The Battle Inside: Parenting a Child with Feeding Challenges
March 31, 2017
failure to thrive, Family Stories, feeding challenges, feeding tube, feeding/swallowing therapy, first weeks home, food issues, H-Pylori, malnourishment, March 2017 Feature - Feeding Challenges, Nutrition, oral aversion, refusing food
We began our adoption journey about three years ago and in that time we completed two separate adoptions. We first traveled to China in 2015 to bring home our son who was just a year old at the time and in 2016 we re-used our dossier bringing home our daughter who had just turned two. …Read More
He Will Provide: Part One
March 31, 2017
adopting a boy, adopting two at once, brain injury, Developmental System, older child adoption, undiagnosed SN
I was acutely aware of my lack of motherly connection to Daniel, as I watched him lying there with vacant eyes on the hospital bed. “God, is it even possible for me to love this boy?” My husband Charly was working on his PhD at Lanzhou University when we learned about our sons David and …Read More
Waiting to be Chosen: Drake and Lincoln
March 30, 2017
AWAA, Children Who Wait, Chris
America World Adoption Hope Journey team members share their stories about a couple of very special boys. Meet Drake. I nicknamed him “Handsome”. Behind his quiet demeanor, his eyes hold a deep look that is kind and brave. I have spent two days watching him tease his foster brothers and joke around with the boys …Read More
Waiting to be Chosen: Nani
March 30, 2017
Family Found, Liberty
It took waaaay too long, but adorable Nani’s file is finally complete. She is ready for her family to find her and bring her home! Nani is 5 years old and designated to Children’s House International. Nani is talkative and likes to listen to music. She loves to sing! She likes to play games with …Read More
Three Simple Essentials for Your Hospital Stay
March 29, 2017
a father's perspective, February 2017 Feature - Preparing Your Child for Medical Interventions, hospital stays, Randall, surgery
We live in a wonderful country. It doesn’t always feel wonderful, but when we realize how easily accessible basic healthcare is for us we are reminded that it truly is a privilege to call this place home. Many of the children in our adoption communities have been given a shot at a better life because …Read More
Tackling Feeding Challenges: Oral Motor Differences and Feeding
March 28, 2017
Education, feeding challenges, feeding/swallowing therapy, food issues, Guest Series, March 2017 Feature - Feeding Challenges, Newly Home, Nutrition, occupational therapy, oral aversion, physical therapy, refusing food, Sensory Processing Issues, Tackling Feeding Challenges
Feeding your child is one of the most basic ways you can bond, and yet can become the one most challenging aspects of parenting for many adoptive families. In this three-part series, Speech Therapist Melissa Pouncey will provide practical places to start working towards peaceful and healthy eating habits, along with more therapeutic information regarding …Read More
Joshua Waits
March 28, 2017
Family Found, Liberty
Joshua is a precious 5 year old who is waiting for a family of his very own. Joshua has round head and face, ready to smile and clever. He is active, restless and extroverted. At the age of 1year, he can not speak much, can express his happy and angry with smiling and crying, can …Read More
Never Let Go
March 27, 2017
Andrea O., Attachment, attachment activities
“Never let go, Mommy. Never let go.” It took my breath away when my youngest said that as she threw her arms around my neck when I picked her up. As she burrowed her head into my neck, she kept whispering it with her warm cheek pressed firmly against mine, and her little hands grasping …Read More
Feeding Challenges: “I’ve Got This” and Other Things I Once Believed
March 26, 2017
complex heart defect, developmental delays, early intervention, failure to thrive, feeding tube, feeding/swallowing therapy, malnourishment, March 2017 Feature - Feeding Challenges, Nutrition, oral aversion, paralyzed vocal chords, refusing food, surgery
Major cardiac defects? That’s a little more intimidating than we initially signed up for but nothing a good surgeon can’t fix. Plus I’m a nurse, I can handle the hard. God prepared me for this. Poor oxygenation? That’ll correct itself once her heart is repaired. Severe developmental delays? Of course she’s delayed, but look at …Read More
Waiting to be chosen: Bates, Canaan, and Heathton
March 26, 2017
AWAA, Children Who Wait, Chris
It’s all about the boys today! “Listen” as these Storytellers from America World Adoption – Journey of Hope – share their stories about three darling boys. Meet Bates: This cute little boy grabbed my attention at the opening ceremony as he made wantons out of play dough during craft time. Whenever I saw him, he …Read More
An Unfinished Family Portrait
March 25, 2017
a father's perspective, adopting a boy, Blood Conditions, Dads, Family Stories, hemophilia, hemophilia A, March 2017 Feature - Blood Conditions, older child adoption, reluctant husband, should we adopt?
Looking up from a pile of leaves, a young, beautiful blonde-haired college girl smiles while being kissed on the cheek by a “somewhat handsome” college-aged boy. That young, twenty-year old girl, now even more beautiful than ever, is my wife, Amber. That college kid, who has not graced the twenty years since quite as well, …Read More
This is Us, Adoptive Families
March 23, 2017
adoption realities, Rebecca
I am thankful for my family. I’m thankful that we’re all safe
and there’s no one in the world that I’d rather be too hot or too cold with. – Jack Pearson, This is Us Time’s been storytelling with us. Our family life is a sitcom and a drama. Our script has been sweet and …Read More
Glad We Didn’t Know: Adopting a Child with Von Willebrand Disease
March 22, 2017
Blood Conditions, March 2017 Feature - Blood Conditions, Takayasu’s arteritis, virtual twins, Von Willebrand
For four years I prayed that my husband would say yes to adopting again from China. And out of the blue he mentioned – in passing – that he felt like we had another child waiting for us. Within 24 hours, a friend had sent me a photo of a four year old little girl …Read More
Medical Mama-Ness: Sorrowful Yet Always Rejoicing
March 21, 2017
Hillary, Medical Momma, Parenting Special Needs
One foot here, another foot there. How we walk — it’s a bit of a balancing act, isn’t it? A bit of an awkward dance in a minefield. Jolting, yet fluid. Slippery, yet steady. Unexpected potholes, but given with Sovereign purpose. The sun rose with a crying little girl in my lap, her alligator …Read More
Waiting for a Family: Wallace
March 20, 2017
Children Who Wait, Liberty
Three-year-old Wallace couldn’t be cuter! He started rehabilitation training shortly after being found as an approximately one-month-old baby. Wallace loves to share and play with other children. He is shy around strangers, but opens up once comfortable. Wallace loves to be praised and enjoys spending time with familiar people. His file diagnoses him as having …Read More
Different Routes Toward Adoption: Always Worth the Fight
March 19, 2017
pre-adoption, should we adopt?
We all have our buttons. One squeeze of the trigger, and we fire away. One of the quickest ways to trigger a release in my momma bear persona is to hear or read an often used comment in regards to adoption. No, I’m not talking about the things we all hear as adoptive parents when …Read More
Seeing Him in the Daily: A Transforming Perspective for the Hard Days
March 18, 2017
adopting again, Andrea Y., large families, other ways to care for the orphan, should we adopt?
Today. Today feels like one of those “the days are long but the years are fast” kinda days — busy, demanding, a mile long to-do-list sort of seasons of motherhood. Have you been there? Maybe you are like me and feel like you live there! It’s in these impossible laundry-piled days that’s it’s easy to …Read More
Waiting Child: Seraphina
March 18, 2017
Children Who Wait, Liberty
It’s easy to see how this little cherub got her advocacy name- the face of an angel. Adorable Seraphina recently turned four! At the time her file was prepared (fall 2014), she had good use of her limbs and was able to sit on her own and walk with support. She wasn’t able to speak. …Read More
Crying Over Cheerios: Overcoming Feeding Challenges
March 17, 2017
adopting a boy, Brandie, early intervention, Education, Family Stories, feeding challenges, feeding/swallowing therapy, first weeks home, first year home, March 2017 Feature - Feeding Challenges, Newly Home, oral-motor delays
Where I grew up, food was a love language. I learned at a very young age that food was the center of any worthwhile gathering. I remember once in the sweltering heat of a Mississippi summer, we attended a family reunion. It was a potluck, and table after table was overflowing with plates of styrofoam …Read More
Waiting to be Chosen: Mary Beth
March 16, 2017
Family Found, Liberty
Sweet Mary Beth recently turned 7 years old – such a fun age, yet Mary Beth has experienced such loss in her young life. Mary Beth spent her first five years with her parents, turning up at an orphanage in December of 2014. It is unknown whether her gender or her special needs caused her …Read More
Meet the Contributors: Liberty
March 16, 2017
Contributor Q and A, Liberty, Meet the Contributors
Continuing today with our series in which we share a short Q and A with one of our contributors to give y’all, our faithful readers, a little more behind-the-scenes insight into the amazing group of writers assembled here. And it will also give each of our contributors a chance to share their heart in a …Read More
Ten Frequently Asked Questions About Adopting a Child With Thalassemia
March 15, 2017
beta thalassemia, beta thalassemia major, Blood Conditions, Family Stories, March 2017 Feature - Blood Conditions, thalassemia
Kate, Chelsea, and Alissa are three friends who have brought home five girls with beta thalassemia within the last two years. They live in rural Montana – four hours from the nearest children’s hospital. All five of their girls are thriving with thalassemia and are truly living up to their name as the “Thal Thugs …Read More
Waiting for You: Cassie
March 14, 2017
Family Found, Liberty
2 1/2 year old Cassie is a precious little girl who is listed with Wide Horizons For children’s Individual List. Cassie is described as a social and outgoing little girl who loves music, dancing, and playing with her peers. She always has a big smile for her friends. Cassie was born with Down Syndrome and …Read More
Tackling Feeding Challenges: The Basics
March 14, 2017
Education, feeding challenges, feeding/swallowing therapy, food issues, Guest Series, March 2017 Feature - Feeding Challenges, Newly Home, occupational therapy, oral aversion, oral-motor delays, refusing food, Sensory Processing Issues, speech therapy, Tackling Feeding Challenges
Feeding your child is one of the most basic ways you can bond, and yet can become the one most challenging aspects of parenting for many adoptive families. In this three-part series, Speech Therapist Melissa Pouncey will provide practical places to start working towards peaceful and healthy eating habits, along with more therapeutic information regarding …Read More
An Awkward Email
March 13, 2017
adoption community, Courtney, Newly Home
About two and a half years ago, I sent out a really awkward e-mail to a few moms. It went a little something like this: “Hey! You don’t know me but I just got back from China with my daughter and I heard from a friend of a friend of a friend that you recently …Read More
Three Simple Words
March 12, 2017
adopting a boy, adoption realities, Attachment, attachment challenges, Central Nervous System, cerebral palsy, cocooning, Family Stories, older child adoption, rejects mom
We often hear the term “leap of faith”. Three simple words. Saying these three simple words is easy, but truly living them out is a different story. My husband and I always joke with each other saying that nothing in our lives comes easy or goes as planned. We are okay with this, because what …Read More
Waiting to be Chosen: Caris and Saul
March 12, 2017
Children Who Wait, Chris
Members from the One Orphan Hope Journey Team (America World Adoption) share their stories of two very precious children… Read about Caris and her wait for a forever family. One of the highlights of my trip was coming back to the foster care center on the second day and seeing Caris. At the end of …Read More
Putting the Pieces Together
March 11, 2017
brain injury, Central Nervous System, cerebral palsy, cleft palate, hemiplegia, older child adoption
One of the ways in which we fundraised to bring our daughter, Lulu, home last year was through a jigsaw puzzle fundraiser, suggested by a fellow adoptive Mama. Perhaps you’re familiar with it — we reached out to family and friends asking them to sponsor pieces of a puzzle to raise the $5,800 orphanage donation …Read More
Waiting to be Chosen: Jediah
March 10, 2017
Children Who Wait
Jediah is two years old and is one of the bravest little guys we know. He came to Shanghai Healing Home one year ago; scared and desperately needing his first heart surgery. Since having his surgery he has thrived in the care of SHH. He has a quiet and sweet personality, and a funny side …Read More
What I Didn’t Know: Adopting a Child with Severe Hemophilia
March 9, 2017
adopting a boy, Blood Conditions, Family Stories, hemophilia, hemophilia A, March 2017 Feature - Blood Conditions, should we adopt?, undiagnosed SN
Adoption for us was not something we thought about for years. It was something that God spoke to us in one day. On March 25, 2013 my husband casually mentioned he had been thinking about adoption. At the time, our daughters were seven, four, and two. I was overwhelmed and had no interest in adoption. …Read More
March Special Needs Focus (and Favorite Family Stories): Blood Conditions
March 8, 2017
Blood Conditions, Favorite Family Stories, hemophilia, ITP (idiopathic thrombocytopenia purpura), March 2017 Feature - Blood Conditions, PKU, thalassemia
The term special needs can sound scary. But it doesn’t have to stay that way. Our goal at NHBO is to equip and inform parents – replacing fear with knowledge – as they navigate the beginning stages of special needs adoption. And then encourage and support those home with their special needs kiddos. We do …Read More
Three Delightful Boys: Wesson, Benz, and Ace
March 8, 2017
Children Who Wait, Chris
“Storytellers” from the One Orphan Hope Journey team had the privilege of meeting these remarkable children. Pull up a chair and “hear” all about them! Wonderful Wesson This little boy, with his shy smile and sweet spirit, stole my heart. We became buddies on our shopping trip to “Walmart” in China this past October. It …Read More
Author Q and A: 30 Days of Hope for Adoptive Parents
March 7, 2017
books, Kelley B.
Jennifer and I connected on social media when we were both adopting with the same adoption agency. I followed her process and her determined pursuit through the immigration issues they endured after bringing their daughter home from China. Jennifer has now written a book for adopting families! A wonderful devotional book that I suggest every …Read More
Our Iron Man: Adopting a Child with Thalassemia
March 7, 2017
adopting a boy, adopting out of birth order, beta thalassemia, beta thalassemia major, Blood Conditions, Family Stories, March 2017 Feature - Blood Conditions, medical expedite, older child adoption, thalassemia
Fluffing up his pillows around him on his hospital bed, I did my best to make him smile. We had learned together that love, smiles, silliness and laughter cross any language barrier. Though he was tired, he did manage a slight smirk that didn’t quite reach his usual smiley, almond eyes. This dance was still …Read More
Waiting to be Chosen: Shane
March 6, 2017
Children Who Wait
This adorable toddler with the big grin is Shane. He was born May of 2015 and has been in the care of Heartsent’s partnership orphanage since December 2016. Shane’s intake exam, done when he was 7 months old, indicated that Shane showed delayed motor development (he was unable to sit or roll over). He received …Read More
Preparing Your Adopted Child for Surgery
March 5, 2017
February 2017 Feature - Preparing Your Child for Medical Interventions, hospital stays, surgery
Adopting a child with special needs often means that the child will need procedures and/or surgery after adoption. Some of these procedures can wait until the child is more adjusted to life with their new family, speaks English and can voice their opinion. Other procedures are more time sensitive and must be done right away. …Read More
Seriously Blessed
March 4, 2017
adopting again, adopting later in life, adopting out of birth order, adopting two at once, complex heart defect, complex medical, large families, medical needs checklist, November 2016 Feature - Then and Now, older child adoption, should we adopt?
In 2011, our family looked like this. We were considered a large family by our friends and family. Dan and I had been married for 27 years at this point. We had been through a great deal during those 27 years. Our twin boys were born prematurely, three months before their due date. Our son …Read More
T-shirts. Because you can never have too many.
March 3, 2017
adoption community, Beyond Adoption, fundraisers, Kelley B., other ways to care for the orphan
Adoption t-shirts are one of the most fun ways to support adopting families. I have lost count how many adoption t-shirts we have purchased over the years. You never can have too many right? And what a great way to support families in process of making a once-orphaned child a beloved son or daughter. Here …Read More
This Is What I Know
March 3, 2017
adoption realities, Whitney
This is what I know… I know that time doesn’t heal all wounds. I know that, sometimes, intentionally seeking out help is necessary. I know looking different isn’t a bad thing. I know that hearing a word of encouragement has more impact than I dreamed it could. I know adoption can be hard. I know …Read More
The Dynamic Duo: Robin and Clyde
March 2, 2017
Children Who Wait, Chris
This year was a very special year as American World Adoption has sent many passionate teams to China. Each team member carries home the stories of countless children as they seek to advocate and speak up for waiting children. Read as a team member shares her story of two special children who have found friendship …Read More
It Shouldn’t be This Easy
March 2, 2017
adoption realities, Attachment, Kelly, parent-to-child attachment, trauma, Trust Based Parenting
You spent hours in training. You learned about what trauma is and what it looks like. You probably even have a certificate to prove it. You spent more hours in another type of classroom, reading books that made you stop and catch your breath and blog posts that made you question what you were signing …Read More
It Shouldn’t be This Hard
March 2, 2017
adoption realities, Attachment, attachment challenges, Kelly, parent-to-child attachment, trauma, Trust Based Parenting
You spent hours in training. You learned about what trauma is and what it looks like. You probably even have a certificate to prove it. You spent more hours in another type of classroom, reading books that made you stop and catch your breath and blog posts that made you question what you were signing …Read More
One Year.
March 2, 2017
adopting a boy, Attachment, attachment activities, attachment challenges, Family Stories, first year home, Megan, Newly Home, orphanage behaviors, parent-to-child attachment
We have been home one year as of January 10, 2017, and I can finally say that I love him. I can’t tell you when exactly it happened. There was not a lightening bolt moment. Nor was there an instant bond or attachment from the moment we met. I spent the better part of our …Read More