On Your Radar: 4 Essential Adoption Resources For January

January 18, 2022 Lori Holden 2 Comments

1. Review of a new adoption-themed novel

Please read Sara Easterly’s courageous review of The Nature of Small Birds, published in Englewood Review of Books. I say courageous because Sara herself is a writer in the Christian writing space; she takes no pleasure in exposing another Christian writer’s blind spots in crafting a novel about an adoptee from Vietnam.

Considering adoptees are four times more likely than non-adoptees to attempt suicide, it’s critically important that literature about adoption is held to a higher standard than it traditionally has been—especially in Christian circles where hurtful adoption messaging can be so prevalent.
—Sara Easterly in Englewood Review of Books

Sara details 4 main problems that affect the mental and spiritual health of adoptees, and they are striking.

More Sara wisdom on LavenderLuz.com:

2. Conscious Adoption Parent Education Courses with Astrid Castro of Adoption Mosaic

A 6-week course on Transracial Parenting starts Jan 19. A course on Tough Conversations is coming in March. Check out the rest of the offerings and adoption resources from people with lived experience here.

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Music, Vlog

Dona Nobis Pacem: Sharing Love, Joy, Peace & Harmony

December 26, 2021 Lori Holden 3 Comments

To: You
From: My sisters and me
Subject: Sharing Peace from our hearts to yours

Harmony is a vibe that’s been in short supply the last several years. You can feel contention nearly everywhere, both online and in person.

Sheri, Tami and I want to inject a little harmony as an an antidote for the discord so many have felt for so long. Here’s our annual booster of peace, love, joy, and harmony.

Dona Nobis Pacem. Grant Us Peace.

May 2022 bring you and your loved ones a year-long dose of love, peace, joy, and harmony.

The Best Adoption Advice from Season 2 of Adoption: The Long View

December 6, 2021 Lori Holden Leave a comment

Roundup: Best Advice from 10 Adoption Thought Leaders

Have the courage to turn the lights on for yourself.
Be open to the idea of developing a relationship with an adoption-competent therapist. Just assume you’ll need one.

Then if you don’t, it’s gravy.

— Jen Winkelmann, MA, LPC, NCC,
adoption-competent therapist, in Ep207 —

Let’s Start with Gratitude

Episode 209 wraps up our second season — and we continue to reach more and more adoptive parents who take the long view of parenting by adoption. Word is out that this podcast is full of information that helps potential adoptive parents and already adoptive parents become more comfortable and effective at the more challenging parts of adoptive parenting.

So THANK YOU, listeners, for tuning in. THANK YOU, agencies who share this podcast with your clients. THANK YOU adoption support groups who discuss our topics together. A big THANK YOU to adopting.com for meeting people early in their adoptive parenting journey. THANK YOU all for sharing and engaging. Every time you Like, Share, or Rate this podcast on your preferred platform, it helps us reach and help more people.

↑ Listen right here! ↑

I’m also grateful for the 10 amazing guests who talked with me during Season 2, a remarkable group made up of 2 adoptees, 2 birth parents, 2 adoptive parents, 1 investigative journalist, 1 CEO, 2 parent coaches, 2 therapists, and some in double positions (don’t even try with the math).

You are going to love this listener’s digest of short audio clips, with each guest responding to the questions: What does it take to adopt well? And to adoptive-parent well?

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adoption, parenting, mindfulness, open adoption