Adoption World Specialties was the brain child of a mother and daughter team committed to helping children through the foster and adoptive process.  Their unique experiences were an outgrowth of both personal and professional first-hand knowledge of the needs of these special children.

After the 2008 floods in Iowa devastated their operation, the team regrouped and made the decision to seek a caring company to nurture their cause and move their business into the future.  In May of 2009, Cornerstone Press purchased the business.   In March of 2010, the operation’s name was changed to Adoption World Publishing.

One of the first projects of the new owners was to write and publish a new life book.  In August of 2009, My Growing World written by Kathleen Carroll and illustrated by Lucy Cook Taylor was introduced to the market.  Its’ target audience is 6 – 10 year old children.  Not only has it been very well received, it was reviewed in the February 2010 issue of Adoptive Families magazine.  It was also designated as an Editor’s Choice in the Spring 2010 edition of foster families, a publication in the United Kingdom.

The Real Me, a teen life book, is a company staple.  Recently a therapist from Colorado sang its praises saying she really liked using it in her practice.

The recent tough economic times have made it increasingly difficult for the state and private agencies charged with assisting the foster care population to be able to afford the purchase of these valued tools.   Foundations as well as corporations with a special tie to the foster and adoption cause are helping to fill the financial void.

Characters like Fuzzihead, Piper Pig and Lambabelle are adorable.  They combine with activities like Musical Motions and Moving Day to create a warm and therapeutic setting not found in other adoption and foster care lifebooks.

Among the best parts of the book are the short stories from children in similar circumstances.  They help a child to identify with and understand that their circumstances may not be unique.

Be sure and go to “What they’re saying” at the bottom of our home page.  Look for the big red button!  Click on the button and it will take you to a review on My Growing World which was published in Adoptive Families magazine.

One of our competitors, Tapestry Books, shows our books “The Real Me” and “My Adoption Workbook” on their website even though they are not an authorized reseller. They show a picture of our books with the caption “Product currently unavailable.” Our books are very much “available” and can be found on our website, www.adoptionworld.net.

At one time Tapestry did sell our books. However, over six months ago Mr. Shep Morrow was informed in writing that he was no longer authorized to sell our books. Since then, we have asked two more times for their removal from his site. Mr. Morrow says it will cost him money to change his website, yet he has recently added this phrase to the description of our book “The Real Me”,

Indefinitely Out of Stock

Contact us for alternate suggestions.

When we spoke to Shep about this, it was pointed out to him that this is a tactic known as deceptive advertising and it is illegal.

You have to go no farther than the Federal Trade Commission website for confirmation. “The Federal Trade Commission Act allows the FTC to act in the interest of all consumers to prevent deceptive and unfair acts or practices. In interpreting Section 5 of the Act, the Commission has determined that a representation, omission or practice is deceptive if it is likely to:

* mislead consumers and

* affect consumers’ behavior or decisions about the product or service.”[1]

We believe that what Tapestry Books is doing falls under this act.

Readers, what do you think?

Please blog and let us know your thoughts, or take your views to Tapestry Books directly, jmorrow@tapestrybooks.com and let him know what you think of his deceptive practices.

Keywords

Tapestry Books

The Real Me

My Adoption Workbook

Adoption World Specialties

Actress Katherine Heigl and her husband, Josh Kelley, have completed their adoption of a baby girl from Korea.

The couple have named the 10-month-old Nancy Leigh, after the actress’s mother Nancy and her sister Margaret Leigh, said Heigl’s spokeswoman Melissa Kates.

The little girl will go by the nickname Naleigh.

The couple are putting photos of their daughter up on the www.jasonheiglfoundation.org website. The foundation was started by Nancy and Katherine Heigl in loving memory of their son and brother. The sites focus is to increase the awareness of inhumane animal treatment. They also have Heigl Hounds of Hope which finds homes for large dogs in shelters.

Heigl plays Dr Izzie Stevens on ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” and is currently shooting the film “Life As We Know It”. She was also in the popular movie, “27 Dresses”.

She and Kelley, a singer-songwriter, have been married since 2007.

I recently saw some interesting profiles on famous people who had once been in foster homes. Some of their stories were inspiring.

Daunte Culpepper, the Minnesota Vikings football player, for example, was born in prison. His birth mom had been a prostitute. He was placed in a foster home with a wonderful mom. When he was 5 years old, his birth mom was out of prison and ready to regain custody of Daunte. He was quite sad about being away from his beloved foster mom. Eventually his birth mom agreed to let him go back to his foster mom where he stayed for the rest of his youth. He was quoted as saying, “She loved me enough to let me go.”

Famous People who were Adopted

Historical figures:

Alexander the Great, King of Macedonia; Aristotle, Greek Philosopher; Julius Caesar, Roman Emperor; Crazy Horse, Lakota War Chief; Nelson Mandela, President of South Africa; Moses, Jewish Prophet; Brigham Young, Mormon religious leader; Dalai Lama, Exiled leader of Tibet

Sports Figures

Mark Acre, Baseball Player; Kitty and Peter Carruthers, Figure skaters; Daunte Culpepper, Football player; Eric Dickerson, Football player; Evonne Goolagong, Tennis player; Tim Green, Football player; Scott Hamilton, Figure skater; Greg Louganis, Diver; Alonzo Mourning, Basketball player; Mike Tyson, Boxer

Actors/Musicians

Richard Burton, Actor; Dean Cain, Actor; Melissa Gilbert, Actor; Deborah Harry, Singer; Faith Hill, Singer; Ray Liotta, Actor; Little Richard, Singer; Marilyn Monroe, Actor; Priscilla Presley, Actor; Shania Twain, Singer

Politicians

William Bradford, Political leader; Bill Clinton, US President; Gerald Ford, US President; Newt Gingrich, Politician; Samuel Houston, General and politician; Andrew Jackson, US President; Jim Ross Lightfoot, US Representative

The US Dept of Health and Human Services awarded $35 Million to 38 states and Puerto Rico for increasing the number of children adopted from Foster Care. In order to be awarded funds, states had to increase the number of children adopted relative to baseline data. They specifically were awarded more funds for each child over the age of 9 adopted and children with additional special needs.

I have spoken to a couple state offices that were awarded funds. They are very proud of what they have achieved and plan to continue to increase the number of adoptions in their state. All children are deserving of the safety and stability of a family.

States receiving the award are Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming. Puerto Rico also qualified for an incentive award.

“Hi there! My name is Piper. Your adventures in your growing world are so important that you are going to write them down in this life book. This is your story! You might have a caseworker, foster parents, or adoptive parents who can help you along as you write your story. They will also do their best to help you record information that you may not know.

As you work on your story, you might notice that you have a lot of different feelings. If the information is new to you, you might be excited to find out more about your life! However, there may be things that you think about and record that could make you sad or angry. Don’t worry! We’ll all help you on your journey. All of your feelings are important, and none of them are wrong to feel.

Enjoy the adventure of writing your story!!! If you need to skip a page, go for it! Try to take the time to come back to it later when you feel ready to work on it. It’s more important to think and feel through these pages than to complete each one quickly and in order. You’ll find that some of the pages are just for your enjoyment, and you might find some activities that you can do with other people too! Have fun creating your life book. Happy writing and drawing!”

Kathleen Carroll

Author of “My Growing World”

Piper the pig, Elley the elephant, BeeBear, Linus the giraffe, Hairy, and Fuzzyhead are characters in this memory book for foster children and kids that are adopted after foster experiences. Piper and all of the characters have had foster and adoption stories. This book has a special page about “moving day” which is most usually a traumatic and confusing day for children. Other special pages for child expression are “birth family tree” and “adoptive family tree”, “memories of foster homes”, “memories of adoption day” and many more sensitive subjects that are expounded upon for child therapy. The foster or adoptive parents and/or social workers are also easily engrossed in this beautiful book of artwork and therapeutic messaging. Each child’s story is different. Each adult that touches their life has a unique perspective. “My Growing World” caters to that important fact and allows for personal expression.

In addition to bibliotherapy, there are wonderful arts and crafts for the child. Dot-to-dots, musical motions (the child is asked to find a song they love and something to draw with and draw how the music makes them feel), coloring pages, mazes, word finds, and even a special list of child-friendly recipes. This concept for kids is to spend time in the kitchen getting to know their foster or adoptive parents better.

“My Growing World” is just one of Adoption World Specialties’ publications. We have resources for teenagers, social workers, case workers, agencies and more! Visit our main website at AdoptionWorld.net, and discover our world.

Kathy Mobley, Chuck Carpenter and Jim Ketchum will represent Adoption World Specialties. Our company aims to help foster and adoption situations by providing children with a lifebook and therapeutic, enjoyable guides to life. These life books and resources help children, parents, agencies and social workers document the child’s past and help engage, excite and educate the child about their adoption experience. Please visit our website for further information about our authors, our publications and meet our staff. We look forward to joining you on November 14^th function, in an effort to help facilitate a healthy transition for foster and adopted children.

www.adoptionworld.net

*If you are interested in adding a link to our page or if we could add ours to your page, please let me know! We can help more children if we reach out!

Ann Boland

aboland@cornerstonepress.net

]]> http://adoptionworld.net/blog/november-is-adoption-month/feed/ 0 http://adoptionworld.net/blog/the-characters-in-my-growing-world-foster-life-book/ http://adoptionworld.net/blog/the-characters-in-my-growing-world-foster-life-book/#comments Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:00:24 +0000 kmobley http://adoptionworld.net/blog/?p=118 The characters created by illustrator Lucy Cook-Taylor for “My Growing World” are very special.  This is the first time a foster life book has used such compelling artwork.  To get kids to pay attention to a lifebook, you need a visually interesting book.  Lucy’s art draws kids in and they relate to the characters.

It’s important to have whimsical, non-gender characters.  Piper (a pig) and Linus (a giraffe) lead kids through the book and Hairy and Fuzzyhead help illustrate points.  BeeBear and Lambabelle add interest and a friendly, comforting tone.  Historically, adoption life books have been boring and lacked color or visual interest.  But “My Growing World” breaks the barrier into creating something that is not only useful but fun to use.  Interesting graphics surround a great cast of characters.

This is a book social workers will enjoy using.

Jim Ketchum
Cornerstone Press