Since today is National Adoption Day, I decided to include some input from my children in today's post. I asked them:
What does adoption mean to you?
After they stopped being silly and knew I was serious, they actually gave some real answers.
E, age 11-"Being loved so much by somebody that they can let you go so you can have a good life."
Little Miss, age 8- "Being taken home so that you can live with a family because other people couldn't take care of you."
From the beginning, our children have always been very much aware of their unique stories. They have photo books we used to read to them, starting when they were babies. It was good practice for us as newly adoptive parents of E. By the time Little Miss arrived, we were more comfortable with being able to ad-lib her story, but we still read the biography of her coming home to her as well.
Being open with our children about adoption from the very beginning was the only option for our family. Opening the dialogue from an early age allowed them to feel comfortable about adoption, know they were loved, and feel secure about asking questions.
My children are young and their adoption stories change and evolve as they get older. They continue to ask questions and we continue to respond honestly. Not all questions are easy to answer, but they have a right to know the truth about their stories and we need to be secure enough to tell them.
Common Sense Media has a list of books about adoption. You can find it here. We were and still are fans of Todd Parr. He has written several books that are inclusive of all types of families. His illustrations are bright and vibrant and exude happiness.
I'm very grateful for the unique journeys of each of my children. I love looking back at the evolution of their adoptions and I'm looking forward to what is still to come. It's an adventure within an adventure.
To read all my posts about adoption, you can click here.
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