Adoption

Adoption “Lingo” You Should Know

Adoption is all around us and I thought I’d share some “wisdom” regarding occurrences that have become the norm for us as adoptive parents. I would assume that many other adoptive families deal with the same “stuff.” When we went through adoption training a few years ago, we found ourselves educated far more than we expected to be. Unless you learn this stuff from people on the inside, you’d probably never think of it. What am I talking about? Language was a big one. Below are some examples. Our son WAS adopted. Not IS adopted. Seems like an insignificant little difference, but IS defines him. And so he WAS adopted. And our son is our OWN child. “Will we have our OWN children?” many people ask when they find out he was adopted. He is our...

Local Authors Hold National Book Launch Party in the Denver Area, and You’re Invited!

The three authors of a groundbreaking new book, Adoption Unfiltered are celebrating their book launch right here in the metro area.  Adoptee Sara Easterly, who grew up in Littleton, and adoptive parent Lori Holden, who grew up in Arvada and has raised her children there, along with birth parent Kelsey Vander Vliet Ranyard, who hails from Indiana, will launch Adoption Unfiltered on its official release date of December 1, at 6 p.m. after hours at the Arvada Library, 7525 W 57th Ave, in Olde Town. Admission is free, but registration is requested. “Essential” Adoption Unfiltered: Revelations from Adoptees, Birth Parents, Adoptive Parents, and Allies is already being praised by professors, adoption professionals, adoption luminaries, adoption educators, and others from all parts of the ad...

Finding Family in a Far Away Land: An Adoption Story

One night at dinner my daughter looked up at me with her big brown eyes and said “Mommy, can you tell me how I was adopted again? You got on an airplane and flew all the way to India and then what happened?” For adoptive parents, this conversation is all too familiar. I am a Denver mom of four, and much like all moms, I love retelling my adopted daughters about the day we met or my older children about the day they were born. The little details mean the most. My daughter Ari clung to my ponytail, smushed her little face against my cheek and wouldn’t let go. As mothers, those memories are fixated in our brain and we hold tight to them, but kids often forget those details. To preserve those precious moments, “Finding Family in a Far-Away Land” was born. We adopted siblings, Priya and Ari fro...

Denver Open Adoption Expert Launches Podcast for Adoptive Parents

In time for National Adoption Awareness Month, Mile High Mama Lori Holden has unveiled a new podcast called Adoption: The Long View. Sponsored by Adopting.com, Lori’s podcast helps adopting and adoptive parents understand that filling the crib is just the beginning of the journey, not the end.   “It’s like the wedding versus the marriage,” Lori says from a Denver-area suburb. “Once you are legally joined to your beloved child, your journey is not over. It’s the beginning of the much longer journey. This podcast covers many of the things parents need to know early on to navigate adoptive parenting over the long view. That means from the baby years to the toddler years, through the school years and teenage years and into young adulthood. Wit...

The Work Kyle Forti Started With ‘Foster Together’ Continues On Despite His Death

Colorado’s political world was shocked and saddened by the death of Kyle Forti. The Republican political consultant, who was popular on both sides of the aisle, was in Kenya with friends and died when the helicopter he was riding in during a scenic safari flight crashed. There were no survivors.  “It has the power to really smack you down,” said Forti’s wife Hope. She wasn’t in Kenya. She had just found out she was pregnant with their second child. They also have a five-year-old son.   It wasn’t until after the 29-year-old Forti’s death that a much wider circle of people discovered his passion outside of politics — foster parenting. And now months later, his family and friends continue his work without him.  Foster Together connects volunteers with foster fami...

Calcutta is My Mother: the Healing Journey of a Transracial Adoptee

For decades — lifetimes, really — the adoption narrative has been woven primarily by people like me: adoptive parents. To adoptive parents and to society at large, adoption can seem like a win-win construct. Longing parents get a baby/child, and the baby/child gets a forever family. All win, no loss. But in recent years adoptee voices have joined together to also influence the adoption narrative. One of those voices belongs to Reshma McClintock, the subject of the documentary Calcutta is My Mother, creator of the website Dear Adoption, daughter, wife, and mother, and former Denver-area resident. Calcutta is My Mother is the latest contribution an adoptee-led effort to encourage people in general — those who have direct experience with adoption in some way, and those who d...

Calcutta is My Mother / An Adoption Story of Loss, Gain, and Identity

Adoption has been embedded into who I am as far back as I can remember. I’ve recounted my story too many times to track: Abandoned in a Calcutta slum, cared for in an orphanage for 3 months, and finally adopted to the United States where I grew up in a safe, loving home.   Pregnancy was the catalyst for my longing to reconnect to the heritage I lost. Motherhood has a way of sparking interest in the future and causing us to ponder our own beginnings. My (adoptive) mom answered questions about her pregnancy with my brother and told me everything about my life as an infant beginning when I was 3 months old. Although she provided a wealth of information, I was keenly aware of the information missing. I wondered about those first 3 months and the months prior as I grew in my Indian mother’...

Child Trafficking: Kids for Sale

CNN investigation has uncovered that mothers think they’re temporarily giving up their children to be educated but instead, they are sold to adoptive families who think they’re taking in an orphan in need. CNN’s Randi Kaye reports. 

Colorado Adoptive Families: Have You Signed Up For 2017 Adoption Camp Yet?

We in Colorado are fortunate to have a variety of adoption camps held right here each summer. Heritage Camps for Adoptive Families has been forging connections within and among adoptive families for 26 years. Which camp is right for you?

My Son Speaks Adoption Language at School

“Your mom doesn’t look like you at ALL,” said the second-grader to my son. From my perch on a chair much too small for my bottom, I looked at the girl’s desk to find out her name, written in teacher-tidy print. Joy. “That’s ’cause she aDOPTED me,” Reed told his classmate across the table. And that’s how Take-Your-Parent-to-School day began. ~~~ Now I knew, in the abstract, that school presents new challenges for adoptees to navigate. I just didn’t know, really know, that such challenges would be presented to my children. It was over before I even saw it coming. I was secretly pleased at my son’s choice of words. Did you notice he didn’t say, “That’s ’cause I’m adopted”? He said, “That’s ’cause she adopted me.” It’s a subtle difference. I have always hoped that my children would see adoptio...

A Taste of Colorado Contest: Win 1 of 10 $50 gift cards!

Denver’s Labor Day Weekend mainstay is back! A Taste of Colorado is Friday, September 2 through Monday, September 5 and we’re giving away 10 $50 gift certificates. And, as always, this food, music, arts & crafts, and entertainment festival in downtown’s Civic Center Park is free admission. So, what family-friendly offerings will you find this year?  Food More than 50 of Coloradoans’ favorite restaurants and food establishments will gather at the Festival, featuring small portions to full meals.   A few participating companies include Barbed Wire Reef, Bawarchi Biryari Point Indian Restaurant, Baur’s Restaurant and Listening Lounge, Bayou Bob’s, Chuey Fu’s Latin Asian Grub, City Pop, Colorado Corn Company, Cuba Cuba Sandwicheria and ...

Adoptive Families: Have You Signed Up For Adoption Camp Yet?

We in Colorado are fortunate to have a variety of adoption camps held right here each summer. Heritage Camps for Adoptive Families has been forging connections within and among adoptive families for 25 years. Which camp is just right for you? African Carribbean, June 9-12 Cambodian, July 14-17 Central Asian, July 21-24 Chinese, Sept 2-5 (Fraser, CO) Chinese II, June 23-26 (Denver, CO) Domestic Adoption Camp, August 4-7 Eastern European, July 21-24 Filipino/Indonesian/Pacific Islander, August 4-7 Indian Nepalese, July 7-10 Indonesian/Pacific Islander, August 4-7 Korean, June 16-19 Latin American, June 23-26 Russian/Eastern European/Central Asian, July 21-24 Pacific Islander, August 4-7 Thai, July 14-17 Vietnamese, July 14-17 Adult Adoptee Retreat, July 29-21 My family has already registered...

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