Life Books

Hey there! How many of you have ever made a life book? For your adopted child (or a child in foster care) a life book is a connection to their life before they joined your family.  It can include personal details that are for them to have, but maybe not for others to know.  So, what do you put in one? A lot of people say that the child should create it. My daughter will be 3 when she comes home from Korea, so I'm going to start one for her.  I'll let her add to it as she gets older. For now, I plan on adding details about her birth family, her birth country, baby pics and other pieces to her story.  She has a story. She has a life that did not start with me and our family.
When we fostered, our children had a book that they valued and were able to contribute to themselves.  It helped them keep their full identity.  Not just pieces. As a parent, it's our job to help our children feel whole and complete.
That's my upcoming project.  I'm going to start putting together our daughter's book.  Will I show it to everyone?  No ma'am. It's hers to show.  My dilemma is do I include cutesy stuff or just stick to the facts? Since I've only had "baby books" for my sons, I'm a bit stuck.  But, I'll let you know how it turns out!
Feel free to give suggestions on how you've made yours!  Here's a link to get you started from the magazine, Adoptive Families.

                                             

Welcome!

Happy Monday!  I hope you enjoyed your weekend. Congrats to Katie and Jody, the winners of our very fab Starbucks cards and thanks to everyone who supported the O'Dell family last week.  Your generosity is so appreciated!

This week, I'll post a few articles about international adoption, fundraisers and try to hit on some frequently asked questions.


First, I'll give you a little background about my family. My husband and I have 2 extremely awesome boys, ages 8 and 11, and are in the process of adopting a sweet little girl from South Korea. We have hit that part of the adoption where the application has been sent in, we've made the big announcement , submitted more paperwork and now....WE WAIT.
Sooo, in the meantime, I have bought a few girly things for my all boy home and will start compiling her life book soon. Also, I've applied for every grant under the sun and tried to figure out creative ways to save money.

 What did you do to pass the time during the long wait? Decorate the new room? Take some classes?

If you're adopting, what agency did you use? There are many adoption agencies to choose from. We chose Holt International. They have a waiting child program that seemed to be exactly what we were looking for. Interested? Take a look. Have you had great experiences with another agency? Let me know and I'll mention them so everyone can know!

Check out the other Give1Save1 pages this week, too. You can click on our "back to world map" button and select the Caribbean, Africa or the US page from there. Adopting or know a family who is adopting?  We would love to feature them on our blog.  Email me at tonyagarrick5 (at) gmail (dot) com.
Have a blessed week!