Answers to your parenting questions.
“An Imperfect Family” – Remembering My Brother Through Foster Adoption
My family couldn’t give Darrell the storybook life we’d all have liked. But with us, he learned to embrace the joy in life.
“Knowing Their Brother’s Birth Mother”
We knew that our youngest son’s birth mother would be a powerful force in his life. We didn’t anticipate the impact she’d have on his older brothers.
“Adopting Our Son’s Birth Sister”
When we adopted our son’s biological sister, it felt both eerily similar and completely different.
Ask AF: No Longer the Only Boy
Answers to your parenting questions.
“Why Am I the Only One Who’s Pink?”
Being Mom to “virtual twins”—one African-American, one white; one adopted, one biological—has taught me to validate both of my children for who they are.
Preparing Siblings for an Older-Child Adoption
We’ve decided to adopt an older child. We have two children now, and we’re wondering how best to integrate our new child into the family. What’s your advice?
“Talking About Race in Our Blended Family”
A chance conversation in the car almost set our son apart from our family. But what happened brought him closer to me than ever.
“Too Soon for a Family Vacation”: Older Child Adjustment
What we should have known before we took our newly adopted 13-year-old on a surprise Disney World vacation.
[Book Review] Brothers and Sisters in Adoption
Sibling issues are the focus of this rich resource for parents or adoption professionals, written by Arleta James. Read the full review, here.
“In the Beginning” — Part 1 of Foster Adoption Series
In part one of our family’s adoption odyssey, we make our way through our state’s Fost/Adopt program and find that things don’t always go according to plan. But sometimes, that’s for the best.
“Who’s His Real Mom?”
My little brother was stunned, and I was enraged, when a schoolmate asked an innocent question.
Pursuing a Second Adoption
Parents who confidently dove into the unknown for their first child are sometimes more hesitant when it comes to doing it again.
“Raising Our Daughters, Special Needs and All”
They’ll each face different issues in their lives. But my daughters will get through them together, as real sisters.
Ask AF: Alleviating Sibling Rivalry
“Our three-year-old daughter still has not adjusted to our new son, two, who came home a few months ago. She was expecting a ‘baby,’ not someone who is already walking, talking, and taking attention away from her — and she’s been taking it out on him. Help!”
“Adopting a Baby Sister”
Our preteen biological daughter felt some jealousy of the baby we adopted internationally, but, for the most part, we’ve all settled into our new roles.