Josh and I are wanting to be as prepared as we can be for whatever this adoption may hold. We know that there is no way to be completely ready for what lays ahead but we'd be naive to think that there was nothing we could learn during this process.
Josh got online and found a couple of books we are going to be reading through together, but we want more!
We are specifically wanting to read about international adoptions and interracial families. We know that this is a very emotional process...for us and the little black child we're going to be bringing into our family and we want to be sensitive to this.
So, what books do you suggest that we read as we try to prepare for this new Journey as a family?
4 comments:
a must, must, must read:
Parenting Your Internationally Adopted Child: From Your First Hours Together Through the Teen Years
It touches on all aspects of IA, including transracial adoption and attachment. It is a big book, but is broken down into ages, so you can easily break it into "doable" chuncks. I come back to it again, again and again!
To be honest, Tasha, most books I find are interesting, but they all say the same things- things that I have a feeling that you know to do naturally from what I read about your hearts and personalities. Our girls, who we've had from birth but are now 3 and 4, are both biracial. Gabi is darker than Sarah and has the typical kinky hair, but they are both very obviously mixed. We take delight in their differences- Gabi started noticing that her skin was brown when she was probably almost 3. Since then, I make a point to tell them (because it's true) how much I love their beautiful brown skin. They know that we love their beautiful brown curly hair. It was funny once when my mom had on tan knee highs- Gabi said "Lollie's legs are brown like mine!" It was so precious. We also have both black, white, and in-between baby dolls in our home. The girls don't favor one over the other. I know that Travis (Agnew) says that adoption doesn't define his son, and he's right. But, at the same time, because we know that, obviously, people know that the girls are either adopted or could be from an earlier marriage or something, we celebrate the fact that they're adopted and have no problem telling people how special they are that they're adopted, and how blessed we are to have them. If anything, I imagine they'll have pride issues over being adopted because it's such a special thing to us, lol :). (Of course, we make certain to tell our boys how special they are for who they are, how God gave them to us, and how God created their differences- but that's a different comment.) Anyhow, enjoy reading the books, but don't be afraid to do what's right in your heart. You and Josh will be terrific parents to your daughter, and your children will be terrific siblings. It's not always easy, but the Lord will give you wisdom along the way. So excited for you and to be able to watch your journey through facebook and your blog :).
Megan, that book sounds great. I'll def. be checking that out.
Kate, thank you for your wisdom and encouragement! It is a breathe of fresh air as my nerves about the whole thing (long term) can feel terrifying at times:)
Go to tapestrybooks.com. This is a site with all sorts of adoption books. I'm sure there are some that can help you with your reading.
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