Happy Spring to you all! Welcome to the 11th edition of The Reproductive Challenged Woman! We are so glad to have you visit our website and hope you take time to listen to the show! This show is one dedicated to our birthmoms and surrogates.

After speaking at the Mom's Winter Conference, I had received e-mails from nine women...some birthmoms, others on behalf of birthmoms whom they know personally. And all of these women were writing because I had mentioned a gift I had sent to my birthmom for Valentines Day. They were praising me for doing so, when, quite frankly, I didn't really think anything of it. It was a joy for me to do. All of these women were told by their adoptive families that they would receive some sort of updates (each case varies), and only one of these women ever received anything...and only once in seven years.

This show is about the importance of setting straight what we each feel comfortable with in regard to the agreements we set forth with our birthmoms of future contact...and then following through with those agreements. Our birthmoms give us what no one else ever will. They give the greatest gift of all. And we need to respect them by following through...by sending a photo once a year...by dropping a letter twice a year...whatever the specifics are. It's what they deserve. And it would be nice to remember our surrogates as well! Both groups of women are the most giving of humans you will find. Let's celebrate them!

(And we can have fun with this! I've taken photos of my baby girl each and every month of her first year, in home-made settings, choosing special outfits and some coordinating props, which include a frame with her current month's stats....the month, her height and her weight. I plan to make a little album with the full 12 photos, so that my birthmom can see how she's grown.

If you yourself have done something fun and creative for YOUR birthmom or surrogate, please share that with us. It will give others some great ideas, especially for upcoming holidays.)