Firsts
Emily playing soccer on the beach in Vladivostok with her dad, John, and her sister, Annie . First time I went to restaurant and make me so happy. Also I got…
Tag
Orphan
Children Available for Adoption: Behind Magic Doors
There are children available for adoption. They probably aren't where you're looking, unless you happen to be looking behind magic doors. I spend a lot of time in the online adoption community…
Mercy or Justice? A Story of Orphans: You be the Judge
To me, it wasn't initially a question of mercy or justice. It was just what should have been done. I was shocked when the judge said that our adopted children had done…
Reactive Attachment Disorder, Punishment Escalations Would Never Work
Raising Emily was so much different. The whole game changed. Even though one of our other children had RAD, until Emily came home, we never understood that with Reactive Attachment Disorder, punishment…
On Memorial Day I Remember Veterans and Happy Birthdays
Today, the Friday before Memorial Day, happens to be my daughter, Annie’s birthday. Though it may seem strange to you, I associate those two days. Annie left Russia to join our family…
Better off Without International Adoption? Not Hardly.
Oksana lived in half of this "Duplex" with her five children and three other adults. Of course there are days when I am ashamed of some of the people on my side…
When Mothers’ Day is Hard for Children
Mothers Day Hard for Children My adopted daughters struggle with all of the conflicting feelings that come with a Mothers’ Day fraught with memories of a birth mother who brutally abused them,…
Reactive Attachment Disorder Diagnosis for Your Child
Reactive Attachment Disorder diagnosis isn’t like Down syndrome or Muscular Dystrophy in that the condition (as others that are mental rather than physical) is far more obscure. You can’t just stick a needle…
How to Soothe our Pain When we Can’t Help who we Want to Help
Some of my little friends from Far East, Russia Marina was seven and Jula was five, like my daughter-to-be. I don’t know how old Jenya, Maksím, André, Dasha, Ksenya and Natasha were,…
You Don’t Need to be as Wrong as I Was
Her name was Marina. She was one of the sweetest, prettiest, shyest little girls I had ever met. She was almost seven when she handed me a beautifully completed sheet from a…
A Mistake Adoptive Parents Never Need to Make Again
As Seen on Huffington Post Oh, I talk the talk. I try to walk the walk. When it comes to difficult circumstances, I always try to focus on what is best for…
Get Close Enough to Help People with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Psychologists call them triggers. They could be events, objects, sensory stimulations or even words. When a person who has experienced severe trauma is confronted with anything that they have psychologically associated with…