Author

For a bit of a giggle for older adoptive parents who have grown kids as well, this story may provoke a chuckle or two. All about young-ish moms hoping for grandma to help out, and how many grandma's are too busy doing their own thing ... raising children in our case ... to pitch in as some of our kids think we should. Starting off with a "general image of what a good granny is: apple-cheeked with a bursting biscuit tin and oodles of time to spend with her precious grandchildren", it's a tale of disappointment for some that follows. Sadie Woods realised this within weeks of her first son being born. "I was having a hideous time. Fred just didn't sleep and I was absolutely on my knees. I… [more]

A post I wrote last week inspired comments having to do with separating the issue of poverty from any equation that might mean adoption. Hunger and malnutrition are a huge problem all over Africa and the rest of the developing world. However, it doesn't mean these kids are not with family that care for them and love them. In most cases, these families are attempting to keep it together. They are still sending them to school... they are trying! These kids are not in the streets or in orphanages. Their families haven’t given them up. That is why they are not available for adoption. This is, of course, the case, and by the millions families are stepping up to take in more and more of the children left behind… [more]

Is it because I'm old, or because it's deplorable? You make the call ... This story bugs the heck out of me, makes me squirm and want to throttle someone at the same time, and scares the padooky out of me just thinking of the ramifications. Here's the open: At the recently opened Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique at Cinderella's castle in Walt Disney World, hordes of young girls in ball gowns jostle every day to get their hair coiffed, their nails painted and their faces plastered with make-up to imitate their favorite princess. Really? Parents are taking their daughters to this place and paying big bucks to get them "Princess makeovers"? Yikes. And do da name "Britney Spears" ring no bells at all? At the same time, this story out of the UK

Since we're coming to the end of National Adoption Month, also known as National Adoption Awareness Month, the news is full of related stories, many local reports of adoptions finalized in group ceremonies marking the occasion. Adoption stories strong on the positives dominate ... stories like this one, "Adoption gives children loving, stable homes", aimed toward getting the word out that Missouri has about 2,000 children waiting for adoption. One family's happy encounter with adoption is the focus, while an adoption "checklist" is added for anyone who might be thinking of beginning the journey. "Adoption, a two-way street of love, learning" is another. This one written by an adoptive parent in Alaska who grew up with adopted siblings, is about the joys and blessings adoption can bring… [more]

Almost without preparation, my son Sam will today say good-bye to his first 'real' school, as the year has come to an abrupt ending that snuck up on me completely. It seems like yesterday that I wrote about his first day in the Baie Lazare Crèche, the local version of kindergarten, but it was almost a year ago that we all went through the drama and trauma of big boy going to big boy school and all that entailed. He cried every morning for a week when we'd leave him, but soon adjusted well and enjoyed his days. He has learned to speak Creole over the year, and can now play with Seychellois kids, easily learning the games and even the taunts five-year-olds are so fond of in any language… [more]

I'm deep in thought this morning, and rambling more than a bit, but would like to put some of the news leading the week on the table and invite everyone to pull up a chair. Lanette's writing today on the Foster Care Blog strikes a chord as I compose posts, since much of the recent news ties into her thoughts and makes the questions she poses very timely. I had written last week about a report into abuse by partners of mothers that results in terrible consequences to children. Over the past couple of days, the gruesome details of the life and death of 2-year-old Riley Ann Sawyers provides another counterpoint to the discussion in Lanette's post on children in foster care. Not that these are new… [more]

The first adoptee blogger here, Jupe, coined an apt phrase she used to describe the frequency adoption-related bits and pieces of ephemera would drift into her realm, then stick for a while: adoption velcro. All of us experience this to some degree ... well, all of us who deposit time and energy into the awareness bank and keep our vigilance accounts topped up. I can, however, still be surprised by how often adoption comes at me from what would appear to be the clear blue sky, although I wonder if someone less attuned would attach the same significance or latch on to the specific thread as strongly as I do, not only as an adoptive parent, but also as an advocate… [more]

Anyone in the Green Bay area of Wisconsin with an interest in possible adoption from Russian might be interested in hosting a child for 10 days. The Russian Orphan Lighthouse Project is looking for host families for 10- to 15-year-old kids in January. Check out their website for details. I have recently come across an interesting summation of the Romanian adoption mess as it played out over the years. Check it out for a quick review up until July of last year ... the last action ... when the US Senate resolved to urge Romania to "modify its ban on international adoptions to allow intercountry adoption by people other than biological grandparents." By the way, there were 1,100 adoptions in the pipeline when the door slammed shut in… [more]

It's day 23 of National Blog Posting Month ... NaBloPoMo ... and I've been dutifully posting on my personal blog every single day on a wide variety of topics. I blog every day, no matter what, either here, on the News Blog, the International Adoption Blog or the release vent that is my personal blog, so I didn't think this whole venture was going to have much impact, but it has. Because I write so much every day, and because my writing involves a lot of research on most days, I spend at least 6 to 8 hours working every day. Since I also have a life that includes kids, a husband, meals, puppies and so much more (please notice the comma… [more]

With a family less than even a remote possibility for millions of African children, those who advocate for international adoption have a responsibility to stay abreast, as much as possible in a world where the mass of information is daunting, to say the least, of the reality of life in Africa. Unlike some who insist that life is always better lived where begun, people who embrace the idea of a global village and families without borders see international adoption as one way some of the world's children can find love, life and happiness. Making this point requires frequent visits to info-wells that are darned uncomfortable to dip into, and so full of ugliness and horror that turning a blind eye could seem a sensible tact. So it… [more]