The Save the Children Mother’s Index compared the health and well-being of mothers and children in 160 countries. The rankings are based on the health, educational, and economic status of moms and their kids.

The worst place to be a mom? Afghanistan, where health professionals are present at fewer than 15% of births, and one in eight women die of pregnancy or child-birth-related issues.

The U.S. ranked No. 28 in the survey. The rate of maternal mortality in the U.S. (one in 4,800), as  well as the country’s less generous maternity leave policies, were responsible for the low ranking.

A U.S. woman is more than five times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than a woman in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, or Italy, and 10 times more likely than a woman in Ireland, the survey finds. The U.S. also scored poorly on the mortality rate of children under age 5. In the U.S., eight of 1,000 children die before reaching age 5, the survey shows.

"While the situation in the United States needs to improve, mothers in the developing world are facing far greater risks to their own health and that of their children," said Mary Beth Powers, the chief of Save the Children’s Newborn and Child Survival Campaign, in a news release. "The shortage of skilled birth attendants and challenges in accessing birth control means that women in countries at the bottom of the list face the most pregnancies and the most risky birth situations, resulting in newborn and maternal deaths."

Top 10 List

According to the survey, the top 10 best places to be a mom are:

1. Norway
2. Australia
3. Iceland
4. Sweden
5. Denmark
6. New Zealand
7. Finland
8. The Netherlands
9. Belgium
10. Germany

10 Worst List

The 10 worst places to be a mom are:

1. Equatorial Guinea
2. Eritrea
3. Sudan
4. Mali
5. Democratic Republic of Congo
6. Yemen
7. Guinea-Bissau
8. Chad
9. Niger
10. Afghanistan

From WebMD

The great American vacation is slipping away. The number of Americans taking off from work for less than a full week at a time has more than doubled since 1990. Fewer and fewer workers are willing to risk a full two weeks away from the job, fearing perhaps that they’ll return to find their sales trophy in a box and a stranger in their cubicle. Instead, vacations are reduced to a couple of days tacked on to a long weekend, like a housekeeping addendum to an inter-office memo. Worse, the more senior the employee, the more likely she/he spends some part of that mini-vacation in the death grip of a digital-communications device.   -Francis Wilkinson

I remember growing up the annual summer vacation was something everyone looked forward to and parents never dreamed of NOT taking a vacation. For us it was the trip from Ohio to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where my parents rented a cabin. They packed up the green station wagon with supplies for the week, made a bed in the back of the wagon with pillows and blankets so my brother and I could sleep on the long drive. Once there, no phones, no video devices and high tech gadgets. We boated, fished, swam,  played in the sand dunes, met other families, and became best friends with their children.  Campfires at night with plenty of marshmallows and chocolate bars for smores. Kids went to bed happy and tired from being outside all day and physically active. 

As the years progressed our vacations became fancier and locations more upscale. My fondest memories though are the summers at the cabin.

Wishing you all a safe and Happy Memorial Day with friends and family. I’ll be back next week.

After the weekend we’ll return to DC and I plan on staying out there a few days, maybe even the week if the weather is decent. Cherry Blossoms will be at peak and I hope to go out exploring and get some good pictures. For any of you not familiar with the history of the cherry blossoms and how they were brought to the Nation’s Capitol here’s a good site.

I will have my laptop with me and may update the blog but don’t count on it. Those who email me, I will be checking that every day and those that have my phone number, text messages are always fine.

We got back to Michigan Sunday night and did not notice anything amiss but it was late, dark and we had been driving for 12 hours. It was not until Monday morning when I opened the blinds in the master bedroom that I discovered the Bradford Pear tree on the corner of the house (outside master bedroom) had been split in half by a storm that I’m guessing hit the day before we got back home.  Luckily it fell to the side and not into the house or crashing through the bedroom window! The tree service was out yesterday and removed the tree. We are on the list to have the stump removed (grinded) in spring, then we will decide what to plant in it’s place. For now the house looks quite bare! I am glad it’s winter and I don’t have to be outside much and see this empty space.

I’m very much looking forward to 2009 though I think it’s still going to be a tough one economically for the nation.  The company my husband works for announced last week that for 2009, no raises, no bonuses, and no matching contributions to 401K, OUCH!  He called me from work and told me this news before it was announced on CNN. This is definitely going to hurt us but we are thankful he still has a job. A few in his department do not.  I feel sorry for President Elect Obama and the mess he is inheriting though I am very thankful he’s the one to deal with it!

I want to thank all of my loyal readers for sticking with me and being a part of my blogging family.  Wishing you and yours a very Happy New Year and good things to follow in 2009.

And now from last years…2008 blog post:

RESOLUTIONS FOR AVOIDING MISERY

Choose to love—rather than hate.

Choose to smile—rather than frown.

Choose to build—rather than destroy.

Choose to persevere—rather than quit.

Choose to praise—rather than gossip.

Choose to heal—rather than wound.

Choose to give—rather than take.

Choose to act—rather than delay.

Choose to forgive—rather than curse.

Choose to pray—rather than despair.

Author-unknown

Nov.21, I leave Michigan for the 8.5 hour drive to DC…..me and Poco on the road again.  I was a bit worried about the snow I would encounter in Cleveland and rightly so! Left MI in snow but the roads were not bad…made it to the Ohio turnpike and still the roads were clear. I hit Cleveland (lake effect snow) and it was like I had been dropped off in upstate NY! The rest of Ohio and PA was an awful drive. Was very glad when I hit Maryland.

Nov.23,  We fly out of BWI (Baltimore Washington International) for our flight to San Antonio. Long flight, no complaints about airport security or the airlines. Fast forward to the plane lands and we are at the gate. People unfasten seatbelts, gather belongings and stand up in the aisle or by seat waiting to de-plane. At this point you’re TRAPPED and subject to loud rants and rages from the person in the row ahead of you. In this case people in several rows were subjected to this mans rant on President Elect Obama winning the election. I should probably mention that he was white male early 70’s, computer savvy enough to bring his laptop and watch a DVD during the flight.  His wife never opened her mouth.  He had the audacity to tell an elderly male (80’s at least) hard of hearing and with a cane that he better have surgery immediately on his hip because we are going to socialized medicine like Canada and will have to wait 4 months for surgery. I will spare you the details his endless rant which went on for at least 5 minutes as we all stand in the aisle wishing he would shut the hell up! Would it have been rude after the first 3 minutes to tell a perfect stranger to shut up?  I am far too polite I believe, that good girl next door syndrome I was raised with.

San Antonio…My first time there and loved the Riverwalk and our hotel, Omni La Mansion del Rio.  However I would not want to go there in the summertime! For me putting on capri pants and a light sweater after leaving snow country was a treat. The sweltering and humid summers I would want no part of. The people I found very friendly and down to earth.  We did go to the Alamo and right in the downtown square was a Christmas tree with hand made ornaments. I zoomed in for this closeup. (click on picture to see full size) I added some pictures to my Flickr album if you care to see.

Generalization about southern Caucasian women…..they like their makeup! Merci, if I had to put that much crap on my face to go out every day, forget it. I’m with the school of thought, less is better and makeup should enhance not be the first thing you notice when looking at a woman. For any southern women reading this who might be offended….GENERALIZATION, first word in this paragraph.

The Bocelli opera was not what I was expecting but we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. There were people at our hotel from NY, Calif, and Chicago that that had also traveled so far just to hear Bocelli. My only complaint… it was unbearably cold inside! I doubt very much if it was even 60°. I know the orchestra must play under all those lights but the theater was beyond cold. Women were taking their male partner’s jacket (I’m one of them) just to keep from shivering, of course we had on the standard black dress with wrap which was useless!  Back to our hotel bar with a big inviting fire and a glass of red wine I began to thaw out and meet other people coming in after the show.

Nov. 26, time to say goodbye to San Antonio and head back to DC and on to North Carolina. I want to say we had the GREATEST flight attendant on the flight back and it was the day before Thanksgiving! She worked our section tirelessly bringing people drinks and water and did so with  much warmth and good feeling towards mankind.  A row behind and across from us was a young couple (guessing late 20’s) ordering double shots of Jack Daniels and coke. She would bring each of them 2 bottles of the liquor airplane size, ice and coke. She did this 3 times….meaning 6 little bottles each of Jack! I leaned over and told my husband, “they either hate flying or are gearing up for whom they’re about to visit this holiday”.  At the end of the flight the same flight attendant thanked everyone for flying with Southwest…..gave the usual spiel but ended with we owe so much to our service men and women who make it possible for us to fly around our great country. At this point  spontaneous applause broke out on the plane, and it was heartwarming to see and feel the difference in this flight vs the one prior with the man who vowed to never do anything for his country again.  No matter who you voted for we’re all Americans and our service men and women earned and deserve our support.

It’s late and I’m fading here.

Thanksgiving was wonderful and I miss baby Cora more than ever. sniff sniif

The drive back to MI was awful….13 hours of horrific weather culminating with a snow storm when we hit the MI border. It hasn’t quit snowing since. Hubby has worked from home this week but he flies back to DC on Monday. A few more weeks and it’s traveling again.

I am looking forward to the warmer temps in San Antonio and getting excited about  the Andrea Bocelli concert. Did I tell you that I was interviewed by a local newspaper on why we’re coming from so far away for this concert? I will post the interview once I have the email copy. From Texas it will be on to North Carolina for Thanksgiving.

With all the rush, the aggravation, the stress one thing comes to mind. Most of us  will sit down with family and friends on Thanksgiving yet there are thousands of American soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan protecting our freedom that will be eating in a mess hall, away from their families. Many of them doing their third or fourth tour of duty.  It doesn’t matter how we feel about the war and how it’s going. My inconveniences (and yours)  with travel, weather, colds and sniffles is insignificant.  When we reach our destinations and finally sit down to Thanksgiving dinner let’s all remember the men and women who do so much and ask so little in return.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! I’ll be back in December.

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

More fallout from the Automotive Industry and AIG. Circuit City fails, DHL pulls out of the United States, devastating another town in Southern Ohio. Where will it end?  I honestly feel sorry for either candidate to inherit this mess.

So here I was a week ago a balmy 70° in November! Unheard of in Michigan. But boy it sure was nice while it lasted. For my regular readers do you remember last winter when Poco the 7 month old Chihuahua puppy going from summer to snow? It was rough! I had to shovel snow in the grass just so he could “go”. Many a time I stood outside in the freezing weather and snow flying urging him to go and make it quick! (Often times in my jammies.)

All day Sunday we had bouts of ice pellets and snow showers which did not stick thankfully. However, Monday morning I woke up to this picture when I opened the back garage door to let him out.  He honestly looked at me as if to say, “this again”. Yes, this is just a dusting Poco, you were too young to remember what’s yet to come.

What else? I’m trying to get tickets for the Inauguration but not holding my breath.To any of those looking on sites selling tickets you’re wasting your money and being scammed. To get a REAL ticket which are FREE  you need to contact your Senators and Representatives and be put on a list.  The tickets aren’t even printed yet. So we’re on the list….. it will be interesting to see what happens. On the upside his job is in the DC burbs and we have an apartment there so even if we don’t get tickets I will still plan on going out.

I’m leaving again in 2 weeks for DC…we fly out to San Antonio for an Andrea Bocelli concert, hubby’s surprise gift to me for our anniversary back in August. Yes, he does listen to me as I have often said, “I would love to see him in concert”.

Poco is going to DCDoggies in Washington DC, for the few days while we’re in Texas.  We met the owner in Georgetown when I was there last month. When we get back to DC after the concert it’s straight on to North Carolina for Thanksgiving which Sarah works, as she did last year. This is her last year of Residency though so her weekends at the hospital will be coming to an end. It will be baby Cora’s First Thanksgiving, then First Christmas so this holiday season will be exciting for us.

A closing Veterans Day Quote:

“Let us rededicate ourselves to keep a sacred trust with all who have worn the uniform of the United States of America: that America will serve you as well as you have served your country.”

My Dad has been an avid golfer most of his adult life. He had 2 golfing buddies that made their threesome for many years.  When one was in the hospital the other 2 were there visiting and ready to get him back on the course.  The threesome is now down to 2 since one passed away last year. Gary is in his 90′s has had a hip replacement and yet back on the course once the doc gives the ok.  Well the last year Gary and my Dad have not been golfing due to health problems. He called my Dad last week and said, ” I don’t know if I can swing the club anymore”, but do you want to go out next week? So they may not play all 9 holes but being out on the course in the golf cart will be good for both of them. My Dad had a smile on his face just talking about it.

I am leaving in the morning and driving out to DC and will stay in our apartment out there.  Hub’s taking off work part of Friday and we’ll  drive down to North Carolina to visit Daughter/S-I-L/ and baby Cora.  Friday she will be 7 months old and I haven’t seen her since the middle of June. Since my last visit she is now crawling, eating finger foods, and was told to me last night that they heard banging coming from the nursery. They run upstairs open the door and there she is standing in the crib banging on the side with a big grin on her face. “Look what I learned to do Mom and Dad.” I can’t wait to see her again and have her all weekend as much as I want.

It’s horribly hot here in Michigan, currently 86° and humid. That may not sound too hot for those of you that live in southern states but for MI it’s HOT!  I checked the forecast for North Carolina this weekend, it’s going to be 96° 97° the entire time we’re down there. I don’t know how people tolerate that kind of heat all summer.  Then again they probably say the same about us up north dealing with blizzards and sub-zero temps in the winter.

I’ll be back next week. Have a great weekend everybody.

The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart. – Elizabeth Foley