Happy Adoption Month, you just lost your child you wanted to parent – isn’t adoption beautiful?

Adoption can be hard and ugly for fathers and their families who want nothing to do with domestic infant adoption.  Those fathers and their families are struggling with the loss of a family member to adoption, an adoption that is not wanted, desired, or needed.  The same fathers who face expensive up-hill legal battles to parent their own child in a system that can take years for any resolution.

 

Great post…

Please go to Rileys in Uganda link below and read the Q&A post with David Smolin  It’s about his session with Jedd Meddefind at CAFO conference.

Guest Post: David Smolin Shares his experience as a speaker at this years Christian Alliance for Orphan (CAFO) summit.

 

 

 

 

Good article to read

Beautiful post on #BuildFamiliesNotBoxes and the movie The Drop Box.  The way she writes is amazing.  She shows there are more options, work to be done, and the impact on the children by just accepting the status quo.  This quote from the article clearly sums it up: “adoption is far more complicated than a drop-off”.  Take the time to read it.

Build Families Not Baby Boxes by Melanie Springer Mock

Have a good week…

 

Networking in adoption…

By TAO

I’m going to attempt this post to get people to dig deep and think seriously about this topic, and then consider speaking to your adoption service providers about it whether they are lawyers, agencies, facilitator, or whoever else I missed.  Gauge their reaction and ask yourself whether they are truly in it to help, or something else.

 

Finding common ground, it is possible…

By TAO

A comment was left here yesterday, that I declined to approve.  On the scale of some comments I have seen, it wasn’t the worst by any means.  It was though, derogatory to an entire segment of people in adoption, no exceptions, painting all with the same brush.  There is nothing to be gained by such comments except a further widening of the chasm between groups.  We can choose to come together, and agree to disagree on some points, and then, focus on points we do agree with…

 

If this is anything like reality…

By TAO

I’ve never seen the show “I’m Having Their Baby” and was looking for info about the comedy show “Mom” that apparently has an adoption theme…anyway, there was a clip from “I’m Having Their Baby” that intrigued me, so I went there…

 

Must read post…

By TAO

For all the Christians who should have acted better…especially those who say they are concerned for orphans and vulnerable children…

“A Response to World Vision Bullies” or “On the Backs of Children”

 

Adoption on TV again…

By TAO

We watched the show NCIS last night, it has been one of my favorites for years, although other than Mark Harmon, I couldn’t tell you who the actors are, or even most of their character names (I looked them up so this post makes sense).  I like to be entertained and the writers make it so that you can’t figure out who the guilty party is within the first few scenes.  Over the years, I’ve watched characters come and go, but to me, the show has staying power.  (Spoiler alert – after the break I talk about last nights episode.)

 

Tired and angry…

By TAO

I’m angry and I am having a hard time getting past that.  It’s starting to spill over into my life and I’m not seeing the beauty in the world around me.  I don’t want that to be my norm.  Part of the reason is that I am so angry that I can’t find the words to release it, and tired that so few in adoption speak up loudly when things are not right, combined with the fact there doesn’t seem to be an end of cases that involve adoptions not being done right.

 

Different perspectives…

By TAO

Time for other voices to be heard, and realistically, my voice is too angry right now.  Angry after reading a specific document this week that I can’t stop thinking about…

 

Scholarships for Birthmothers…

By TAO

I have deep concerns on this concept, and have since I first read about it.  It would be one thing if all expectant mothers who went to a specific agency for help were entitled to apply for the scholarship, regardless if they chose adoption or parenting.  The concern I see is that the requirement to apply for the scholarship is that you had to have chosen, and placed, your baby for adoption.

 

Why is adoption still mired in secrecy?

By TAO

If you are on Facebook, then I’m sure you have seen pictures of adoptees holding up signs detailing their search to know who they were born to be, or posts seeking information.  Adoptees reduced to putting their personal information, and private story out there for any, and all, to see – only because they were adopted, and being adopted took away the most basic human right of all – to know who you were born to be.