by Judy Dippel Springfield, Oregon This article is an excerpt from Judy’s interactive group study book, A Mother’s Companion: Refreshing Hope for Postpartum Depression and Perinatal Mood Disorders, release in fall, 2009 Ironic as it sounds, I’m passionate about writing about postpartum depression—bringing to light, facts that will dispel myths—and […]

Submitted by: Gienie Assink, Springfield Oregon Hello all, I hope today is productive and wonderful for you.  Through out the last year, I have had the privilege of writing and submitting articles to this magazine.  I’ve learned so many new things like what to look out for when maintaining weight, […]

Submitted by Kay Helbling Shopping online has become a casual affair. To many of us it has become the retail outlet of choice…no cars, no time wasted, lots of choices, and great prices—a wonderful service, no doubt. But, don’t get comfortable. Shopping online can be a nightmare. My recent experience […]

By Evergreen, I saw this ad on the internet and was a little taken back by how not obese the pre-diet poster girl was.  Is the diet companies going after 95% of Americans as a new audience?   Am I wrong on this?   Please give me your feedback.

By Erika Weisensee A couple of weeks ago, I did something I swore I never would: I signed up for Facebook. I did it even after a good friend warned me about the trappings of the phenomenally popular online community. “It’s like a disease,” she told me. She was right. […]

Jan Springer, President Heritage School of Interior Design If you have spaces or rooms that you do not use in your home consider the following… 1. How is the space used?  By whom? 2. Does the space have a specific purpose? 3. Is it furnished with comfortable furniture? 4. Is […]

Part Two of BACK FROM IRAQ: Diary of a Comedian By Sharon Lacey, Portland Comedian. In Part One, I told of the first two days of my adventure to entertain the troops. At this point in the story, I am still in Kuwait. DAY THREE: At Camp Arifjan in Kuwait, […]

Weekend national health news focus: TUESDAY, Feb. 17 (HealthDay News) — Deaf children can develop their own language-like gesture systems that expand in the same way that verbal skills grow in other children as they mature.  That’s the finding from a University of Chicago researcher who has studied deaf children […]

Submitted by: Gienie Assink I recently received one of those forwarded e-mail things I usually delete without opening, because whenever I let myself get sucked in, I am informed in the last sentence that if I don’t send it on to 12 other people, I will have bad luck for […]

By Ken Niezgoda, Founder of Violence and Sexual Assault Prevention Stranger Danger. All parents know the phrase. Many children’s books still include the warning “Don’t talk to strangers”. It almost seems a parental sacrilege to say anything to the contrary.  So how is this a problem? By making a child […]