Because She's Adopted Podcast

Episode 23 | Dr.Liz Debetta & Julie Brumley

Un-M-Othered: A Revolution in Adoptee Healing. Dr.Liz Debetta and Julie Brumley announce and discuss an upcoming adoptee event May 23-24, 2026 in Moscow, Idaho.

Dr. Liz is an award-winning solo performance artist, writer, educator, and the founder of Migrating Toward Wholeness™, a trauma-informed, arts-based narrative healing framework. She holds a Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Studies with emphases in creative writing, feminist critical theory, and social justice. She has spent over a decade working at the intersection of lived experience, research, and storytelling for systems change. She is the author of Adult Adoptees and Writing to Heal: Migrating Toward Wholeness and creator of the award-winning one-woman show Un-M-Othered, exploring adoption and patriarchy. Her work centers voice reclamation, identity integration, and the healing power of transforming silence into language and action. Un-M-Othered emerged directly from her long-term creative, scholarly, and embodied inquiry into adoption, trauma, and becoming the subject of one's own story.

Julie Brumley, M.A. Adoptee, trauma-informed somatic coach, and creator of the 7-Phase Belonging Blueprint™, a body-based framework supporting adoptees in moving from fragmentation toward embodied self-belonging. Julie is also the host of the Resilience Project Podcast, where she illuminates the unseen impacts of adoption.

Drawing from her master's-level training in counseling, somatic practices, and lived adoptee experience, Julie supports individuals in reconnecting with their bodies, regulating their nervous systems, and gently releasing long-held trauma patterns through compassionate, integrative, and embodied practices.

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UN-M-OTHERED: A REVOLUTION IN ADOPTEE HEALING

May 23-24, 2026 Moscow, Idaho

https://www.lizdebetta.com/un-m-othered-adoptee-healing-retreat

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Connect with Dr.Liz

Links: www.lizdebetta.com

My book: Adult Adoptees and Writing to Heal: Migrating Toward Wholeness

FB: @Dr.LizDeBetta https://www.facebook.com/people/Dr-Liz-DeBetta/100071093076051/

TikTok & IG: @dr.liz.debetta https://www.instagram.com/dr.liz.debetta/

BlueSky: @dr-liz-debetta.bsky.social

LI: linkedin.com/in/liz-debetta-ph-d-7b4ba953

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Connect with Julie

Website - www.cominghometoself.co

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/juliebrumley_/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/julierasbrum

Podcast link - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-resilience-project/id1849822021

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Connect with Kristal

Website: https://kristalparke.net/

Merch | Voices Collection: https://kristalparke.net/merch/

Email: [email protected]

Socials:

@kristalparkeofficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial

Support the Show If this conversation resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help more people discover these powerful stories of healing and identity.

Episode 22 | Catherine Talbott

Retired and taking to social media to ask "Who Cares?"

Catherine Talbott was adopted as a toddler and she was removed and placed back into government care at the age of twelve; she never lived with her family again. Catherine has worked in the child welfare sector for over 30 years and has recently retired. She was the founder of NOW Canada, a multi service agency based in Kelowna, BC which has served thousands of homeless and street entrenched youth, women and children. She has worked in the downtown Eastside of Vancouver for seven years with BC Housing, leading a multidisciplinary team of psychiatric nurses, drug and alcohol counsellors, youth workers, homelessness prevention workers and relocation support specialists. Catherine has worked on reserve with Indigenous communities, she was the Executive Director of an anti-violence organization (BC Society of transition Houses) and she was responsible for the province's response to domestic violence in BC through the Provincial Office of Domestic Violence within the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD). For the past eight years Catherine has led the MCFD strategic team responsible for the foster care giver rate reform which resulted in the first financial raise for foster and kinship caregivers in BC, the systemic overhaul of supports for over ten thousand youth aging out of government care now known as the SAJE program and she delivered the province's first strategic framework with Indigenous partners for youth justice reform in BC. Catherine has received multiple awards including the YM/ YWCA, Women of Distinction Award. Catherine is a mom, a wife, a very proud nana and she resides on Vancouver Island, BC. ______________________________________________________________________

RESOURCES/REFERENCES

*Severe trigger warning

Don't Look Away report calls for collective action to ensure safety for children - Ending Violence BC.

NOW Canada https://www.nowcanada.ca/

BC Society of Transition Houses https://bcsth.ca/

BC Housing https://www.bchousing.org/about

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Connect with Catherine

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/who_caresinbc/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ct.cares?lang=en

Connect with Kristal

Website: https://kristalparke.net/

Merch | Voices Collection: https://kristalparke.net/merch/

Email: [email protected]

Socials:

@kristalparkeofficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial

Support the Show If this conversation resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help more people discover these powerful stories of healing and identity.

Episode 21 | Haley Radke | Sullivan Summer | Lora Alegria | Lilly Anspach

Adoptees for Family Preservation is a registered 501(c)(3) organization that exists to raise awareness about family separation issues and the long-term impact on adoptees and their families. The organization is currently supporting the investigative podcast, "On Adoption," produced by Haley Radke Media, Inc., a podcast exposing the unethical practices of the modern-day adoption industry through the lens of adult adoptees, and recent birth/first mothers' experiences. In this episode we chat with Haley Radke as well as the board members of Adoptees for Family Preservation about the developing podcast and how we can help to bring it to life.

President: Sullivan Summer

Secretary: Lora Alegria

Treasurer / Funds Development Officer: Lilly Anspach

Haley Radke is a Canadian domestic adoptee, the founder of Haley Radke Media, Inc., and host of Adoptees On, one of the most successful and longest-running adoption-related podcasts in the world, with over 1.5 million downloads globally. Haley's commitment to centering adoptee stories has made her a sought-after expert within the field of adoption, and within the realm of podcast storytelling more broadly. Her project-in-progress, On Adoption, is investigating adoption's impact on adoptees and birth/first parents. You can find her at adopteeson.com, adoptionpop.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.

Sullivan Summer is a US domestic, transracial adoptee, independent scholar, essayist, critic, poet, and podcaster. After more than two decades as an attorney and corporate executive with some of the world's most recognizable brands, she returned to her first love: reading and writing. Sullivan is a host with the New Books Network, the largest books podcast network in the world, where her portfolio of author interviews includes winners of the Pulitzer Prize, NAACP Image awards, National Book Critics Circle awards, and MacArthur Geniuses. Her essays, interviews, poetry, and criticism have been published in numerous popular and academic outlets, and she is a 2025 "Best of the Net" anthology nominee. She also serves as the President of Adoptees for Family Preservation. Sullivan is a member of the National Book Critics Circle, the New York Society Library, the New York Historical (where she is also a Docent), the African American Intellectual History Society, and the Biographers International Organization. She is currently agent-shopping a completed novel manuscript, as well as a Civil War-era biography proposal. You can find her at her website, on Instagram, and on Substack.

Lora K. Joy/Lora Alegria. Lora is a domestic, same race adoptee. She is fully estranged from her adoptive family and reunited with both maternal and paternal biological family. In 2022, she legally changed her name back to her birth name and Lora's biological mom reclaimed her through an adult adoption. Lora has self-published 3 illustrated books and a blog at www.myadopteetruth.com. She also co-led the publishing of the adoptee anthology The Flourish Experience. Lora is the Secretary of Adoptees for Family Preservation . Lora co-leads a peer support group on estrangement through Adoption Knowledge Affiliates. And she is a Producer for the Adoptees On podcast.You may contact Lora via e-mail at [email protected]. You may also email from the website www.myadopteetruth.com.

Lilly Anspach is a nationally recognized leadership strategist, entrepreneur, and adoptee advocate with over 25 years of experience in operations, system design, and executive development. She is the founder of The Yuri Group, a consulting firm specializing in human-centered operational excellence, and a licensed affiliate of the Shingo Institute. Lilly is also the creator of Center to Shape, an innovative leadership workshop that blends hands-on pottery with deep self-leadership reflection. An adoptee and survivor of early childhood trauma, Lilly brings a personal and systemic lens to her advocacy. She reclaimed her name and voice as an adult and now uses her platform to elevate the stories and rights of adoptees. In addition to her consulting work, she is a speaker, artist, and coach who supports women in midlife as they reconnect with their values, reclaim their leadership, and design lives rooted in authenticity and purpose.

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Adoptees For Family Preservation

Tax deductible donations can be made here: https://www.adopteesffp.org/donations

Website: https://www.adopteesffp.org/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/adopteesffp/

Email: [email protected]

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Connect with Kristal

Website: https://kristalparke.net/

Merch | Voices Collection: https://kristalparke.net/merch/

Email: [email protected]

Socials:

@kristalparkeofficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial

Support the Show If this conversation resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help more people discover these powerful stories of healing and identity.

Episode 20 | Sarah Reinhardt

Co-host of Adoption:The Making Of Me Podcast talks about…you guessed it, the adoptee experience.

Sarah Reinhardt is an adoptee and co-host of Adoption: The Making of Me. She is a writer, empty-nester, OCD dog parent, and works in Public Media in Kansas City.

Sarah was born in the baby scoop era in St. Louis, MO, but only by chance - her birth mother's water broke on the ascent from JFK to St. Louis. When Sarah found that out later, her lifelong obsession with New York City made sense.

Sarah grew up in a small town in Missouri with a younger brother who was adopted, and younger twins (brothers) who were the biological children of her adopted parents.

It was only when Sarah was pregnant with her own child that she began to wonder 'who' she was. The search for her biological roots began.

What followed was a reunion with her birth mother and siblings and the discovery that her birth father had died before she was able to locate him.

It wasn't until starting the podcast and reading The Primal Wound that, in the adoptee universe terms, Sarah's 'fog' began to lift.

Sarah loves providing a platform for adoption stories, and she hopes to be involved in adoptee advocation for years to come.

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JOIN US IN AUSTIN, TEXAS - APRIL 17TH & 18TH 2026

ADOPTION:THE MAKING OF ME - Live Podcast Event

Purchase tickets here: https://bit.ly/4ranliv

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Adoption:The Making Of Me

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@themakingofmepodcast4472

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@themakingofme_podcast

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/themakingofmepodcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themakingofmepodcast?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==

Website: https://www.adoptionthemakingofme.com/

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Connect with Sarah

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reinhardtsarah?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==

Connect with Kristal

Website: https://kristalparke.net/

Merch | Voices Collection: https://kristalparke.net/merch/

Email: [email protected]

Socials:

@kristalparkeofficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial

Support the Show If this conversation resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help more people discover these powerful stories of healing and identity.

Episode 19 | Greta & Patrece

Adoptees, Eating Disorders & Recovery

Greta Handgis (Fadness) is a domestic infant adoptee born during the Baby Scoop Era in 1968. She found her first family in 1989, which included a full-blood brother and sister, and was in reunion for over 30 years. She is estranged now from her first mother and sister as well as her adoptive family siblings. Both her adoptive parents have passed away. Greta played NCAA college basketball and majored in Theatre. She has worked as an actor in both Los Angeles and Phoenix, Arizona, and as a criminal defense paralegal for over 18 years in the Public Defender system. Greta is a writer, actor, solo-performer currently living in Phoenix with her husband Mark and rescue dog Gilda. She has been in recovery from anorexia since 2022.

Patrece's story reveals the complex realities of closed government adoption during Canada's "Baby Scoop Era." After a childhood marked by unacknowledged trauma, she became overwhelmed by fear and anxiety and developed an eating disorder as a means of coping. At thirty, desperate to escape the grip of an unrelenting addiction, Patrece sought help. Today, she continues her healing journey by writing, by connecting with other adoptees, and by finding belonging in a yoga-based recovery community. Patrece hopes to publish her recently completed memoir, A Surprising Peace, and to share her experience and hope with the adoption community.

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RESOURCES:

Suicide lifeline text 988

HEAL - theprojectheal.org

NEDA - nationaleatingdisorders.org

ANAD - - National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders

www.anad.org

Definitions of different eating disorders

https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/eating-disorders/what-are-eating-disorders

American Non-Profit providing help/resources for individuals and families

https://feast-ed.org/

Overeaters Anonymous

https://oa.org/

Recovery 2.0 (A community for those with any addictions, including food)

https://r20.com/

Adoptees and Addiction

https://www.adopteesandaddiction.com/

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Connect with Greta

Greta can be found on Facebook and Instagram, as well as her website, www.gretafadness.com and her email is [email protected]

Connect with Patrece

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @asurprisingpeace

Substack: Patrece Maluzynsky (asurprisingpeace) Website: www.asurprisingpeace.com

Connect with Kristal

Website: https://kristalparke.net/

Merch | Voices Collection: https://kristalparke.net/merch/

Email: [email protected]

Socials:

@kristalparkeofficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial

Support the Show If this conversation resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help more people discover these powerful stories of healing and identity.

Episode 18 | Gloria

Gloria Ballantyne-Packo is a 27 year old Swampy Cree Woman living in Winnipeg, MB. Gloria is a member of Misipawistik Cree Nation and is originally from The Pas, MB. Gloria has lived many different lives but one of the most prominent parts of her life story is how she became an MMIWG2S+ advocate. Gloria's younger sister, Kendara Ballantyne, was reported missing in 2019 and later found murdered. This tragedy catapulted Gloria to raise more awareness of the MMIWG2S+ epidemic through local and national stages. Gloria was crowned the 2023 Northern Manitoba Trappers' Festival Fur Queen then went on to become a delegate in the inaugural Miss Indigenous Canada pageant in 2024. These pageants gave her the opportunity to use her platform to connect with many people and bring forth a greater awareness of her sister's legacy. Now, Gloria is learning what life looks like for her in a new city, amid both grief and trauma, while also embracing the excitement and gratitude of what her future holds.

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🔴JUSTICE FOR KENDARA

If you have any information related to Kendara's case, please contact https://www.facebook.com/KendaraBallantyneMemorial or https://www.canadiancrimestoppers.org/ immediately.

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APTN - TAKEN - SEASON5 EPISODE 9 Kendara Ballantyne

https://www.aptntv.ca/taken/episode-guide/season-5/

https://www.aptntv.ca/plus/

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Gloria holds the title of the 2024 Northern Manitoba's Trappers Festival Fur Queen https://www.trappersfestival.ca/

Gloria ran for the inaugural Miss Indigenous Canada in 2024 https://www.missindigenouscanada.ca/

Connect with Gloria on IG

Socials: https://www.instagram.com/glrpck/

Connect with Kristal

Website: https://kristalparke.net/

Merch | Voices Collection: https://kristalparke.net/merch/

Email: [email protected]

Socials:

@kristalparkeofficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial

Support the Show If this conversation resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help more people discover these powerful stories of healing and identity.

Episode 17 | Marisol & Will

In this episode of the Because She's Adopted podcast, host Kristal Parke and her husband Stewart, welcome Marisol and Will, a couple navigating the complexities of identity, parenting and grief. The couple discusses their unique challenges as parents without guidance, having lost both sets of their parents, and how they strive to build a supportive family foundation rooted in faith and love. Their candid conversation touches on the emotional weight of adoption, the impact of loss, and the importance of community support in their journey. Marisol and Will provide insights into their experiences as a couple supporting each other through life's difficulties and discuss the importance of patience and understanding in relationships, especially when dealing with the emotional aftermath of family and cultural separation. The conversation highlights the need for open communication and the significance of acknowledging one's feelings in the face of pain.

Guest Bio

Meet Marisol and Will, a couple navigating the complexities of identity, loss, and love. Marisol, a transracial adoptee from Bogotá, Colombia, was raised in New Jersey and has spent recent years deeply processing her adoption experience without reunion. Will, a first-generation Palestinian American from the Philadelphia area, stands as her steadfast partner and support system through this journey of self-discovery. Married for ten years and raising three beautiful children, they face the unique challenge of parenting without guidance, as both sets of their parents have passed away. Together, they share an honest look at building a family foundation amidst significant grief and loss.

Connect with Marisol

Socials: https://www.instagram.com/marisol_anne926/

Connect with Kristal

Website: https://kristalparke.net/

Merch | Voices Collection: https://kristalparke.net/merch/

Email: [email protected]

Socials:

@kristalparkeofficial

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristalparkeofficial/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KristalParkeOfficial

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kristalparkeofficial

Support the Show If this conversation resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help more people discover these powerful stories of healing and identity.

Episode 16 | Amanda

In the first 2026 episode of the Because She's Adopted Podcast, host Kristal Parke interviews Amanda. This episode is about mothers and fathers, parentification and self-discovery. Amanda discusses the impact of her family on her self-perception, and the healing she found through connecting with her biological father. Amanda's story highlights the importance of self-acceptance and the ongoing journey of reclaiming one's narrative and life.

Guest Bio

Amanda was born and raised in Western New York. She began her "coming out of the FOG" and reunion journey in 2023 a few years after getting divorced and moving out of her hometown away from her adoptive family. With the support and help of her partner and close friends, she met both sides of her bio family. Amanda began forming community and friends within the adoptee online space, which opened up a whole new world to healing and finding herself. Currently living in North Carolina with her boyfriend and dog, Amanda is working towards sharing her story publicly, writing a memoir, and hopefully inspiring other adoptees to use their voice.

Connect with Amanda

https://www.instagram.com/manatobloom/

[email protected]

Connect with Kristal

Kristal's Website

Voices Collection Merch

Email Kristal

Instagram

Youtube

TikTok

Support the Show If this conversation resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help more people discover these powerful stories of healing and identity.

Episode 15 | Louise Browne & Bill Edwards

In this episode of the Because She's Adopted podcast, host Kristal Parke engages with guests Louise Browne and Bill Edwards, exploring themes of Christmas traditions, Adoption:The Making Of Me Podcast, and the importance of supportive relationships. The conversation delves into personal stories, including first impressions from high school, the shared love for the Grateful Dead, and the challenges of being introverted in social situations. Louise shares her profound experience of meeting her biological family, while Bill discusses the significance of understanding the adoptee experience as a partner. The episode concludes with reflections on finding purpose and passion in life, as well as the importance of sharing knowledge to help others navigate their challenges.

Guest Bio

Louise Browne is a co-host of the podcast Adoption: The Making of Me, and a passionate advocate for adoptees. With followers worldwide, her podcast with friend Sarah Reinhardt has created space for adoptees to explore identity, connection, and the lifelong journey of self-discovery.

A Colorado native, Louise was adopted a few days after birth in 1968 and raised in a loving home in a Denver suburb. Her adoption story, like so many others, was shaped by sealed records and unanswered questions.

Louise's background spans co-owning a gourmet ice cream truck business (with her current podcast partner), supporting high-level executives, teaching and coaching, and working in corporate education and the nonprofit sector. She moved to California in 1986 for college and remained in the Los Angeles area for more than thirty-five years.

Most importantly, Louise is also a mother to a 27-year-old son, an animal lover, writer, hiker, loves yoga, and is a believer in the power of connections. She currently resides in California with her husband, Bill, and their adorable pup, Gracie.

Bill Edwards is a carpenter, home remodeling project manager, and founder of Remodel Academy, through which he helps homeowners plan and manage remodeling and renovation projects. Bill grew up in Colorado and went to high school with his wife, Louise. However, he lost touch with her until they reconnected in 2011, which led to him moving to Los Angeles and eventually marrying Louise in 2018. Bill and Louise moved to the Central Coast of California in 2020 and now enjoy sea kayaking, wine tasting, and live music.

Connect with Louise Browne

ATOM Website

Louise Browne Substack

LinkedIn

@LouiseBrowne_LA Instagram

Adoption:The Making Of Me Podcast

ATMOM Facebook

ATMOM Instagram

ATMOM TikTok

ATMOM YouTube

Connect with Bill Edwards

Remodel Academy Website

LinkedIn

@Remodel.Academy Instagram

Remodel Academy Facebook

The BuilderBill Instagram

Connect with Kristal

Kristal's Website

Voices Collection Merch

Email Kristal

Instagram

Youtube

TikTok

Support the Show If this conversation resonated with you, please subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help more people discover these powerful stories of healing and identity.

Elf (2003): Adoption on the Big Screen

The best way to spread Christmas cheer is by singing loud for all to hear! Whether it's your first time watching this holiday classic, or your fiftieth, you've probably never watched Elf like this before. Podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer–all adoptees themselves–explore the adoptee experience alongside adoptee Buddy the Elf, including adoptee terminology, biological parent fantasies, cultural identity struggles, and more.

Elf (2003) was written by David Berenbaum, directed by Jon Favreau, and produced by New Line Cinema.

This episode aired on December 10, 2025. In it we discussed and/or relied upon:

Back to the Future, directed by Robert Zemeckis, Universal Studios (1985). The infamous "Calvin Klein" scene is here.

Barbara Bisantz Raymond, The Baby Thief (Grand Central Publishing, 2009)

Criminal Episode 110 "Baby Snatcher" (March 15, 2019)

Flagrant Clips @flagrantclips on YouTube, Interview with Peter Dinklage (August 7, 2024)

Mia Elkins, "Elf: Meet the man behind the movie," The Merionite (December 16, 2024)

Neil Miller, "40 Things We Learned from Jon Favreau's 'Elf' Commentary," Film School Rejects (December 23, 2011)

Patrick Cremona, "Elf screenwriter on its lasting legacy: 'It's something that's rare and special,'" RadioTimes.com (December 23, 2022)

Rotten Tomatoes 100 Best Christmas Movies of All Time

Shania Twain, "Whose Bed Have Your Books Been Under," The Woman in Me (1995)

The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen.

We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and wherever you get your podcasts.

Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.

Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net, on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.

Cultural critical Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com, on Instagram, and on Substack.

We love you! We love you! We love you!