I am the Mom to nine children from ages 28 to 3…for now, anyway. Five still live at home, but that number fluctuates as foster children come and go. I have heard it said that raising children is similar to herding cats, and on some days it does indeed feel that way. Most of the time, however, I try to find joy in the journey. My children range from highly gifted to a variety of special needs. Four were born to me, 3 came via international adoption from China and Haiti and two are adoptions from foster care. A few have “issues” due to their background in their early years, and as my DH says, “Some even have the whole subscription.” We love ‘em all, though, and I am proud to be their mother. I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and it is the gospel of Jesus Christ that brings me much hope and joy.
HI,
My name is Brandi and your family portrait caught my eye as I was looking through transracial blogs. My family portrait is not as large but it is similar in color and age to yours. I am the 25 year old big sister two little girls. One is Egyptian and the other is African American.
I am a graduate student and I have decided to focus on transracial adoption and support services for my thesis. I am trying to locate support services that assist families if and when they have issues that arise from adopting outside of their race.
Have you searched out any resources of support for your family? Have you had to? If so, have you had any luck?
From what I seen, there is not much out there outside of the blogs. Have you found these to be helpful?
Thank you for your time.
You have an amazing insight and gift. I appreciate your website, and look forward to your honesty and shared experiences. I am a blessed mom of seven, 12 down to 3, and I am awed and amazed every day by my children.
God bless and keep you, and be encouraged to continue such beautiful blogs.
sincerely,
Hi, I am the mother of only 4 ages 24 to 13. Truly it seems like more sometimes.
My two youngest are adopted from Korea. They have issues. I live in Salem, Oregon and am checking into Neurological Reorganization in Woodburn. What is your opinion of your experience so far? Both of mine (13 and 15 years) will be resistant, but we have tried many things and nothing has worked (yet). I am praying diligently for direction. Thanks for your blog! Mary
Thanks for your detailed posting about neurological reorganization. We are the adoptive parents of three children and the parents of three adult children. We are trying to decide if neurological reorganization is the way to go because it seems almost like a scam. The Cadman Foundation here asks for a $500.00 up front cost for a year of treatment. This is supposedly the family’s total out of pocket for the year. This would be considerably less than the standard deductibles for regular psychological therapy. My four year old, who probably has ADHD, does not attend well to therapy, even play therapy or art therapy, so we are considering this for him. It sounds a lot like the vision training that we did for our other children in the 80′s, 90′s. I wish there was a better description of exactly what is expected for the daily exercises, etc. Anyway, this was just supposed to be a thank you.
Anna R.
Hi!
Where did you go? Praying that you’re well… missing your voice and insight, stories and transparency. Many women were benefiting from your sharing… I pray that you find the time and space to once again roll tape and share your life’s movie.
Blessings,
athaliah
Athaliah,
thank you for your kind words. I’m back…at least for now.