Last night I got to see something beautiful. Some friends of ours were profiled on the Milwaukee news for building their family through adoption.

My friend Dalyn and her husband Alan have ten adopted children. Dalyn also has two biological children from a previous marriage.

I often joke with Dalyn that they are the United Nations. Their family is the most multi-cultural family that I know. They have three African American girls who they adopted from foster care, Dalyn’s nephew, who is bi-racial, and six children adopted from other disrupted adoptions... more

For the purposes of adoption, special needs has a much broader definition than normal.

In general, a special need means that a person has a medical disability or developmental delay. This does apply in adoption as well, but it is not limited to that.

Many of the children that qualify as special needs for the purposes of adoption have a mental health diagnosis, or in many cases, several diagnoses.

There are several other criteria that qualify a child as special needs for adoption that have nothing to do with disabilities or disorders.

Age... more

When you adopt an older special needs child things don’t always go as wonderfully as you might have imagined before adopting or fostering. Before adopting or fostering an older child, you may daydream about cooking, playing, and just spending time together. You make hundreds of plans that you cannot wait to fulfill with your new child. Then your traumatized child arrives home. Your child is resistant to bonding because of past hurts and abuse. Your child tries to sabotage the placement rather than risk being rejected again. You find family heirlooms broken, feces painted... more

Should your special needs child have a sensory diet? Is a sensory diet anything like a gluten free diet? Will it add hundreds of extra dollars to the grocery bill each month? Actually, a sensory diet has nothing to do with food at all. So don’t head over to the natural food store yet, save your gas. It is an exercise, activity, and play program designed for an individual child with sensory processing issues. The Sensory Diet is usually designed by your child’s occupational therapist for homework between therapy sessions. Having the child practice daily, instead of just during... more

Today I received the results of my teenage daughter’s achievement test from the public school. If you have been reading for the past few weeks then you already know about the IQ test results. If not, here is the link to read about my surprise at her new IQ despite having FAS. My daughter has been at homeschool with me for the past four years. I removed her from public school for several reasons. I felt they were not trying to challenge her; she was stealing, forging... more

According to a new government report, the number of teens giving birth has risen for the first time in 15 years. For every one thousand young women, between the ages of 15 and 17, twenty-two will give birth. This may contribute to another unhealthy trend. The number of low birth weight newborns continues to increase. We know from statistics that youth in foster care are more likely to engage in risky behaviors than other teens are. Therefore, when you see an increase in the general population of teens, you can be sure the increase among foster youth is much higher. In fact,... more

Most states have limits on the number of children under the age of 18 who can live in one special needs adoptive home. For example, Massachusetts won’t allow more than six children, and in Michigan, the number is eight. That is eight children total under 18 years, regardless if they are birth, adopted, or foster care children. Of course, there are those adoptive families who are allowed a variance for exceptional reasons. One reason might be to allow a large sibling group to stay together in one home. However, for the most part the states try to adhere to limits. Why do most... more

Are you sending your special needs child off to a week of summer camp? It will be a week of fun and adventure for your child no doubt. It should be an enjoyable week for you, the parents, as well. You and possibly other family members get a well-needed break from your child’s constant special needs. Summer camp can be an inexpensive alternative to respite care. You don’t feel like you are punishing your child, or getting away from your child when summer camp is the destination. You can feel good about the situation all the way around. Are there ways you can help your special needs... more

Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) usually affects infants and children under 10 years old. It is a viral illness that is considered moderately contagious and last for 7 to 10 days. Like most viral illnesses, there is not a specific cure, nor is there a vaccine to prevent infection. The number of cases has been growing in parts of Asia since March of 2008. In China, the number of cases seemed to peak in May at 176,000 confirmed cases of HFMD. In June, China reported less than 4,000 cases a day. Hong Kong had only report 100 cases as of July 2. Taiwan confirmed... more

Our daughter came to live with us just weeks before her fourth birthday. After nine months of doctors’ appointments and evaluations, her previous foster family finally called it quits. They did not feel competent to deal with her special needs nor a mentally retarded child. They adopted her two younger sisters a couple of years later. We had provided respite a couple of times so we already knew her. We knew she was cute and sweet albeit a bit on the wild side, but so are most of our children. Originally thought to have an IQ in the mildly retarded range it has continued... more