Buy This Book!

I wish I had found this book years ago, when our kids were younger! If you don't already have it, go out and buy a copy of "The Whole Life ADOPTION Book" by Jayne E. Schooler (published by Pinon Press). Particularly helpful to me at this point in life, was chapter 10; "What's Inside an Adopted Adolescent?" The subtitle "Helping Our Teens Resolve Five Painful Issues" reminded me that our adopted children do deal with a lot of pain, even in the best of adoptive circumstances. I didn't always realize that truth, and thought by giving our kids a happy, stable and secure home life, everything should be wonderful in their world.
Adolescence is a rocky time for most everyone, and even more so for our adopted kids. Not only are they trying to figure out who they are, but also who they would have been (if still in their birth family). This book helps one understand, from different angles, some of the issues and feelings that adopted children and their parents struggle with, which are unique to adoption.
I checked a copy of the book out of the library, and am going to go out and buy a copy of my own. I recommend you do the same - no matter what age your kids are!