AF’s best strategies for bonding with your new baby.
“A Home for Helen”
She was a motherless five-year-old living in an Ethiopian orphanage. The package in her hands promised a brighter future.
All Through the Night
Parents and experts weigh in on the best ways to get our kids to sleep.
When Things Change
Life’s transitions can be hard on children. Here’s how to help your child develop his own ways to cope.
“The Tie That Binds”
Whether you follow rituals from your own childhood or establish new ones, one truth remains the same: Traditions are what memories are made of. Here, four families share their stories.
Ask AF: Older Child Adjustment
The older child we’re adopting is coming to us after seven years of foster care in another country. How can we make the transition easier?
Ask AF: Time to Bond
When you finally bring your baby home, your family will probably be very excited to meet her. Mary Ann Curran suggests ways to explain the bonding cycle to them and gently request time to be alone.
Ask AF: Breast Milk or Formula
Answers to your parenting questions.
When You and Your Baby Don’t Speak the Same Language
Have you been hit by the terrible twos? Sign language can be a great way to help your child communicate their needs before they can speak.
“Guarding Tess” — A Father’s Story
I learned that the ultimate gift of love comes not from the receiver, but from the giver.
After the Bliss
For many adoptive moms, post-baby depression is a real and painful ordeal. Shelley Page reports why it happens and how to feel better.
Your Baby’s Memory Book
Create a simple story for your young child to learn and grow with.
Ask AF: Graduating from the Family Bed
Answers to your parenting questions.
Ask AF: When Is Cuddling Appropriate?
Your child might love hugs and cuddles to reinforce attachment. Diana Schwab, M.Ed., LSW, suggests other ways you can affirm your bond at those times when cuddling’s not appropriate.
Feeling Like Part of the Extended Family
The more you involve the grandparents (and aunts, uncles, and cousins, too) in you adoption process, the more your child feels like part of the clan.
When Your Child Acts Like a Baby
Some children regress as a way of escaping to a less stressful time.
When One Parent Is Rejected
A newly adopted toddler may ignore or even push away one parent. Here’s how to cope and earn his trust.
Ask AF: Building Relationships
Our toddler bonded very quickly with our immediate family, but she still refuses to allow anyone else to hold her, including our relatives. Is this normal for a two-year-old?
Helping Your Child Cope with Divorce
A child may exhibit “baby” behaviors when his parents divorce.
Feeding 101
Feeding is about more than just nutrition! Here, answers to all your feeding questions.