This story from a British woman whose au pair, hired to give a mom a break, became pregnant reminds me that I've not done an update on our similar situation here in a long time.

To recap for those not familiar with the saga of Catherina ...

In October of last year, an assistant who'd pledged to stick with me for the duration of a book-writing stint I committed to because of said pledge left me high and dry by quitting on a Monday morning via a text message.

After interviews... more

I have waited, and prayed, and done whatever I am able to assist from my small corner of the adoption community, but nothing could have prepared me for the latest news concerning the Stocklaufer family’s adoption appeal.

Gary Stocklaufer, the Missouri man I blogged about earlier this month, who had his adoptive son removed because the court felt he was to fat to parent, has apparently received a verdict concerning his hearing... more

Have you noticed any subtle changes here in the crisis pregnancy blog? I’ve been doing some really late spring cleaning – I’ve cleaned up the categories, added more sub categories and overall have tried to make the blog more accessible and easier to find any specific topics that you may be searching for.

I have some new upcoming plans for this blog as well. Once a week I will be doing a post that is related to the “parenting option” side of unplanned pregnancy. I will feature resources, government programs, websites, tips, suggestions, and success stories related to the parenting... more

Someone on one of the lists posed a question.

What do you think my kids will say when they go back to school and the teacher asks what they did this summer?

She was referring to her emotionally healthy kids, possibly bringing up some of the craziness that can occur in a foster or adoptive home. You do run the chance with some of our kids, of them bringing up some interesting things.

Would your child say?

I had a visit with my birth mom and I don’t live with her anymore because she drinks and does drugs.

Would... more

It’s really hard to believe that another month has flown by. August is almost over and we are rolling into September which has me very excited!! Not only is my birthday in September, but (for me) it signifies that it is almost and fall (with winter coming in at a close second) is my favorite season. I can’t wait to drag out my comfortable sweaters, start wearing my boots again, drink some hot cider, and go to football games! Although, it’s still too hot to do all that at the moment, I’m crossing my fingers that it will be soon.

Before, I get too excited about fall, let’s recap some of the... more

When we bring new children into our family, one of the things we most want is for them to feel like family, to settle in and have a sense of belonging. One really great way to foster that sense of belonging is through family traditions.

Traditions can be big or little. One of our most treasured family traditions is breakfast in bed for the birthday girl or boy. The birthday kid gets to choose the breakfast menu that morning, which isn’t always exactly on the birthday, but is always on a morning that the whole family is home. The birthday kid gets to sleep in while everyone else scurries around getting breakfast prepared.

... more

Starting on Monday morning, I'm doing a two-post look at the regret that birth parents experience based on Chapter Eight of James L. Gritter's book ... more

Early in the week, Russian authorities announced 10 arrests in the murder of a Russian newspaper reporter last October. But the government's contention--that someone outside Russia had ordered the murder of Anna Politkovskaya--was met with a large amount of skepticism in and out of Russia, according to news reports. And on Friday. Both the BBC and Voice of America were reporting that two... more

In a not-so-easy-to-swallow post yesterday, I advised birth families that attempting to fix or even overtly questioning the changes in parenting style that their child's parents may employ would be a bad idea. However, when the birth family adds children to their own immediate family, clashes in parenting style can become an issue for the two families. Maneuvering through this still-sticky situation can be complex.

First of all, what am I talking about? Don't all... more

Well folks, we made it home in one piece! Actually, we’ve been back since Wednesday night but have been trying to decompress a little bit. Our very long (and very fun) road trip went extremely well and I am so glad the ridiculously large number of miles we planned to travel didn’t deter us. We spent a little over a week away, traveling through four states, spending time at my husband’s family’s lake cottage and spending the weekend with families that I have become friends with in an online adoptive parenting group.

First of all, let me tell you how refreshing it is to be with a group of adoptive parents and their ridiculously gorgeous and adorable children. As I have mentioned before,... more