Search Results for: blog my children met their biological grandparents

Book Review : For the Love of a Child: The Journey of Adoption

Monica Blume, a social worker and counselor with LDS Family Services, once saw a young woman who had been adopted watch a film entitled “ Adoption and Unwed Parents”. Tears ran down the young woman’s face. “I never knew that my birth mother loved me,” she said. Blume, who has worked with many, many birthmothers, birth fathers, birth grandparents over the years, wrote For the Love of a Child: The Journey of Adoption not only in hopes of being helpful to birthmothers, birth families, and clergy who may be involved in adoption decisions, but in hopes, she says, that she … Continue reading →

Gift Giving in a Blended Family

Gift giving in a blended family can be a tricky practice. Especially if there are several kids and several active sets of parents. Unfortunately it is rude to tell others how to shop for your children unless they specifically ask you what they might like. So how do you deal with gift giving in a blended family? It is important to recognize who the gifts are coming from. There will more than likely factor in many different people who will be shopping for your child or children. The other parent, grandparents, aunts, uncles, sisters, brothers and so on. It is … Continue reading →

For the Love of … Grandparents

One of the most tragic experiences of my life was my mother’s death. She died of breast cancer in 1994, and not only did I lose my mom, but my children and my future children lost a wonderful grandmother. There is a scene forever etched in my mind during my mother’s last days in the hospital, where I put Kyle, then a fifteen-month-old infant, into her arms. My mother didn’t have any hair as she lay in her hospital bed, and Kyle was just as bald. It was a very tender moment for all of us as she looked into … Continue reading →

Who Are the Birthparents who Place Children for Adoption? Part One

Who are the birthparents who make an adoption plan for their children? Ed and Anna have spoken in their blogs of some of the issues of birthparents who have had their parental rights terminated and/or relinquished them after having their kids placed in foster care. But who are the birthparents who voluntarily choose adoption? And why do they do it? I would never presume to speak for all birthparents. Each situation is different. Here are some scenarios I’m aware of in different countries. Keep in mind that things are changing rapidly in many countries. This blog, Part One, will deal … Continue reading →

Making Contact: Finding My Child’s Adopted Siblings

After three years of playing amateur private investigator, I finally found the rest of my son’s birth siblings’ adoptive families. I desperately wanted more information on my son’s family medical background than I was given by our state. I wanted to know if the other families got more information on my son’s birth parents character as well. Here is the story on how we made contact. For easier reference and safety purposes, I will refer to my son’s birth siblings by their maternal birth order rather than their names. My son is the 6th child of 8 by his birthmother. … Continue reading →

The Shock of Adoption Secrets

We had heard about it happening in other families but were shocked to learn of it in our own. How could this happen? How did it get covered up for so long? There are so many questions that may never be answered… As we pulled up to my mother-in-law’s home for a harvest time/Halloween party, we noticed my husband’s step-mother parked in the driveway. It was our assumption at the time she might have wanted to meet her youngest grandson for the first time. We gathered the children and brought them into the house. Directing the kids to the play … Continue reading →

My Children Met Their Biological Grandparents.

Adoption Reunions were hardly heard of before the early 1980’s when the talk show hosts started putting biological families back together in front of a live studio audience, broad-casted at 4:00 p.m. coast-to-coast. There was no bigger leader in the reunion shows then Oprah. At that time I was married to an adopted man. We were only 18 and 19 when we got married and we had two children by the time we were 23 years old. My ex-husband had been adopted during the early 1960’s when everything about adoption was very different. Back then there was a real good … Continue reading →

Glossary of Special Needs Adoption-Related Terms “E-F”

Special Needs and Adoption-Related Terms: Adoption terms and special needs words may vary from agency to agency.The terms used in this Special Needs Adoption-Related Glossary may be slightly different from one State to another. A | B | C | D | E-F | G-H-I | J-K-L | M | N-O | P | Q-R | S | T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z E Emotional disturbance: Severe, pervasive or chronic emotional and or affective condition preventing a child from performing ordinary daily tasks. Emotional disturbances are sometimes displayed by children with an inability to build or maintain relationships, inappropriate behaviors or feelings, unhappiness or … Continue reading →