Adventure Travel with Family?

Family First | VoiceAmerica™

What do you do when you want a complete change in your life? Many people today are talking about a midlife crisis, or even a quarter life crisis. Our current economic recession has many people thinking twice about where they are and where they would like to be. It can take courage to explore unconventional options. But one of the important ways to stay healthy is to not give up on your dreams. When you are busy with job and spouse and kids you may think that other adventures you dream about will never come. But opportunities can come in good time if you don’t give up on your dreams.

My guest this week on Family First made a courageous change in her life when she sold her house and decided to trek from Rome to Istanbul with her grown son. Stephanie Dale is an Australian journalist and is the author My Pilgrim’s Heart: A Woman’s Journey Through Marriage and Other Foreign Lands, which is a travel memoir of their walk through the Balkans and the Middle East.

To listen in this Friday at 4 PM ET, 3 PM CT, 2 PM MT, 1 PM PT, or any time afterwards on demand or podcast, go to http://www.voiceamerica.com/show/1916/family-first.  Or click on the link above.

 In 2007, at the age of 48, award-winning Australian journalist Stephanie Dale woke up one day and sold everything she owned – including her house – so that she was free to travel and write. Stephanie joined her son Ben for a walkabout journey, all on foot for Ben, mostly on foot for Dale, walking through ancient and war-torn countries. My Pilgrim’s Heart is an intimate account of the myriad landscapes, people, and cultures they encountered.

 Meanwhile her physical journey reflects her inner one of finding her place as a middle-aged woman baffled by the demands of her new marriage. Stephanie Dale earned her BA degree in journalism from South Australian College of Advanced Education. She has been awarded the Australian Journalist Association Prodi award for best feature in 1990, the Sir Harry Budd Memorial Award in 1992, and a gold medal IPPY award for Hymn for the Wounded Man for best fiction in 2011. She currently resides in Mullumbimby, Australia.

To hear Stephanie’s fascinating story, tune in this Friday at 4 PM ET, 3 PM CT, 2 PM Mt, 1 PM PT, or any time afterwards, by going to:  http://www.voiceamerica.com/show/1916/family-first. Or click on the link above.

Take home Tips from Randy Rolfe: Once when traveling with our three year old son and one year old daughter, our son seemed to be getting more and more anxious. We couldn't figure it out until I thought perhaps he was losing patience with all the different places we were going. So I explained to him that we would be back at our house in 8 days and counted them out for him to make sure he understood the concept. He immediately became his happy relaxed self. Keep your kids in the loop about your plans. They will go along with just about anything as long as they know you know what you are doing and you help them frame the experience with experiences they are familiar with.

Do you know a family looking to adopt?

Family First | VoiceAmerica™

Many couples today are looking into adopting a child, and most of us know some one who has considered adopting, either domestically or internationally. Often would-be adoptive parents are faced with challenges they had no way of knowing about ahead of time, and few appreciate the financial commitment, which can cost well over $10,000, with travel expenses, fees, and more, and cause undue stress at what should be a happy time. Likewise, friends and relatives often have no idea how to help.  

My guest this week on Family First net talk radio is Kelly Ellison, who as a result of her own experience adopting her daughter from China, founded YourAdoptionFinanceCoach.com and GotchaGiftRegistry.com, two eCommerce companies to fill this information gap. Her organization is dedicated to giving potential parents the coaching they need to make the process as smooth as possible and to educating friends and family about how they can best help, so that, as Kelly says, they can “bring their family home together forever.” 

Click on the above link to hear Kelly ellison live, at 1 PM PT, 2 PM MT, 3 PM CT, and 4 PM ET, to listen in or catch it later on archive. 

Kelly Ellison is an executive coach and trainer with over 25 years experience working in development and management in the nonprofit sector.  She has been president and CEO of two nonprofit organizations as well as Vice President of Marketing and Development for a national nonprofit organization based in Kansas City, Missouri.  Kelly has a passion for helping people raise money, and now she specifically helps adoptive families reach their financial goals. 

 Kelly earned her Master’s Degree in Business Administration in 2005 from the Rockhurst Executive Fellows Program in Kansas City. She is certified in mediation and diversity and is an experienced presenter.  She is co-author of The Youth Action Agenda, A Cooperative Model for Environmental Leadership, a curriculum for high school. She is a member of the scholarship committee for the Rosalyn Carter Institute’s Intergenerational Caregivers Scholarship Award and a member of the board of governors of the We Are Family Foundation.

To hear Kelly Ellison’s insights on adoption, click on the above link at 1 PM PT, 2 PM MT, 3 PM CT, and 4 PM ET, to listen in or catch it later on archive.

Randy Rolfe's Take Home Tips:  Adapting to the new family when the child is adopted takes a lot of focus and attention by the new parents, particularly because the parents don't have the same natural hormones which follow a birth to create a bit of extra confidence, closeness, and security feelings within the family. So stay focused and steady and know that you are meant to be this child's baby and it will all work out okay!