In my last post, Playgroups with Adopted Child, I shared that I founded a neighborhood playgroup when my son was only a few weeks old. Even though he was the only child in the group to join his family through adoption, the playgroup was a wonderful experience that I am glad we both had. The playgroup met weekly for about three years. Once children started heading off to preschool, the playgroup grew smaller until it ended when my son was four. While I no longer see many of the mothers from the playgroup very often, they will always hold a special place in my heart.

When my son was a baby, I did not feel the need to join a playgroup for adoptive families. If I had known about one, I might have tried it out, but I can honestly say that, when a child is a baby or toddler, his adoption really does not factor into his enjoyment of a playgroup. From the mom's perspective, I was just happy to know other women who were also up at 3:00 a.m. with their babies.

Now that my son is six and asking more questions about his adoption, it might be nice to affiliate with other adoptive families so my son can talk to other adoptees about his feelings regarding his adoption. We know some adoptive families through our church, but with the children being of school age, they are involved in so many activities. I am not sure if an adoption playgroup would be feasible at this age.

I am active on a private message board for adoptive mothers. The board owner has launched a private message board for our children. From what I hear, it is going well. Only our children can access the board, and board members moderate it, so it is a safe place for adoptees to talk to one another. My son is not reading well enough to use it yet, but I would love to take advantage of this resource in a year or two.

I have heard good things about adoption playgroups, particularly for transracial adoptive families. I know a Caucasian adoptive couple who adopted two African-American boys. The mother says that her boys get excited to go somewhere and see families who look like their family. Maybe I should see if my son and I could visit that playgroup, but first I will need to find out if it is open to adoptive families who are not transracial. As my son grows older and has more questions about adoption, I would like for him to have resources, like other adoptive families, available when he needs more than I can offer him.

Are any of you active in an adoption playgroup? How did you find it? For what ages is an adoption playgroup best suited?

Related Topics:

• Play Groups Pro's & Con's Pt 1


• Play Groups Part 2- Finding a Playgroup

Photo credit: Lynda Bernhardt