Are all children from foster care considered “special needs,” and, therefore, eligible for the full adoption tax credit?
Ask AF: Insecure About a Sibling
We’re adopting a second child, and we worry that our daughter’s insecurity will lead her to compete with a new sibling. Any advice?
Ask AF: Talking About Adoption with Tweens
My 12-year-old son came home upset the other day—a classmate had told him he felt sorry for him because he doesn’t live with his “real parents.”
Ask AF: Multicultural Adoption Support Groups
My wife and I are active in a group for families who adopted from China. Now that we’re adopting a second child, from Ethiopia, should we join another, or find a multicultural group?
Ask AF: Talking to Preschoolers About Racism
We’re ready to talk to our child, who is black, about racism before she starts school. What should we say?
Ask AF: Adoption-Related Separation Anxiety?
My 3-year-old appears to have a higher level of separation anxiety than most children her age.
Ask AF: Health History
What should I ask my birth father about my birth family’s medical history?
Ask AF: Limited Information About Birth Family
My 5-year-old has been asking a lot about her birth father recently, but I only have information about her birth mother.
Ask AF: What to Say in a Letter to Birth Parents
I send letters with pictures to my children’s birth parents via our adoption agencies.
Ask AF: Talking About Adoption in School
We’re moving to a much smaller and less diverse town. I would like to talk to give an adoption talk at her school, but she seems embarrassed by this idea.
Ask AF: Bonding with a Newborn
My baby will already be two days old when I bring her home. Should I be concerned about bonding?
Ask AF: Invasion of Privacy
We have emphasized that our kids should choose whether to share (or not) their adoptive status, but some of our friends don’t seem to get it and tell others.
Ask AF: Comforting a Child During Temper Tantrums
Answers to your parenting questions.
Ask AF: Inappropriate Affection
Our seven-year-old daughter was adopted about nine months ago and is adjusting well. We wonder how to respond when she shows inappropriate affection to family members or friends.
Ask AF: Parenting a Biracial Adoptee
I am having a hard time finding resources about transracial adoption in which the child is of mixed race.
Ask AF: Grandparent Adoption
I adopted my grandson eight years ago, and he has no idea that I’m his grandmother.
Ask AF: Resources for Biracial Adoptees
I have a biracial daughter and was wondering about books, stories, and articles that address the questions that arise when the child is of mixed heritage.
Ask AF: Changing a Birth Year
When we adopted our youngest daughter nine years ago, we were told that she was 18 months old. However, we have just learned that she is anywhere from two to three years older than we were told.
Ask AF: Explaining the Birth Mother Relationship
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.