My husband and I have a friendly relationship with the birth mother of our 3-year-old daughter. We talk on the phone, exchange letters regularly, and visit a few times a year.
Ask AF: Sleep Routines That Promote Attachment
Our newly adopted, 1-year-old daughter wakes often throughout the night, crying and wailing. If I rub her back or pick her up, she stops almost immediately.
Ask AF: Sex Education Assistance
Can you recommend some books that will help us explain the facts of life?
Ask AF: Explaining Biological Siblings to an Adoptive Sibling
We have an eight-year-old biological child and a six-month-old we adopted as a newborn. Our younger son has several biological siblings—and I’m wondering how to explain this to my older son.
Ask AF: How Grandparents Can Support Older Child Attachment
My son and daughter-in-law recently adopted a five-year-old from Ethiopia. They told us we cannot hold, hug, or kiss our grandson.
Ask AF: Too Young to Understand Birth Family?
We have an open adoption with our 30-month-old son’s birth family. Last night we were looking at a photo album.
Ask AF: Moving and Readoption
I’m about to move. Can I readopt after I move, or do I have to readopt in the state I lived in when I brought my child home?
Ask AF: A Difficult Reality
We used to have a good relationship with our son’s birth mother, but haven’t heard from her since he was two. He’s now nine. I recently searched for her online, and learned that she’s in jail.
Ask AF: Explaining Adoption to a Special-Needs Child
Answers to your parenting questions.
Ask AF: Working with Two Agencies
Answers to your parenting questions.
Ask AF: Sharing Details We Found Online
“After my daughter’s birth family stopped corresponding, I looked them up online. Is it unethical to share this information with her, since I obtained it without their consent?”
Ask AF: Rocking and Sleep
Rocking is a common sensory-seeking behavior, particularly for children who spent time in institutionalized settings.
Ask AF: Helping Mom Handle the College Transition
Answers to your parenting questions.
Ask AF: What to Talk About with the Expectant Mom?
I am curious as to what prospective adoptive families and expectant moms talk about during the match.
Ask AF: When a Child Calls Every Woman “Mommy”
Our three-year-old has been through several foster placements and calls nearly every woman she comes in contact with “Mommy.”
Ask AF: Birth Mother Confusion
“My daughter says things that make me a little insecure, like, ‘I love you as much as I love my birth mother,’ or “My birth mother is my real mom.’ How should I respond?
Ask AF: Not Too Late to Tell
Our son is four. We adopted him at birth. I know that you’re supposed to talk about adoption from an early age–but the years kept going by and we failed to do so. Did we wait too long?
Ask AF: Grief — or Personality?
Answers to your parenting questions.
Ask AF: Introducing Boundaries
Answers to your parenting questions.
Ask AF: Finding Birth Family on Facebook
My 11-year-old son has been saying he’d like to meet his birth family.