As I have said previously, I believe that creating a lifebook for our foster and adopted children is one of the most important things we can do for them. A lifebook contains the chronological history of a child’s life, pictures, artwork, memorabilia, along with information that reflects a child’s understanding of the difficulties and changes that have occurred in his or her life. The lifebook also highlights and celebrates the child’s strengths, hopes and dreams. For a child, lifebook work is a path to their memories and to a reinterpretation of their memories. It is also a path to understanding and integrating their memories. Lifebooks are great for children in foster care or who have been adopted. They promote healing and provide concrete understanding of the reasons why they were unable to return to their birth families. Lifebooks give children permission to love and cherish their adoptive families as well as their birth families.

The “Putting the Pieces Together” DVD provides instruction on how to do Lifebook work with children using a teamwork approach. It was great to see how the lives of these children have been impacted in a positive way by being able to discuss and work through issues they are dealing with. It made me very proud to see that the teenage girl on the video was using our teen lifebook, The Real Me. She had very high praise for what our lifebook meant to her and how it helped her. Making lifebooks available to the children is such a rewarding experience for me.

Help me get the word out. Lifebooks are great!

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.

The Real Me is an empowering, contemporary life book for teenagers. It helps teens explore and document the many sides of their personality. This is an exceptional book that quickly distinguishes itself as a must have for young adults in foster care or adoption.

Each chapter allows the teenager to express their feelings and gives powerful inspiration along the way:

“Who Am I Today?” I am more than what others think of me… more than my fears and anxieties… more than my appearance. I am more than my actions or any labels that the world may place upon me!

“Where I Came From” I need to revisit my childhood in order to understand how I got where I am today. I may feel sad or angry or hurt. I can’t change the past, but I can make peace with it! Then I’ll be ready to move on, taking the best of my memories with me.

“What My Future Holds” The future is a promise that I make to myself. I will not be limited by the past or the choices of others. I will follow my dreams and meet every challenge. I will reach out to others when I need assistance and offer a helping hand in return. I will be the best that I can be… I promise!

There are very few adoption lifebooks out there that focus on the teenager perspective. The Real Me is a very special life book and caters to fostered youth as well as a teen that has finally come into an adoptive situation. For the parental perspective, an older child brings unique challenges. For both the teenager and the parent, this life book encourages growth together through documentation of feelings and happenings that have lead you to be together.

Please visit our informational articles about the adoption process as it applies to foster parenting, adopting and the special children in our care.

]]> http://adoptionworld.net/blog/the-real-me-adoption-life-book/feed/ 0 http://adoptionworld.net/blog/adoption-lifebooks-from-adoption-world-specialties/ http://adoptionworld.net/blog/adoption-lifebooks-from-adoption-world-specialties/#comments Tue, 04 Aug 2009 05:56:14 +0000 kmobley http://adoptionworld.net/blog/?p=84 Adoption Lifebooks from Adoption World Specialties

Adoption World Specialties is exactly what its name describes – we are specialists on the subject of adoption and foster-to-adopt situations. Discover our world at www.AdoptionWorld.net and you’ll see the variety of bibliotherapy products we have which encompass the child, the parent, the social worker. Our adoption life books and foster life books as well as our teen adoption life books are distinctly different from all other literature on the subject. Each family’s situation is unique and special – our life books help to document the story of the child as he or she enters the world of foster care or adoption.

I am President of Adoption World Specialties, and proud to invite you to our adoption life books and foster care books website. I am excited to be a part of such a wonderful cause, and join the dedicated staff at www.AdoptionWorld.net!

My background is in business development for a printing and publishing company. I jumped at the chance to lead this special adoption life book company because it’s a cause that is close to my heart. Both my daughter and son are adopted. I know, first hand, how adoption life books can open up conversations that help heal.

I am so excited to represent our adoption life book authors Donna Barnes and Terri McCoy. They are a mother/daughter team that started writing adoption books for foster and adopted children in 1992. Donna’s expertise comes from raising 4 foster / adopted children. Her daughter Terri has many years of professional experience as a social worker in the adoption field.

This new adoption lifebook and foster book web site is part of our effort to be more accessible. I would like your feedback. Write to me at kmobley@adoptionworld.net and tell me what you like and what you would like to see changed about this website and our adoption books.

I look forward to learning more about you and helping you meet your adoption book needs!

Professionals agree that all children need to have their story documented and accessible. This is especially true for “system kids” who shuffle from home to home, losing their stories along the way.

Until now, “documenting” has been easier said than done. When given a blank scrapbook, foster parents often feel overwhelmed or “creatively challenged”, and, consequently, put this task aside…or forget altogether.

Here at Adoption World, we want to provide you with all of the materials you need to make connections with a child. Whether the child is in foster care or adopted, preserving the details of their life is so important. There are many ways to keep their precious memories safe. One way is to scrapbook. It is a fun and interactive way to document all of the child’s milestones.

Our book called “Your Foster Care Memory Book” is an easy to use scrapbook for the foster parent. It allows concise, practical documentation of a single placement. The book starts with a place for the child’s name so they can keep it with them always. Then onto an intro letter that explains to the child what the book is for. The pages of the scrapbook guide you seamlessly through the process. The information and photos that you collect will be treasured by the child for years to come.

The “Your Foster Care Memory Book” comes with a large “Stuff to Save” envelope that allows the child to keep their treasures together in one place.

Theresa writes: “Dear Social Worker, Preparing a child for adoption is vital to a successful placement. This pre and post-adoption workbook is intended for individual use with a school-age child. Some activities, however, may be incorporated into a group setting. This workbook addresses not only the mechanical process of adoption, but also the feelings, fears and questions that may arise in the child. Exercises are based on 26 years of hands-on experience placing ‘special needs’ children. Adapt this curriculum to any unique circumstance and supplement as needed. In addition, I recommend the use of life books to help adopted children document their life stories and to understand better the issues concerning their past.”

My Adoption Workbook addresses key elements of the process: What Is Adoption? How birth parents and children get separated; a judge decides; why you are separated from your birth parents; it’s alright to remember. How Adoption Gets Started includes important adoption facts; the social worker’s job; the plan for my adoption; questions to ask your social worker; you are worth it; what I like about myself. What Are Adoptive Families Like? Some like pizza… Some don’t; wishing while you wait; a picture in your mind; what about trust?; what does trust mean to you?; Parents show love in many ways; love is more than hugs and kisses. Meeting a family who wants to adopt includes feelings; I wonder…; Parents have questions, too!; Visiting is an important step; getting ready for your first meeting; first overnight and first long visit; your adoptive family is chosen. Moving In – Pack up and saying good bye; living with your new family, changes to get used to; thinking of people you care about; and they lived happily ever after; more than a family member. A Forever Family focuses on finalizing your adoption; questions and answers about finalization; David’s finalization day. The Appendix has games, commitment ceremony, candle ceremony and adoption pledges.

Excerpt from What Is Adoption: Because you and your birth parents cannot live together, it is necessary to find another family who will love and care for you. This adoption book will help you understand why you and your birth parents are separated and all the steps that will be taken to find a new family that is right for you. Becoming part of that new family is called “adoption”.

At Adoption World Specialties, we trust that you will find this pre/post adoption workbook helpful in preparing a child to make a “love connection”. It is dedicated to all children who are still waiting… and hoping for a new family. To learn more about this workbook, our adoption life books and adoption life story books, foster life books targeted at children and parents in foster situations, and the variety of bibliotherapy we have to offer please visit us at www.adoptionworld.net and discover our world.