There are some powerful topics in adoption that are revisited time and again. Search and reunion is one of them. I have always assumed that I would be the one leading the search and reunion charge for my daughters, but as I have read more about the experience I have come to understand that they may not even want me involved in the process.

I believe we have established something of a psychological relationship with the reality of their mother so that if my girls choose to go it alone they will be emotionally prepared for the reunion experience. Still, I... more

All right I'm going to give this list thing a try. Every time someone posts a list thingy I am always intrigued and I read every last part of it. It doesn't matter if it's 10 things or a 100 things, I read all of it and find the entire post interesting. I wasn't sure what I wanted to list about (as opposed to post about), so I am just taking a stab in the dark at some things I like about being an adoptive parent. This started out to be 25 things I like about adoption. Then as I was writing it became 10 things that I like about adoption. Finally, it has turned... more

The more I read and the more I write for www.adoptionblogs.com the better informed I become about the bazillion issues related to adoption.

I have visited and revisited a number of adoption topics over the past several months and each time I come away with an a-ha moment, or a different way of looking at the very same issue. Today...this morning actually, very early in the morning...that topic is respectful adoption language (RAL). I have always been a language sensitive kind of person. Using affirming,... more

I fell in love with my daughter the moment I saw her face, that’s not to say that it did not take a while to feel truly attached to her or for it to feel real to me. This is hard to write about but I think it’s important. I believe this is one of the less talked about topics of adoption. Attachment is a process and it takes time on both sides.

This post is not about how well Livi did in attaching to me, but it’s more about how I did attaching to her. I remember my first few weeks home and people would call and say “ Don’t you just love it” or... more

Dear First Mom:

In case you ever wonder, "Do they think about me, do they talk about me?" Let me assure you, we do. Not daily, but often enough that you are never far from their little hearts, my mind, and our collective thoughts.

Many months ago, I wrote on a different blog which I no longer maintain about a night when we were all sitting around the kitchen table doing what we usually do--laughing, talking, and gobbling down our food. At one point our (yours, mine, and my husband's) oldest daughter took notice of who in the family looked and sounded... more

My son's best friend has been staying with us since the weekend because his parents are away on business. I am always surprised how easily he fits into the rhythm and flow of our family when he stays over. He and my son are always spending the night back and forth between their two houses for days at a time, going out of town with each other's families, etc. This is the first time he's ever stayed for such a long stretch. His mom will be arriving shortly from the airport to take him home. I know he misses his parents and they miss him, but my son, of course, wants... more

If you're a regular reader or a newcomer please take the time to read the bio on Lauri, our new Adoptive Parenting blogger. I can't speak for Lauri but I know receiving comments on a post would be a terrific welcome to a new site if it were me . So, when she starts posting think about leaving a comment or two. I'm excited to have another valuable perspective here and am looking forward to hearing about her adoptive parenting experiences. Welcome Lauri, looking forward to working with you!

Dr.G.

I will be interviewed on Let's Talk Adoption with Mardie Caldwell on August 23rd at 12:00 Pacific Standard Time. You may recall a while back I wrote a post about Let's Talk Adoption entitled Adoption Talk Radio: Now why didn't I think of that! Well, lucky me. I didn't think of it, but while I was away on vacation I received an email from (ahem) their people inviting me to be on the show that airs via the internet. "My people" (ummm...that would be me) worked out the details with "their people" (that would be Layne Kuhn, their media coordinator) and I will get... more

Hello all. We have returned from our two week family vacation to Atlanta to visit grandparents and extended family. In my last post I indicated that I would blog about our vacation experiences the best that I could. Ha. Written by a woman who, obviously, has never tried her hand at vacationing with three small children and blogging at the same time. After about the second day it became apparent that plan was going right out the window. My plan B was to keep a journal. Again, that was a flop. On my personal blog I wrote that I didn't even jot notes down on scraps of paper. I did, however, take tons of pictures with those convenient throw away cameras. It cost me right at $100.00 to get them... more

I wonder why some mothers choose adoption as opposed to abortion. I wonder why some mothers choose abortion over adoption. Both choices are life changing (and some would argue that abortion is a life-ending) decision. No one would argue that both choices are painfully difficult decisions. When I run around in my head with the question of adoption vs. abortion, I am surprised by how many of the factors that might contribute to the decision do not necessarily imply one decision over the other.

Unable or unwilling to parent. A crisis pregnancy due to rape, incest,... more