Adoption Wise

We asked the members of our private Facebook group, "What are your best Mother's Day survival tips?" We took what they shared and added from our own experiences to create this episode.

Here are our tips for navigating this tricky  holiday:

* Keep your expectations low and communicate clearly.

* Focus on someone else.

* Establish simple traditions.

* Honor birth moms (and other moms).

* Celebrate yourself!

Relevant Resources and Links:

Episode 29: Celebrate Your Child’s Birthday and Live to Tell About It

Join our private Facebook group

We asked the members of our private Facebook group, "What are your best Mother's Day survival tips?" We took what they shared and added from our own experiences to create this episode.

Here are our tips for navigating this tricky  holiday:

* Keep your expectations low and communicate clearly.

* Focus on someone else.

* Establish simple traditions.

* Honor birth moms (and other moms).

* Celebrate yourself!

Relevant Resources and Links:

Episode 29: Celebrate Your Child’s Birthday and Live to Tell About It

Join our private Facebook group

Summer is coming, and we’re supposed to have fun. Right?

It’s not always easy for families with kids from “hard places.” Kids from “hard places” are children who experienced early trauma such as abuse, neglect, medical intervention, prenatal exposure to substances, or even changes in primary caregiver.

While our children may look forward to breaks from school and enjoy their days free of the constant demands, they often find this lack of structure very difficult, and their anxiety rises.  As anxiety increases, so does volatility and before we know it, we find ourselves in a chaotic mess.

Stress is high when our kids struggle and the entire family is impacted. A little planning goes a long way. We know because we’ve both made the mistake of not being proactive enough. You can learn from our mistakes!

Relevant Resources and Links:

Sound Machine (affiliate link)

Episode 34: 10 Habits for Less Anxiety and Better Sleep with Tania Milliken

Episode 31: 7 Ways for Parents to Relieve a Stressed-Out Brain

Summer is coming, and we’re supposed to have fun. Right?

It’s not always easy for families with kids from “hard places.” Kids from “hard places” are children who experienced early trauma such as abuse, neglect, medical intervention, prenatal exposure to substances, or even changes in primary caregiver.

While our children may look forward to breaks from school and enjoy their days free of the constant demands, they often find this lack of structure very difficult, and their anxiety rises.  As anxiety increases, so does volatility and before we know it, we find ourselves in a chaotic mess.

Stress is high when our kids struggle and the entire family is impacted. A little planning goes a long way. We know because we’ve both made the mistake of not being proactive enough. You can learn from our mistakes!

Relevant Resources and Links:

Sound Machine (affiliate link)

Episode 34: 10 Habits for Less Anxiety and Better Sleep with Tania Milliken

Episode 31: 7 Ways for Parents to Relieve a Stressed-Out Brain

*If you're already on our email list, you automatically receive each week's download in our Quick Connection email.

Summer is coming, and we’re supposed to have fun. Right?

It’s not always easy for families with kids from “hard places.” Kids from “hard places” are children who experienced early trauma such as abuse, neglect, medical intervention, prenatal exposure to substances, or even changes in primary caregiver.

While our children may look forward to breaks from school and enjoy their days free of the constant demands, they often find this lack of structure very difficult, and their anxiety rises.  As anxiety increases, so does volatility and before we know it, we find ourselves in a chaotic mess.

Stress is high when our kids struggle and the entire family is impacted. A little planning goes a long way. We know because we’ve both made the mistake of not being proactive enough. You can learn from our mistakes!

Relevant Resources and Links:

Sound Machine (affiliate link)

Episode 34: 10 Habits for Less Anxiety and Better Sleep with Tania Milliken

Episode 31: 7 Ways for Parents to Relieve a Stressed-Out Brain

*If you're already on our email list, you automatically receive each week's download in our Quick Connection email.

If you have trouble sleeping or tend to feel anxious and worn down, don't miss this interview with Tania Milliken. She shares ten daily habits to help our families thrive. Some of them may surprise you!

Links Relevant to this episode:

Connect with Tania at her website

Join Tania's Facebook group - Access Ease

Connect with Tania on Instagram @tania.milliken

Episode 25: Regulating Through Movement and Play with Robyn Gobbel

Stop, Breathe & Think (app for mindful breathing)

Yoga with Adriene

Down Dog (yoga app)

Mentor Moments:

This week Lisa and Melissa answer the question:

"I'm looking for ways of helping my child deal with homework. My philosophy tends toward, 'She's young and I don’t want homework to become a constant battle,' but there’s also that part of me that worries about what happens if she doesn’t get it done, I feel like she’s 'getting away' with not doing homework if we don’t push it, and then it’ll be a problem in future grade levels. I just don’t think it’s worth the meltdowns at this stage in the game."

If you have trouble sleeping or tend to feel anxious and worn down, don't miss this interview with Tania Milliken. She shares ten daily habits to help our families thrive. Some of them may surprise you!

Links Relevant to this episode:

Connect with Tania at her website

Join Tania's Facebook group - Access Ease

Connect with Tania on Instagram @tania.milliken

Episode 25: Regulating Through Movement and Play with Robyn Gobbel

Stop, Breathe & Think (app for mindful breathing)

Yoga with Adriene

Down Dog (yoga app)

Mentor Moments:

This week Lisa and Melissa answer the question:

"I'm looking for ways of helping my child deal with homework. My philosophy tends toward, 'She's young and I don’t want homework to become a constant battle,' but there’s also that part of me that worries about what happens if she doesn’t get it done, I feel like she’s 'getting away' with not doing homework if we don’t push it, and then it’ll be a problem in future grade levels. I just don’t think it’s worth the meltdowns at this stage in the game."

*If you're already on our email list, you automatically receive each week's download in our Quick Connection email.

If you have trouble sleeping or tend to feel anxious and worn down, don't miss this interview with Tania Milliken. She shares ten daily habits to help our families thrive. Some of them may surprise you!

Links Relevant to this episode:

Connect with Tania at her website

Join Tania's Facebook group - Access Ease

Connect with Tania on Instagram @tania.milliken

Episode 25: Regulating Through Movement and Play with Robyn Gobbel

Stop, Breathe & Think (app for mindful breathing)

Yoga with Adriene

Down Dog (yoga app)

Mentor Moments:

This week Lisa and Melissa answer the question:

"I'm looking for ways of helping my child deal with homework. My philosophy tends toward, 'She's young and I don’t want homework to become a constant battle,' but there’s also that part of me that worries about what happens if she doesn’t get it done, I feel like she’s 'getting away' with not doing homework if we don’t push it, and then it’ll be a problem in future grade levels. I just don’t think it’s worth the meltdowns at this stage in the game."

*If you're already on our email list, you automatically receive each week's download in our Quick Connection email.

Have you experienced a lot of change in your life since entering the world of foster care and/or adoption?

There is beauty in this journey, but parents are often surprised by the sense of loss. The changes may be so great that the life you once lived seems to have disappeared.

In this episode, we talk honestly about grief surrounding foster care and adoption through the lens of Elisabeth Kubler-Ross's Five Stages of Grief, plus an additional sixth stage.

Links Relevant to this episode:

5 Stage of Grief

Episode 20: The Bitter and Sweet of Foster Care Reunification with Jamie Finn

Episode 31: 7 Ways for Parents to Relieve a Stressed-Out Brain

How to join 30 Days of Hope in April

Order Faith, Hope, & Connection: A 30-Day Devotional for Adoptive and Foster Parents. 

Join The Adoption Connection Facebook Group.

This post includes affiliate links.

Have you experienced a lot of change in your life since entering the world of foster care and/or adoption?

There is beauty in this journey, but parents are often surprised by the sense of loss. The changes may be so great that the life you once lived seems to have disappeared.

In this episode, we talk honestly about grief surrounding foster care and adoption through the lens of Elisabeth Kubler-Ross's Five Stages of Grief, plus an additional sixth stage.

Links Relevant to this episode:

5 Stage of Grief

Episode 20: The Bitter and Sweet of Foster Care Reunification with Jamie Finn

Episode 31: 7 Ways for Parents to Relieve a Stressed-Out Brain

How to join 30 Days of Hope in April

* Order Faith, Hope, & Connection: A 30-Day Devotional for Adoptive and Foster Parents. 

* Join The Adoption Connection Facebook Group.

This post includes affiliate links.