A few weeks ago I sent a belated birthday card and letter update to my mom. I couldn’t find the address to where she is currently living so I Googled it. Clicking through the website for the retirement home to … Continue reading
Last night I watched a movie where the father (who was also a grandfather), died. It wasn’t the focal point of the movie, but it was a significant part of the story. It made me think about my own parents, and cry … Continue reading
My Mom (or mum, where I grew up) So I have been thinking a little about my mom lately, she has popped into my mind a few times in the last couple of weeks and each time I think about writing … Continue reading
Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians! Thanksgiving is not something that is celebrated in Australia, and therefore, Thanksgiving is not a holiday that was a part of my upbringing. While I’ve been in Canada for 11 years now, Thanksgiving is … Continue reading
Expectant Mother – Adoption Journey Series… The Second Home Study Full-disclosure. Rape, Alcohol, Pot, Sexual History, Relationships… The second home study came a few weeks after the first, and I felt a little less nerve-wracked than the first time… but … Continue reading
I’ve talked a little bit now about my mother and I felt I should share a few stories from my childhood, like the one below. It is a direct excerpt from a book I’m writing about my experiences with my mother, entitled Mother, My.
I hope in some way this story will help others too. Perhaps to know you are doing a great job as a mom, or to know you didn’t have the craziest mom on the block, or maybe just to inspire you to call your mom and say “thanks for being there” if she was even the slightest bit wonderful.
Sometimes it’s easy to forget that parents are just people, just regular people, with the addition of a huge responsibility – the one of raising children. Yes, it can be one of the most beautiful and rewarding things you can do, if you see it that way, but it is also additional responsibility on your everyday life. Being a parent is generally done on top of the other things in life such as work, rest, and a little play too (though many parents go without this for a time). Plus there are the additional financial responsibilities, the basics – food, clothing, shelter – and all of the extras if they are within your reach – activities, sports, dance, music, camps, courses, vacations, parties, etc… It can be a never ending list of a lot of extra “stuff”.
Is it any wonder that those people who don’t notice the many beautiful and rewarding parts of child-raising, those who have not really connected with the joy of having children, and those who only see the responsibilities would, at some point, crack and break?
This is one of those stories. Continue reading
Once all of the references came back, the police check was cleared, and the forms I’d submitted were processed, it was time for the “next step”…
This is a questionnaire about my background, my family, my upbringing, my relationship with my parents, my parents relationship with each other, and about how I was raised.
Theresa emailed me and said:
Wow Ali, your information has come in fast and furious…
I have all references, criminal record check (clear) and physicians report
So, step 2 – Questionnaire #1:
You need to read, complete and submit back to me the Questionnaire 1 form. Would you like to grab it at the office or i can email it to you…please let me know. It shouldn’t take you too long to complete…
Once it is completed and I take a look at it, we can set up our first home visit…
Part of my insides were screaming, “whoa, this is too fast, too soon, we need the whole year to relax into this and be completely ready before we surge forward.” The other part of me that loves to compete with myself said, “woo-hoo, we’re already at step 2 and she said we’re fast!”. Continue reading
Expectant Mother – Adoption Journey Series…
References.
Point number three on the Adoption Application Form almost stopped me in my tracks.
A minimum of four references are required, including one from each of the following:
This was one of the things that made me feel like perhaps I shouldn’t get my hopes up. One of the references had to be a family member.
“an involved member of the applicant(s) extended family;”
Technically, I don’t have any family that I could ask. Continue reading