I found this article on e-How, of all places.   It’s actually pretty good.  If you know someone, a friend or family member, who will be adopting an older child, they suggest that you: Read up on older-child adoption Attend a training/preparation session with your friend/relative Refrain from sharing negative or disturbing stories you’ve heard Plan [...]

“He’s just perfect, I can’t even describe him any other way.” –Sandra Bullock, speaking of her son, Louis

By now we’ve all heard about–and been closely watching–the story of Torry Hansen of Tennessee, who attempted to adopt a little boy from Russia, but found him to have psychological problems so severe that she feared for her safety.  If you’ve been living under a rock recently, you can find the story here, among other [...]

I know…it’s shocking.  To read the blogosphere, you’d think that all adopted children were struggling with their “primal wound” and felt alienated in their own families.  You wouldn’t know it by looking at OUR family, but we’ve actually been told that our son does feel that way, and we’re forcing him to be in denial. [...]

Elf has in the past been one of our favorite Christmas movies.  And just taken on its own terms, it’s pretty good.  I think it’s one of Will Ferrell’s best performances, in the role of the human boy who is adopted by elves and raised as an elf, then leaves the North Pole to find [...]

What is Open Adoption? Adoption is a process by which a child is born to one set of biological parents, and is then raised by different parents. The adoptive parents are the child’s legal parents. But just because the child is being loved and raised by his or her legal parents, should that mean that [...]

This place, the Ranch for Kids, was founded by Joyce Sterkel, to help families who are having difficulty with their adopted kids.  This is especially true for kids who are from other countries.  People don’t realize how difficult it can be for kids to be suddenly transplanted from one culture to another, and nobody tells [...]

These come from a 13-year-old, but they were actually said in David’s presence.  We took the kids on an outing this weekend, and the girls got to bring friends (David was promised he could bring a friend another time, since we only had so much room in the minivan).  Oldest Daughter’s friend begins to talk [...]

A situation has arisen in my family that puts me, however tangentially, on the other side of the adoption issue.  My 9-year-old niece wishes to be adopted by her stepfather.  When her mother told me about this, my first reaction was “No!  She’s ours!” Am I child-greedy?  Probably.  I want ours and more.  I want [...]

In the 1950′s, Otelia Compton was awarded an honorary doctorate from Western College in Ohio for her achievements as “Wife and Mother of Comptons.”  It was a pretty extraordinary achievement–her children founded missionary schools, ran major corporations, and won the Nobel Prize. Dr. Compton was then interviewed by Milton S. Mayer, who asked her, “How [...]