#ShineALight

I Was Thinking…
Yes, helping our kids heal is a big job, but SO much of the struggle we as parents of adopted and foster kids face is about how the world sees our journey. Well, November is National Adoption Month and I am very excited to celebrate the dedication of so many adoptive parents! I plan to #ShineALight on all the good, the stories of commitment and NO MATTER WHAT parenting, but also the realities of the job, the many hurdles and how our children’s success is directly affected by the misunderstandings of society!

I want to help others understand our parenting choices. I want to teach others how to support our families and how to relate to our children without undermining all we are trying to build with them. I am tired of the commercials that say just love them and it will all be okay…that is NOT accurate! It takes so much more than that, much less a special kind of love! Yes, I want every child to have a chance to have a parent, but I want those families to be supported; it needs to come out of the darkness…this IS hard! Our kids are hurt and they are affected by their loss for a REALLY LONG TIME! 

Society needs to know the real scoop! We need to tell our story, be candid, transparent and open. No, not all of the stories are hard, but many are and we need there to be a balance! It is so much easier to look the other way and think, what a great thing they did, but I want society to know that lots of times they are hurting. They feel alone and hopeless. And the REAL story is that they keep on going, No Matter What, even when it is different than everyone else, even when they are exhausted, even after they have been emotionally hurt time and time again. This is the story of adoptive parents!

National Adoption month is really about creating the buzz about adoption so that more children can find forever families and that is great! I passionately believe that we need to celebrate Adoptive Parents who are already doing it too!

People that know better can do better! My plan is to help others know better! We need to be held up not judged. We need to be consulted not ignored. We need to be taught not abandoned!

This does not come from a place of anger; it comes from a place of HOPE! If we work together to #ShineALight, I believe the end result will not only help a child, but the bigger result will be peace and happiness for whole families!