A photographer named Ali Smith recently contacted me. She is currently working on book that features photographs of motherhood. Through words and photographs, she is telling the story of the mothers in her book, who they are, how they became mothers, how they see themselves as mothers, and how they fit into society now that they are a mothers.

She wrote to me because a colleague of hers recently pointed out to her that she would be missing a huge element if she did not include at least one mother who had become a mother through adoption... more

Early in the morning I am off to the local library to present a reading of author Sherrie Eldridge’s new adoption book, “Forever Fingerprints” in honor of National Adoption Day. Normally our family would simply spend the day together, but the opportunity to share this great book with others in the community was to good to pass up.

I am very excited about how EMK press, the books publisher, has also donated a copy to the library, as well as many other libraries, churches,... more

Months after most of the rest of the adoption community, I have finally finished reading The Girls who Went Away by Ann Fessler. I must admit that I was somewhat hesitant about reading this book. The book is a compilation of interviews that Ann Fessler conducted with many birthmothers who relinquished children in the era before abortions became legal. I wasn’t sure if I would have much in common with these birthmothers or be able to identify with their thoughts and feelings.

Boy was I wrong! Even though the birthmothers... more

Some of you may remember Laura Christenson as she is the former Christian Adoption Blogger. Laura is also an adoptive mother of two sons who were both adopted in open adoptions. She has also recently published two adoption books, one of which I just finished reading. I recently had the opportunity to ask Laura a few questions about adoption and of course, her new books.

Laura’s Personal Experience When Laura and her husband discovered... more

Currently, I am reading The Girls Who Went Away by Ann Fessler. If you are not familiar with the title and author, this book is about women who got pregnant sometime between the end of World War II and the passing of Roe vs. Wade and were forced to give up their children for adoption.

I know, I’m late jumping on the bandwagon to read this book. I’ve actually had the book for many months now and it’s just been sitting on the shelf collecting dust. I just haven’t had the desire to read it.... more

“Are you afraid of the role you played in this loss?”

-Ann, Lili Taylor of Lifetime's "State Of Mind"

This is what I encountered while flipping through channels late at night, searching for something to help keep my eyes open just a bit longer. Boy did that open my eyes.

Lifetime’s new show “State Of Mind” staring Lili Taylor, aired a particularly interesting episode (only the show’s 4th) centering on a birthmother’s quest to locate her now 13... more

Prime Time on ABC has been running a series on “family secrets” and weekly they have aired an episode about some sort of secret. This week’s “secret” was the story of two birthmothers who shared their paths to birth motherhood with Prime Time.

By this being in the family secret series, I was expecting it to be about older birthmothers from the closed adoption era who were sent off to maternity homes to have... more

While I know they can be corny, or inaccurate, and often play like a poor soap opera, I happen to enjoy watching those Lifetime channel movies. Yes even the ones about adoption. Sometimes they do not get it right, the terms are antiquated, or the information dated and biased to one area of the triad or another but every once and awhile I see or hear something I really like. So I keep watching.

The other day one such movie aired that lured me into watching as I unpacked from our recent vacation. The film, “Mom... more

Although my son was not born in another country, he is of another race and culture than my husband and I. Our son is Kenyan/American, his birthparents both traveled here from Kenya, and so seeing them in our open adoption relationship bears some additional challenges for us as parents. One of the most notable of these challenges is language.

We have recently begun to consider the other languages that our son’s birthparents are familiar with. They each speak four different ones, Swahili being most... more

Recently I received a copy of a really touching book written by Patricia Dischler about her own experience as a birthmother. Dischler placed her son for adoption in 1984 in what began as a semi-open arrangement (ground breaking at the time) and later on evolved into a fully open adoption.

This engaging story begins before Dischler’s son is even conceived. She is a newly independent young lady with a start on a successful printing business and living on her own when things began to take a turn in her life. An emotional breakup with her long time... more