Back on to readers questions. One of the questions was “What should we NEVER forget to ask to our worker before we accept a placement?”

There is a simple, but long, answer to this question.

Buy the book “The Adoption.com Guide to Adopting from Foster Care”. It’s a great book! I should know, I wrote it.

Seriously, I would buy the book just for the checklists and questions alone. It is a downloadable... more

I am just about done reading a fantastic book: "Couldn’t We Just Kill ‘me and Tell God They Died? Overcoming Difficult Relationships With Your Family and Friends," by Cathy Lechner.

This book is Christian based. I found the book highly informative and it helped me with some things I have been struggling with.

One... more

Continued from here.

You’ve decided that you or your child needs respite. How do you find it?

If the adoption is finalized, the choice is yours, so your options are far greater.

Therapists- Ask your therapist, school counselors, or mental health providers. They will know other parents in your situation who might be interested in trading respite.

Support groups- If you have an in person support group, ask other parents if... more

Maybe Days is a wonderful book for kids in foster care. It is written for kids age 4-10. You can find it at the Adoption.com Shop in hardcover or softcover.

The book has language that children can understand, and more importantly, validates children’s feelings. Here is an excerpt:

Some... more

You want to work in your community to help prevent child abuse, be an advocate, or whatever role you can, but you don’t know where to get started. Below you will find links for each child abuse prevention office on a state by state basis, along with other links that have useful information. Whether you want to advocate, or just get some blue ribbons to promote awareness, these links will give you a starting point.

Prevent Child Abuse America

... more

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. This is a month to increase awareness, and promote healthy families. Although it’s almost the middle of the month before I’m blogging about this, there are still plenty of activities going on, and ways to promote awareness.

Many states sponsor activities during this month, and other states have activities throughout the year. New York has a walk in October. California has a ... more

If you’ve never checked out the Child Welfare Information Gateway website, you certainly should. It contains so much useful information.

I was looking for information on Child Abuse Prevention Month (that will be another blog), when I came across information on the conference coming up in a little over a week.

CWIG will be a hosting a conference in Portland, Oregon... more

This is a novel written by Mark Haddon which won the 2003 Whitbread Book of the Year and the 2004 Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book.

My Mother-In-Law recommended this book to me. This is NOT a parenting book. It is a novel that you can just sit down and enjoy.

Upon starting the book, you... more

As a parent of special needs children, I wear many hats. Educator, advocate, nurturer, researcher, and some days I feel like I’m attending medical school with all the new things I learn about my children’s disorders.

Yesterday I donned my advocate hat, and if you could have seen it, it probably would have looked like a porcupine. I got a little prickly.

We have had to struggle to get services for Sammy, and fight with social services to get them to understand the complex issues with all his diagnoses.

I have a... more

I picked this book up when I was at the school counselor conference in February.

The cover photo caught my eye. Sadly, this is a sight I have seen in my home several times, and something I could anticipate happening in the future. I have seen my son in handcuffs more times than I can remember. I have lost count.

This book takes a light hearted, but serious look at a very troubling subject.

For many parents, this is a hot button issue. I know it has been discussed many times on the Adoption.com... more