2024 the best place to raise a family in usa review

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“In her tender and genuinely beautiful memoir, Kelle Hampton encourages us to not simply accept the unexpected circumstances of our lives, but to embrace them like the things we wished for all along.”
—Matthew Logelin, New York Times bestselling author of Two Kisses for Maddy

Bloom is an inspiring and heartfelt memoir that celebrates the beauty found in the unexpected, the strength of a mother’s love, and, ultimately, the amazing power of perspective. The author of the popular blog Enjoying the Small Things—named The Bump’s Best Special Needs Blog and The Blog You’ve Learned the Most From in the 2010 BlogLuxe Awards—Kelle Hampton interweaves lyrical prose and stunning four-color photography as she recounts the unforgettable story of the first year in the life of her daughter Nella, who has Down syndrome. Poignant, eye-opening, and heart-soaring, Hampton’s Bloom is ultimately about embracing life and really living it.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ William Morrow Paperbacks; Illustrated edition (April 2, 2013)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0062045040
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0062045041
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.7 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.8 x 6.7 x 9.3 inches
Reviewer: sbonne
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Cover to cover in one sitting, this book is amazing
Review: I began reading Kelle Hampton's blog shortly after the birth of her second child, Nella, who was born with Down Syndrome. As a mother of a child with autism, I tend to gravitate toward positive, uplifting blogs of families with special needs children. At first, I was put off by the depths of despair Kelle spoke of surrounding the birth of Nella and the realization of her diagnosis. I would have been sad and concerned, aware of the health risks and challenges that can accompany this diagnosis, but admittedly I felt she came across as rather selfish. However, I read on, and came to adore Kelle's blog and her positive outlook on life. She did have a very dramatic low point, but she appears to have bounced back rather quickly and does not play the 'poor me' card. Her efforts to raise awareness have been impressive, as have her fundraising achievements for Down Syndrome. So, when the book came out, I bought it immediately.Bloom retells the story Kelle shared on her blog about Nella's birth, but it delves more deeply into it, including her family dynamic and what it was like going home and adjusting and dealing with her worries for her daughter's future. I like how she discusses stereotypes and how her mind has changed so much, and also how she wants to change the minds of others about children with special needs.We all have our moments where our behavior is less than something to be proud of. Kelle bares all with her brutally honest account of the first days of Nella's life. I cringed, I cried, I read the book cover to cover in one sitting because I couldn't put it down. I admire the courage it took to be so candid where most people would have sugar-coated their feelings or said nothing at all, despite my original reaction to the story when I first read it nearly two years ago. Bloom is a beautiful story, well-written and beautifully captured in lovely photographs.

Reviewer: michigan mom
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Can't Put It Down
Review: There are ten 5-star reviewers before me, and I echo their comments - I've been nodding my head "yes" to each of them. I love a book that makes you cry, but leaves you with such hope. Kelle reveals herself honestly in this book -- and I think that is what resonates with readers -- beyond the excellent writing, the gorgeous pictures, the compelling story. Kelle reveals herself - her fears, her guilt, her triumphs, her dreams and above all her love for her family. It's this love that has awakened in her the ability to love beyond the comforts of what she knows. We see her in the book tread fearfully at first into a whole new community - and then through the stories she paints, we find ourselves cheering her on as her tentative steps become a determined march, sprinkled with many many victory dances and a few pratfalls along the way. This book is deeply moving, inspirational, funny and so well-written that I want to read it again from the beginning and I still haven't finished chapter 11. I think that Kelle's readers love her because they see themselves in her, and hope that like her, they will discover beauty in their own wild and beautiful lives, finding adventure in unexpected places.

Reviewer: Kimberly Calkins
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Inspiring book, but falters at the end
Review: As a fan of Kelle's blog, and one who has read (and re-read) the initial post about Nella's birth, I was very excited to get this book. I expected to cry through the entire thing (I did at the onset). The first half (or 1/3?) of the book is beautifully, and wonderfully written. I cried many tears during my reading sessions, and didn't want to put it down.Something mid-way through seemed to change. It was as if the editing or writing took a backseat, and chapters were pumped out to get the book published. They were still great, but just didn't pull at my heartstrings quite as much. I also didn't feel like I HAD to finish RIGHT NOW about half-way through.That being said, I would recommend this book to a wide array of people. I have no children, but am a birth doula and have seen firsthand how unexpected outcomes (negative or positive, a boy ending up being a girl, a health concern etc etc) can be completely shattering. Kelle is inspiring in her quest for making life lovely, which I admire her for.It seems that a lot of the negative reviews on here might be jealous of the life she leads, but I understand where some of the sentiments arise from. People seem to comment a lot on the fact that she needs to grow up or use more professional language. I think her writing the way she does, with openness, honesty and with a sense of playfulness, is what draws people to her. She isn't perfect and that raw openness and clear sense that she STILL has a lot of growing to do is one reason I did enjoy the book so much.Perhaps a later edition could be edited better, or the later portions of the chapters re-worked a bit to infuse some of that raw emotion into it. The photographs are beautiful, the beginning met all of my expectations (and more), while the end faltered a bit.Overall, an excellent read, which I would recommend to many.

Reviewer: Paula Burkett
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: The Gift of Love
Review: This story is amazing and filled with love. When I was 13 years old, my mother gave birth to a Downs Syndrome baby boy. My parents named him Randy Joe. That little boy taught our family more about love, forgiveness, acceptance, joy, and love of God than anyone else ever could have. Randy was sweet, fun, and a great dancer. He lived to be about 56 years old. What a joy he was!

Reviewer: ~Klayde C
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: A Beautiful Story!
Review: I loved this book. "Bloom" is well written and very inspiring. A beautiful and powerful story about unconditional love, beauty, grace, pain, joy, motherhood, family, friendship, courage, strength, growth, transformation and perspective. As Kelle took me on her moving journey to "finding beauty in the unexpected" I felt her words, got chills, experienced many emotions at the same time and found myself crying and laughing a lot. Reading this memoir was like having a heartfelt conversation. Kelle, thank you so much for sharing your story and your family. Thank you so much for spreading the message of acceptance and that all lives deserve to be valued and celebrated. The world is a better place for it.A heartwarming, engaging, honest, insightful, and thought provoking read. I highly recommend it.

Reviewer: Faith
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: This was absolutely an incredible and she took me on an incredible journey of acceptance of life's difficult turns. I couldn't put the book down and immediately went to her blog which is equally wonderful. Thank you Kelle, for writing such a beautiful book. I have recommended it to several people.

Reviewer: jennypace
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Kelle Hampton's memoir is one of the most inspiring and moving books I've read this year. It made me so grateful to have discovered her blog and followed her story. Her self-reflection has solidified and encouraged my own, and I have quotes from her plastered throughout my notebooks.Excellent service and a great read.

Reviewer: Melli
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: In "Bloom" erzählt die Autorin Kelle Hampton von ihrem Leben mit ihrer Familie, mit ihrer jüngsten Tochter, die mit dem Down-Syndrom geboren wurde.Kelle Hampton, US-Amerikanerin, die in Florida lebt, begann 2007 ihren Blog "Enjoying the Small Things", auf dem sie von ihrem Alltag mit Mann und Kind erzählte. In Januar 2010 erwartete die Familie stolz die Geburt des zweiten gemeinsamen Kindes des Ehepaars Kelle und Brett. Sie freuten sich auf eine gesunde Tochter, und der Schock war groß, als Kelle ihre Tochter Nella zum ersten Mal sah und gleich das Down-Syndrom vermutete.In diesem Buch schildert Kelle Hampton ergreifend den Schock, das Nicht-Wahr-Haben-Wollen, das Akzeptieren und letztendlich das Kennen- und Liebenlernen mit ihrer Tochter.In Rückblenden erfährt der Leser auch viel über Kelles Vergangenheit, über ihren Weg, der sie dahin geführt hat, wo sie nun steht.Ich kannte den Blog der Autorin und hab ihn seit einigen Monaten regelmäßig gelesen. Die Geschichte der Familie ist interessant und Kelle Hampton erzählt sie ehrlich und ergreifend. Von daher war mir klar, dass ich auch ihr Buch lesen möchte. Ob es auch auf Deutsch erscheinen wird, weiß ich nicht. Ich hab es als e-book gekauft und kann es auf jeden Fall empfehlen.Viele Farbfotos zeigen die Familie und emotionale Erlebnisse, die im Buch geschildert werden.Das englischsprachige Buch lässt sich sehr gut lesen.Authentisch, ehrlich und sehr emotional erfährt man in diesem Buch Einblicke in Herz und Seele einer liebenden Mutter, die durch ihre kleine Tochter gewachsen ist und die Leser daran teilhaben lässt.Ich kann das Buch auf jeden Fall allen empfehlen, die gerne Geschichten wie diese lesen, emotionale Geschichten aus dem Leben.

Reviewer: Livia
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Elogio della positività e della vita, nonostante gli imprevisti. Linguaggio semplice e diretto, arriva al cuore e lo apre a realtà dure ma coraggiose. Consigliatissimo.

Reviewer: Diane
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: I found Kelly's blog about a year ago and fell in love with her and her little family. So as soon as her book was on pre order, I ordered it. It took me three nights to finish her book and it's truly inspirational! She is brutally honest and writes about her journey to accepting the unexpected. Kelly is an incredible writer! Love her book, I'd give it ten stars if I could.