Hope will be 18 in a few weeks and in 12 short weeks, she will be off to college. It’s all very exciting, and in some ways, I am a little surprised that she’s not pulling away from me a little. But, no. She’s not pulling away at all. In fact, my lovely daughter is
Coping with Fear of the Unknown When Adopting
This content was originally published by Creating a Family, the national infertility education and support nonprofit. When most of us think about becoming a parent, we dream of a healthy child. We may not expect perfection, but sure hope that our child does not have significant special needs. So how do you cope with the
A Whirlwind Adoption
A rush to finalize before a teen turns 18 On a cold Thursday in January, Jeff received the call that started a flurry of events to adopt his fourth son. He had been home study approved for about a year and a half and was specifically waiting for a teen who needed a family. “When
Join us for Fidgety Fairy Tales, The Mental Health Musicals
Come join us Monday, April 8 for Fidgety Fairy Tales This year Minnesota Association for for Children’s Mental Health joins us again in their 11th musical where familiar fairy tales are re-imagined to raise awareness about children’s mental health. With great music and gentle humor, this hour-long musical is fun for the whole family. This
A Millennial’s Guide to Foster Care and Adoption
If someone would have told me 10 years ago that I’d be married to my high school sweetheart and have two kids at 25, I would have said, “You’re nuts.” But, that’s exactly what happened. I met my husband in the summer of 2008. We were 17 and just about to start our senior year
Meet Thelma | A Teen at Risk of Aging Out
Every year over 23,000 kids age out of U.S. foster care. Please take a moment to get to know a few of the kids that need to match with families before it’s too late. Thelma is a very social teen who will turn 18 this summer. She loves to meet new people—her dry and sarcastic
Five Years
It’s hard to believe that it has been five years since Hope moved in from her last foster home. In some ways it seems like it couldn’t possibly be that long; in other ways it feels like a lifetime ago. I’m about 15 lbs. heavier, and I have a LOT more gray hair than I
Infographic | What happens when kids age out of foster care?
Older youth are often overlooked because we, as a society, believe they don’t need a family. We have convinced ourselves that these kids have made it on their own for this long, they should be able to make it as adults as well. It’s true, these kids have been without a permanent family for a
Research Request | Adoptees and Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Testing
Heewon Lee, a Korean adoptee and genetic counseling graduate student at the University of Minnesota, is recruiting participants for a research study about direct-to-consumer genetic testing (e.g., 23andme, Ancestry DNA, Family Tree DNA) among domestic and internationally adopted adults. This study is unique as it will be one of the first studies to query both
The Holidays When You’re Longing for a Baby Can Be So HARD
This content was originally published by Creating a Family, the national infertility education and support nonprofit. Let’s pause for just a moment to recognize that this season of joy is also a season of pain for some, including the 1 in 8 people who are suffering from infertility. The holidays when you’re longing for a
