kembe’s first visit to haiti
We’ve had an amazing time on our family cruise this week – I’ve got lots of stories to recount once we are home and unpacked. But I wanted to share about our day in Haiti. This was Kembe’s first visit back since he came home shortly after the earthquake, and our first trip as a complete family. It was surreal to return via a cruise ship since last week I visited with a Help One Now and saw some of the most impoverished conditions in Haiti. The little stretch of beach that Royal . . .
our documentary debut, the alliance for the study of adoption and culture, and the dramatic debate that wasn’t
About a year ago I was contacted by a graduate film student at USC who was working on a documentary for her final thesis. Her chosen subject was transracial adoption, and she wanted to know if they could follow our family around for a few days and interview us. I was a little uncertain at first . . . with the working title “Color Blind”, I was apprehensive as to how we might be portrayed. (You can read about my issue with the concept of colorblindness here). At the same . . .
why does adoption cost so much? (and why we didn’t just send that money to Haiti)
I hear a lot of questions about why adoption is so expensive, and honestly, I don’t always have a good answer. This month, we added up all of our adoption expenses and I was a little shocked at how much we spent on our adoption from Haiti. Because I had to type up an itemized list for our taxes last week, and because I’m a believer in transparency in adoption, I thought I would just share what we spent, so people can have an idea of where the money goes. Our adoption expenses are a bit . . .
when a good parent-teacher conference doesn’t feel good. (and when it does)
About six months ago, I had my first parent-teacher conference for Kembe. We started him in preschool after he had been home from Haiti for about four months. We would have waited longer, but he learned English very quickly and he was soon begging to go to preschool like his brother and sister. I had some reservations about it, but we gave it a shot and he really, really liked it. In retrospect, I think the preschool environment was much more familiar to him than a home . . .
why adopt from there when there are children here?
The Orange County Register ran a story on our family this week. They had contacted us a while back, wanting to do an update since Kembe's homecoming. They ended up writing from the angle of us being together for our first holiday . . . a nice surprise, and echoing so many of my own thoughts. I love the photos that Mindy Shauer captured. She wanted to get snapshots of our everyday life, and I think she really did. Especially the one of the three kids jamming on the . . .
christians and adoption
I have a confession. I was a little ambivalent about attending my first Christian adoption conference. I read a lot of blogs. (Too many blogs). Some of them are very critical of adoption. I am an advocate for adoption, but I read with interest because I also think the system needs massive reform, and because I think it’s good to get the perspective of others. Usually I have a pretty high tolerance for listening to viewpoints that differ from my own. (Usually). One of . . .
hait tees *ten bucks* this week
Okay, internet friends. Now is your chance. We are having a major - MAJOR - sale on our Haiti tees. Special price, just for you! $10 Because: a) Our matching grant from Running for Orphans ends in ONE WEEK and we are still under our goal. b) We might have ordered a few too many t-shirts. c) I would like to allow the children back into the garage without fear of them being crushed by the T-Shirt Boxes Tower of Doom. So . . . $10 a shirt. Pretty much at-cost, because . . .
what I wanted to say. . .
I'm being told The View is on repeat today, so I'm gonna go ahead and bump this up to the top. Well, folks, my fifteen minutes on The View is up. Despite a slightly mortifying gaffe, I was glad to share a bit of our adoption story on a national media outlet. Leading up to the show, my mind was racing with points I wanted to make about adoption. It's something I'm so passionate about, and it's hard not to replay what I wish I would have said. Here's a bit of it . . . . .
the swagger
When we used to visit Kembe in the orphanage, we used to laugh at his strong little personality. The people at Heartline often told us that he was the loudest kid at the orphanage. We loved that he was a leader and a kid with moxie. He even had a little swagger - this funny little intentional walk of pure confidence and charisma as he moved through a room. We commented all the time, "this kid walks around like he owns the place." After the earthquake, I had to leave . . .
lifebook
Many adoptive parents create a Lifebook for their kids - it's basically a scrapbook that tells the story of their life before placement. We made one for Jafta when he was young, and it includes pictures of him with his birth family, with his foster mom, and pictures of us on the day he joined our family. We still read it often and it has been a great way to make adoption a part of our daily language. (It's also probably one of the reasons that India inquires about her own . . .
- 1
- 2
- 3
- …
- 8
- Older Posts