My heart and mind were so conflicted about the trash problem that the first night in Haiti I penned the following poem in my journal:
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Haiti’s trash is a symptom of many problems and I for one am not knowledgeable enough to tackle it by offering solutions. But as a new lover of the people, I believe that those who live abroad, can do something to help. If you’d like to help one person, one family rise above their current circumstances, please consider purchasing this beautiful Haitian jewelry from Papillon.

​Another way we can move forward  is to stop taking our sanitation services for granted. We should live with grateful hearts that we have the resources for proper and efficient waste management and pray for our brothers and sisters of many lands who aren't as privileged. 

​Robin Nagle in her Ted Talk encourages each of us to “In the flow of your days. In the flow of your lives, next time you see someone whose job is to clean up after you, take a moment to acknowledge them. Take a moment to say thank you.”

And last but not least--we should all try to live in a way where we learn ways to reduce our personal trash by recycling, composting, and reusing goods. If we all make more of an effort things can and will change around the world.

I did not realize that by asking this question and typing in a google search on “poverty and menstruation” that I would be thrust into a the world-wide crises of menstrual management. You see girls and women around the world are struggling with managing their menstrual cycle.

​Some are using old cloths, leaves, wool, feathers, foam, sand, corn husk….anything they can think of to help absorb blood when modern pads are not available or affordable.

Let’s just stop here and imagine the mess of leakage from using sand and feathers! If that’s not terrible enough,  my research led me to finding out that some girls are actually selling their bodies in order to purchase pads so that they can stay in school or go to work. This is inconceivable and yet it is happening in the year 2016! 

​I never imagined it was such a problem and that there are organizations assisting women around the globe with this very issue. So as a result of Ms. Flow showing up uninvited during my trip to Haiti I am seeking out ways to help my sisters.

I want to know how I can assist in helping them get access to affordable sanitary napkins and possibly do some micro-financing so that they can earn income from the  endeavor. Right now I’m just in the research phase but I’d encourage you to join me by doing one or all of the following:

1. Educate yourself on the issue. Check out my Poverty and Menstruation Pinterest Board 
2. Throw a sewing party and make some reusable pads for women in other countries.  Watch this video for more information:

3. Purchase sanitary pads or cups from organizations (Days for Girls , AfriPads , BeGirl . Ruby Cup ) who are supporting  our sisters living in poverty.

4. Every time Ms. Flow shows up, say a prayer for your sisters around the world who are struggling with menstrual management. We need to stick together. Period.

My team’s purpose in Haiti was to travel to textile factories with Share Hope and educate the pregnant factory workers on how to protect themselves from the Zika virus. We were going to be presenting to over 300 women in the course of 6 days and we weren’t quite sure how to dress for the occasion.

​In my mind, I didn’t want to be overdressed and thus communicate a social class difference. But I what I didn’t realize is that although 80% of the population lives below the poverty line, the Haitian people take a lot of pride in their appearance!

In fact, when our team arrived at the factory office we all felt under-dressed! The Her Health educators were dressed professionally and looked beautiful! ​

Needless to say,  I was completely surprised by how well dressed the people were and at the amount of clothing on the streets of Haiti. As we drove around Port au Prince  I was thinking “Where on earth did all these clothes come from?”
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That’s when I learned about Pepe or the journey of second hand clothing from the United States. So as I understand it, when thrift stores like the Goodwill and Salvation Army get rid of clothes they sell them to companies who buy them in bulk. These companies then sort the clothing and put them in huge pallets to sell to developing countries around the world.

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What I found interesting was that ​although the streets were crowded with vehicles, according to the World Factbook of Haiti, only 5 out of 1000 people own vehicles. Most Haitians travel by motorcycle or tap taps which are colorful buses and trucks which serve as public transportation. For a ride, the people  pay about 25 cents and travel throughout the city. ​​

I have lot's to share about my time in Haiti, so make sure to check out the other post in this series! 

My kids really have no idea how far technology has come in the last 30 years. When I was growing up my dad use to own a computer store. He would build and fix computers and we grew up with the latest technology. But if my kids were to see those same computers that I grew up with, I’m sure they would respond the same way as the kids in the following video: ​

1. Successful Parents Do What Unsuccessful Parents Are Unwilling to Do. In order to have a strong family, the Prats say you have to make your marriage relationship first and foremost. It’s really easy to get distracted with life, kids, career and as a result put your marriage relationship on the back-burner.  

“Strengthening and maintaining a marital relationship is an active process. Passivity and complacency will not allow a marriage to nurture and grow. It takes continuous effort, but we reap what we sow.” A strong marriage gives the children a strong sense of security and can lay a healthy emotional foundation.

2. Shared Parenting and Family Management is a Must! There are many women who feel like their husbands do not actively participate in the daily raising of the children. This mentality is the fastest way for burnout and can plant a lot of resentment in the relationship.

I totally agree with Joe when he stated “I feel strongly that family must be a shared responsibility. I’m often amazed at husbands who expect their wives to do it all, and then wonder why their wives are frustrated, tired, angry, and unaffectionate.” Joe--it amazes me too!

I am really blessed to have a  husband that is extremely helpful around the house and with the kids. So Cathy’s perspective was surprising and refreshingly challenging to me  when she wrote, “If your Dad’s willing to fold clothes or fix dinner, then I should be willing to mow the lawn or wash a car.”

 I honestly had never thought about doing some of my husband's "chores."  However, this past winter when we ordered wood for the fireplace---we were all out there stacking and loading together as a family! It felt really good working together as a team. Even if you are a single parent---make sure you gather a good support network--don’t try to do everything by yourself--build your network and involve your friends in  “village parenting.”

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3. Treat Each Person in Your Family as an Unique Individual without pressuring them to be like someone else. There are no favorites in a good family. As a parent you might be tempted to favor one child over the next because they have similar interests or personality.

“We do not pressure them to be a doctor, play a certain sport, or march to a certain drummer. They each have God-given talents and must find their own path to follow.” I think this is one of the best ways to ensure jealousy, comparison, and insecurity don’t sneak their way into your family culture. When each child is valued--each one will be a supportive team member.

4. Discipline Should be a Positive Learning Experience. Some parents do not discipline their children and let them get away with any type of behavior.  The Prats discourage this kind of parenting strategy and wrote, “One of our responsibilities as parents is to assist our children in all areas of their development. When one of the boys acts or speaks in appropriately, we don’t say, ‘It’s just a phase,” or ‘That's’ the way boys are,’ or blame someone else. We deal with the situation up front and right away. If the boys have been unkind or acted out of line, we let them know how disappointed we are and what we think needs to be done.”

The authors went on to explain that all discipline should be done in a manner that will never give your kids the impression that  they are unloved. 

Recently, my boy’s were running through a museum (yes my kids act up!) and the security guard came and let me know that he spoke with them, but they ignored him. I brought the boys to the security guard and had them apologize and then handed out consequences once we got in the car. Before we left the museum, the security guard pulled me aside and thanked me. He said, sometimes he’ll tell parents their kids are acting up and the parents don’t do anything. He reassured me that although my boys were running through the museum (so embarrassing)  I was doing a good job by dealing with the behavior. 

​Well, I definitely thought my boys needed some more home training, but it was really good to hear that the simple act of redirecting them and having them apologize was a good thing. Sometimes it's really easy just to ignore my kids when they are misbehaving. Sometimes, it takes so much effort to get them in line, so it was really encouraging to have that man let me know I was on the right track.

Now one of the last things I learned from the Prat family was to:

5. Teach by Example. In other words, be real. Don’t be fake--live out the life and character you want your kids to have. If you are materialistic, dishonest, hard to please, selfish but you put on the opposite face in public, don’t be surprised when your children mimic the same behavior.

I am so proud of all of my kids but I want to give a shout out to my eldest daughter Jayda. She loves to draw, design, create, build--she is always doing something with her hands. This past month she really stepped up when she willingly agreed to design and sell t-shirts as a way for her to contribute to my father’s kidney transplant fund. ​

She was so excited throughout the designing process and because of her willingness to share her gift of drawing she was able to raise over $200! I am a firm believer that God gives us gifts to bless others and Jayda definitely did that. A big thanks to everyone who purchased a shirt you have encouraged her to keep giving to others!!

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I never knew that this green ribbon stood for Kidney Disease Awareness. Now I know because my dad is experiencing kidney failure. Kidney disease has fought its way to the forefront of my life as for months my dad has suffered and battled it in silence.

 First of all, my father, Henry Luvert is not known for being the “silent” type. Usually loud, boisterous, loud, fun-loving, passionate, loud—okay you get the point—loud! You see as a social justice and civil rights advocate, he has stood up for the voiceless for decades!

As a child, I remember him talking on the phone for hours at a time helping and assisting victims of racism and discrimination. Why did they call him? Because he didn’t just talk. You know there were some in our community who only talked about injustice but never put the time to help fight against it. My father, was a man of action. Those who encountered trouble and wanted something done or wanted someone to stand with them—well they called him.

​This March, my dad is blessed to have his youngest sister, Jennifer Luvert donate a kidney. She was the perfect match and on March 15, 2016 the kidney transplant will occur. I will literally owe my Auntie Jennifer so much for giving a gift of life to my father. 

One way I want to show my gratitude is by making sure all of her costs are raised for the surgery. I don’t want her to have to pay one cent—she is already giving so much! Please help me by raising $3,000 to cover all of her expenses like transportation, food, living, medical expenses.
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All I need is for 30 people to give $100. Would you be that person? If so, please go to this link to make your contribution:

​https://helphopelive.org/campaign/10490 

Thank you in advance for your kindness and generosity! To follow the campaign please LIKE our Facebook Page "Help Henry Get His Kidney": http://on.fb.me/1TTHA0v

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Each year my kids go off to camp for the week and my husband and I take a staycation. We stay at home in our quiet and clean house and enjoy the local sites without having to pay for babysitting!

What’s really cool about living in New York is that there is so much to do. You’ve got the Pocono Mountains in the North, the beaches on the Jersey and Long Island Shore, and of course Manhattan with the Broadway shows and shopping! 

I have to admit that I really am the nerd in our family. In fact, I usually have to plan fun into our family routine or it would never happen. That is why I am so happy that I married a “fun” guy. My husband constantly fills our home with laughter while playing jokes on the family or telling his ridiculous stories of childhood.
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