Our home has always been full of kids. Even before we adopted. The kids from the neighborhood would always offer to help us bring in groceries or work in the yard. They knew I would always buy extra juices or fruit roll ups just for them. When the ice cream truck came around, I always pitched in the extra that any of the kids needed to get that super bomb pop or chips.

So it didn't even phase us when we adopted the kids, that our living room was full most of the time. The kids loved to hang around to see what was on for dinner. They knew Friday nights were pizza nights so of course they all came over for leftovers.

We had one group of kids that won my heart. They lived... more

You are all done with paper work and your home study is finished. You have a room set up for your new son or daughter. You may enter into the hurry up and wait category of adoption.

Depending on what highway you have taken into the world of adoption many small issues can arise, especially in international adoption. That is what makes this web site so cool. You can find several people who know the essentials of international adoption and you can ask questions.

If you are adopting through foster care, this goes for you too. Several of us here have adopted through foster care and can offer good ideas on adoption subjects across the board.

There are foster homes... more

Todays Curriculum for Middle School and High School children can often be more than some kids can handle. The is surely true for some of our children who have had emotional trauma and have a hard time processing information.

With the classroom being much larger and the work load being a little heavier than usual, a child can get behind quickly.

When adopting an older child, these things must be taken into consideration, especially if the child is entering into school in the middle of a semester. Most schools offer student and substitute teachers as tutors at very little cost to children who need them. Sometimes this expense is covered by an agency if the child is in Foster... more

Recently our local news has been covering a story about a missing adopted child. I did not even know the child was missing. So no one really took it serious enough to post pamphlets or work for finding this little boy.

They say his parents reported him missing months ago. The investigation has gone on until this past month. Now both adoptive parents are blaming one another and the adoptive father just took the police to where the little boy's body could be found.

Of course it has been on every news channel and in every paper since the boy was found dead. It is newsworthy now.

My question is, Why did they do it? What could a little child do that would make a parent,... more

In today's world I have met more than a few people who were the "only child." I found that interesting when we began our journey to adopt.

One of my best girlfriends is an only child. She recently lost her mom, the last person in her family unit. Her dad had died years before so she and her mom were really close. Needless to say she has been in a depression since mom died.

I have kind of looked after her and invited her to spend holidays with us. My family loves to have her come visit. Sometimes you can see the sadness on her face when everyone is happily teasing and giggling the day away.

We have talked a lot and she has told me she would have loved more of a... more

When we are little our family teaches us manners. They may even take us to church where we learn more about religion and spiritual beliefs. When we get in grade school our teachers teach us all sorts of good things like how to share and how to respect one another.

All of this lays a good basis for character building. What are some things that you can learn that will build your character and help you become who you are:

1). Trustworthiness 8). Appreciation 2). Respect 9). Communication 3). Responsibility 10). Friendship 4). Fairness 11). Listening 5). Caring 12). Anger Control ... more

One of the hardest things to do in today's society is to trust someone. It should then be no shock to anyone that older children who have been in the system do not know how to trust or depend on someone else to provide for them and their needs.

It takes time and structure for a child to learn to trust again. The good news is children adapt much faster than adults do. So it can be done.

In order to trust you first need to know what it is. In order to be trusted you must know what it is and be able to implement trust to another. The more you learn the better you understand the process.

"Trust... in another people has several meanings:

Trust means that you... more

After all the red tape and home studies are complete and you are ready to begin looking for your child.

It might be very helpful to sit down as a family unit and create a Family History Book. This book should contain:

* Family Photos of your home. * Photos of each person and a brief Bio. * Pictures of the family pets and names. * Pictures of past family activities. * A Welcome Page to introduce your family. * Some important information about your family and neighborhood. * A picture and the name of the school the child will be attending. * Anything you would... more

When adopting a child that is old enough to help in making good choices. It is a lot of fun to let them be apart of choosing things such as: *The color of their bedroom. *The color of and design of bedroom decor. Sheets, comforters and general decoration. *School clothing, shoes and coat or jacket. *Music CD's or DVD's right down to the color of their own tooth brush.

Little choices such as those above will help the child to feel more at home in his or her own surroundings. It also let's them know that you respect their opinion and will take it into consideration when need be.

It also... more

Most of the time as adults we tend to assume what is best for an older child.

First of all we must ask who is an older child in the first place? I would tend to say they are children that are around 6 years of age all the way up to pre adulthood. Children who remember their birth mom and dad. They remember life as it was in their birth home. They remember family.

When these children are separated from the only home life they have ever known, then placed in Foster Care due to multiple reasons, they suffer displacement issues, emotional depression, and often do not know how or why life had to change so drastically for them.

One thing they do know after several... more