comes primarily from personal experiences, not OSU research,” said Gail Langellotto, OSU Extension urban and community horticulture specialist and statewide coordinator of the Master Gardener Program.

JulieChats
JulieChats Blog
Oregon’s Scrapbook Expert

OK…I’m a scrapbooker.  I don’t think that makes me all that different from any other mom.  But, for some reason, my husband disagrees.  I just thought I’d take a quick poll and see if maybe there are a few people out there who might be able to help me change his mind.

So, my first question is a simple one.  Doesn’t everyone buy their kids’ clothes to match “that really cool new paper collection from ‘Blah Blah Designs’”?

Now here’s question two.  Doesn’t everyone have their photos printed in sepia tone if for some strange reason the clothes don’t match their papers?

Ten Tips for Art Placement Success
Wall Design Diva,
Tigard, Oregon

How do you know what image will be “right” for your interior space? You loved it when you first saw it in the store. It reminded you of the place where you grew up or that fabulous vacation you took two years ago. Maybe the colors were among your favorites. It just seemed to evoke the right mood for your room…………..

Have you ever shopped for art and carried home a framed piece only to discover that it was the wrong size…shape…or feeling! Something just didn’t work. These are common challenges that consumers have when choosing anything for their home. Some of us will never have the flair that it takes to make great interior design decisions, but can learn simple guidelines, apply basic principles and achieve a great look! The following three tips will help you when making art purchases.

To Every Woman at That Time of Your Life
By Olivia C. Rossi, RN, MSN, ACSM
Your Personal Trainer:

I recently came across this poem I wrote when I was going through that time of my life.  With apologies to Dr. Seuss, and my sympathies to all of you who are just getting there or are in the midst of it right now,  sometimes all you can do is get out the fan and laugh!

ODE TO A HOT FLASH
I think I’m hot
And then I’m not
I’m hot again
Oh, no, I am
I’m hot, I am
I am, I am
I do not like
The way I am.
If I could feel
The way I was
I would not feel
The way I am

Can you see the spy at the wedding?  If not read bellow

Here is a surprise.

HealthDay News — For the millions looking for love on the Internet, the nagging question remains: Is my virtual paramour the person they say they are?  A new survey of more than 5,000 U.S. online daters finds that the answer to that question is — by and large — ‘yes,’ or at least as honest as they would be in face-to-face dating. The study also found that when fibs do occur, men and women appear equally guilty.

“The concerns people have when dating online are very similar to the ones they have in their face-to-face lives. And we found that dating behavior is very similar as well,” said study author Jeffrey Hall, an assistant professor in the department of communication studies at the University of Kansas in Lawrence.