National Adoption Day

Adoption is always an issue on my mind and close to my heart, especially during November (National Adoption Month) on National Adoption Day. I remember as a child seeing Wednesday's Children on the local news show...each week a different child or sibling set was profiled in hopes of finding an adoptive family. It always made me feel sad to see those photos. I became even more closely tied to the world of adoption while working as a child and family therapist with children in a therapeutic foster care program. Working closely with the kids, their biological parents, their foster parents, and their potential adoptive parents....I still think about those kids and their families. Wondering what's happening in their lives these days. Hoping the kids are happy, healthy, and safe. Hoping the families are thriving. I have such admiration and appreciation for foster parents and families who adopt through the foster care system. Sadly there are children right now in our country and around the world who need forever families. If you have ever thought about adoption or fostering, please let this month be a catalyst for getting more information about this amazing way to build families.

In honor of National Adoption Month, here are a few of our favorite adoption books:
Over the Moon by Karen Katz (picture book, fun illustrations, nice story that can fit most international adoption scenarios)
Guji Guji by Chih-Yuan Chen (children's book, Taiwanese author, an alligator raised by a family of ducks)
Rebecca's Journey Home by Brynn Olenberg Sugarman (A Jewish family's story about a new baby sister from Vietnam)
Waiting for May by Janet Morgan Stoeke (One of Noah's favorite books to read while waiting for our own Mei-Mei. A good book for siblings.)
The Family Book by Todd Parr (A great book for all families! Highlights all of the wonderful ways families are unique)
Every Year on Your Birthday by Rose Lewis and Jane Dyer (same author and illustrator of I Love You Like Crazy Cakes...both beautiful books about a mother and her daughter from China, stunning illustrations)

And some good adult reading material:
Secret Thoughts of an Adoptive Mother by Jana Wolf (very honest account of one mother's experience. short easy read and good for all parents starting the process)
Beyond Good Intentions by Cheri Register (this should be mandatory reading for all parents considering international adoption. Not always easy reading because of uncomfortable topics and some extreme scenarios, but very thought provoking)
China Ghosts by Jeff Gammage (one of the most moving and beautifully written adoption memoirs I have read)
A Love Like No Other:Stories from Adoptive Parents (a wonderful collection of essays covering a wide range of adoption experiences)
Digging To America by Anne Tyler (a great novel about adoption, culture, and two very different families)
Relative Choices: Adoption and the American Family A NY Times blog with some amazing entries.
Hallmark Adoption Videos...bring out the tissues

And if you are more in the mood to shop than read, here is a link to my friend Morena's new site which is raising money for special needs adoptions. A wonderful place to do some holiday shopping that will have a very positive impact http://www.cafepress.com/forthischild