The Ties Program--Adoptive Family Homeland Journeys

It's been a fantastic summer of travel, and now time to look forward…here's the news…..

Gift of Identity Grants

A new fund has been set up to provide grants for international adoptees visiting their birth country. The first grants (up to $5000 each) will be given out for summer 2014 travel. Deadline for application is September 15, 2013. Gift of Identity is a 501(C)(3) non profit organization, and the only organization to provide grants to international adoptees traveling to their birth country. 

www.Gift-of-Identity.org

Early Bird Discounts

Register for summer 2014 Ties programs by August 30, 2013 to receive a $100 per person discount.  Summer programs are open in Bulgaria, Cambodia, China, Colombia, the Philippines, Guatemala, Kazakhstan, Korea, Paraguay, Peru, Romania, Russia, Ukraine and Vietnam (and possibly Nepal). 

Winter Program Availability

Ties programs to Vietnam, Cambodia and India are still taking registrations, but airline space is becoming very tight. If you are interested in travel to these countries, please prioritize making your plans to avoid last minute hassles. 

Humanitarian Aid & Service Projects

World Ties is a 501(C)(3) non profit sister organization to The Ties Program. For nearly two decades, Ties families have provided humanitarian aid and done service projects around the world—helping people in their (or their child’s) country of birth. There is not a separate World Ties website. Rather, information is on each of our country pages on a tab marked “Project Kindness-World Ties.”

Pinterest

Thanks to Sarah Goth, Pinterester Extraordinare, 

www.pinterest.com/thetiesprogram

New! Journeys of Discovery focus on culture rather than adoption

You’ve asked. We’ve listened. While our traditional Ties programs (with an adoption focus) are exactly what some families are looking for, others have asked us to create non-adoption focused trips.  Our first Journeys program will be over Thanksgiving 2013 to Guatemala, and is open to families who have adopted from all countries.  More to come.

www.TiesJourneysOfDiscovery.com

Autumn, Winter and Spring Speaking Events

Looking for a speaker for your upcoming event, or want to plan one for a group you participate in? We do a variety of workshops about birth country travel, but also on topics like  "Teens and Tweens: What I Would Tell You If I Could Find The Words" and "From Lifebooks to Facebook--Traveling Thru MySpace." See our Resources page for workshop information.

www.adoptivefamilytravel.com/resources/workshops-2/

That's the news!

Becca Piper
AP x 4, Bereaved Parent x 1
Founder & Co-Director, The Ties Program--Adoptive Family Homeland Journeys
Founder & Co-Director, World Ties--Home of Project Kindness
Co-Director, Journeys of Discovery--Global Journeys WITHOUT an adoption focus
Proud Board Member--Gift of Identity Fund....finally, funding for international adoptees on homeland journeys

This Week's Creating a Family Show

Back home and back to work. Morocco was wonderful and seeing my daughter was even better. Before I went, I thought talking with her via Skype was pretty darn good. Now it seems like a pale comparison.

Radio Show: How the Environment Affects Fertility and Conception

Can your environment affect your fertility? What everyday chemicals and toxins should you avoid when you are pregnant? Join our guest, Dr. Tracey Woodruff, Director of the Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment at the University of California San Francisco to discuss how the environment affects your fertility and pregnancy.

We accept questions in advance. Email questions to info@creatingafamily.org. Listen or download the show after 1:00 Eastern Time tomorrow from http://www.creatingafamily.org/radioshow.html

Blog: Is Your Child’s Love Enough to Make Adoption Worth It?

In a comment on a previous blog, a prospective adoptive parent said, “All I was really looking for was some reassurance that I wasn’t guaranteed to make some child miserable just because I could never be biologically connected to them.” An adult adopted from Taiwan as an infant, responded:

"You are looking for the reassurance that love is enough in adoption. While I wouldn’t say adoption in itself equals a life of misery for any child, I do wonder if knowing that a child who has been given a ton of love and “the world” (metaphorically speaking) and who still ends up not liking adoption, would be considered “enough.” That is to say, if the child dearly loves his/her parents, and the parents love that child to the end of the earth, yet all this love in the world is not enough to prevent the hurt caused by adoption, then is it still worth it? To read my response, go to http://bit.ly/GBRnCk

Community Discussion: Should we be offended by one-line adoption joke in the movie, The Lorax?

"Got an email from a mom who was offended by a one-liner in the movie The Lorax. She was there with her 2 kids-both adopted and was uncomfortable, altho the kids didn't react. What do you think: offensive or overreacting?

"Joke" set-up: Rich, bad guy visits the young hero’s house. As the mom introduces her son to the rich, evil man, the man says something polite to the boy. Mom chuckles and replies, “You want to adopt him? Just kidding!” According to my emailer, the line got a good laugh. It seems like it was just a throw away line going for the quick easy laugh, but she thought it was totally unnecessary since it added nothing to the story."

Join in and share your sage wisdom or hear what others have to say at the Creating a Family Facebook Support Group

Creating a Family Resources

• Creating a Family Classic Podcast: Are You Ready to Move to Donor Egg or Sperm?
• Red Flags for Unethical Adoption Agencies
• Everything you ever wanted to know about getting Insurance Coverage for Fertility Treatment
• Creating a Family Classic Podcast: How Children Process Adoption at Different Ages

Making Adjustments at Home

Parents adopting internationally are usually concerned about what will happen after they meet and bring home their new child and what factors can affect this, both negatively and positively. They want to know what they can do to have the most positive adjustment possible, for their child and their family. Questions parents may have before adoptive placement include:

What will affect my child’s --

• Initial reaction to me  
• Behavior while traveling
• Transition to a new home
• Gradual adjustment to a new home and family
• Attachment to me/us as parent(s)
• Long-term adjustments, behavior, and development

How much of the influences for adoption adjustment come from –

• My child’s experiences and age before adoption
• My child’s genetic inheritance, intelligence, and health
• My child’s individual temperament and personality
• My own preparation for international adoption challenges and parenting
• My own personal strengths and limits in coping with parenting and stress
• The support and resources available to me, my child, my family

So much of adoption adjustment for families- both children and parents—is dependent upon the unpredictable interchanges between all of these factors, plus the addition of unexpected issues, both small and large, such as weather and travel problems, political and social changes in the child’s country, lost paperwork, unexpected health issue, and so on. The range of possibilities is vast and mind-boggling. And two or three families going through the same type of experiences may have two or three very different opinions about the adoption process and travel, based on their own experiences and strengths.

There are a number of practical suggestions, however, from adoptive parents and adoption professionals, which can help families, prepare for and cope with many of the expected and unexpected challenges in international adoption as parents head for the “home stretch” with their new child. Most parents and professionals say it is enormously helpful to understand as many of the challenges you may face in international adoption and related strategies for coping with these, as is possible. Their views about international adoption might be summarized as “Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.”

Attachment and International Adoption. From Choices and Challenges in International Adoption by Joan McNamara ©2009