“My nine-year-old has been asking me about her birth mother. I was able to find her on social media, but I’m worried about sharing the photos I found.”
“The Fine Line Between Letting Go and Being Let Go”
I adopted my son as he was entering his teen years, and now, too soon, I have seen him off to college. How will his still tenuous attachment play out when I’m no longer a constant, physical presence in his life?
“Home Safe Every Night”
Isaac is 14 years old, but he’s six feet tall and almost two hundred pounds. He’s also black. He hasn’t been a discipline problem since the day he came home, but someone who doesn’t know him could see him as a threat. So what was I to do on a recent evening when he asked to bike home alone in the dark?
How to Raise a Bounce-Back Kid
Most kids are born to rebound whatever their start in life. Research shows that parents can help.
Raising a Child Who Loves Reading
Parents know that books are educational, but how do they make them fun for kids while building reading skills? Start with these three titles.
How Parents Can Encourage Language Skills
About 10% of children have speech and language difficulties. Help your child develop these skills with these five tips.
Hosting Productive Play Dates
A step-by-step plan to help adoptive parents plan successful outings for children and their friends.
“Heart’s Content”
A trip to the doctor’s office reminds me of the love inside my son’s perfect heart.
Handling Teenage Meltdowns
Your child may see you as less understanding than his birth parents might be. Here’s how to cope with teenage temper tantrums.
Ask AF: How to Help Our Teen Through Depression?
“Our 17-year-old is experiencing depression and has been smoking pot. She told us she sees her depression as connected to adoption, which surprised us, because we’ve always talked openly about adoption. How can we help her?”
“Finally Father’s Day”
I became a dad at age 50, and it changed my life in ways I never could have expected. It was the greatest gift.
“Feeling Like Family”
After the divorce, my family felt incomplete. To find the missing piece, I traveled to a Russian orphanage, thousands of miles away.
Parents Share: What My Child’s Friends Want to Know About Adoption
Parents share the questions their children have been asked by friends and classmates over the years, from being in an orphanage to whether they know their “real” parents.
“Life of the Party”
Adoption kismet paired my moody, socially awkward self with an upbeat, sociable son who volunteers to wear his school mascot costume, runs for student council, and is unfazed by the thought of speaking in front of his whole school. Every day I am awed (and exhausted).
“From Then to Now”
I don’t think about adoption on a daily basis; I am just a dad, after all. But when I do, it’s these moments that rise to the surface, indicative of so much else along the way.
Celebrating Sameness in Your Family
Help your preschooler process the world around him by pointing out the ways you are alike.
“Bonding or Discipline?”
As I sit in the pediatrician’s waiting room, all of my parenting skills are called into question. Do I focus on disciplining or bonding with my daughter?
“Before I Became a Mom”
“I have always known I was capable of giving this much love. What I didn’t know is that a child could love me this much.”
“Band-Aid Mom”
Can a Band-Aid do more than heal a physical wound? For my daughter, adopted from Ethiopia at age 9, a mother’s therapeutic touch — to real and emotional boo-boos — began a deeper healing process.
Ask AF: How to Choose a School for Our Transracially Adopted Child?
A mother seeks advice in selecting a school for her daughter, who is biracial. How to weigh general diversity vs. specific racial representation vs. distance from the family’s home?