Children who have suffered the loss of one of their parents, even at an age in which we would assume would be too young for the child to remember, will most likely at some point or another in their lives suffer from bouts of depression as a direct result of that loss. Depression symptoms can often be overlooked in children, especially when parents think that the child does not have anything to be depressed about.

If the child was adopted at a very young age, the... more

There is a wonderful little list on adoption.com that has ten tips on speaking with your child about his or her adoption. The list gives some great suggestions on not only what to say, but more importantly how to say it. If you are thinking about talking with your child about his or her stepparent adoption, and not quite sure how to approach the subject, or if you should approach the subject, stop by this... more

Yesterday I wrote about some different ways to approach the subject of adoption with your adopted stepchild. One of the ideas on broaching the topic was to read stories about adoption with your adopted stepchild. Adoption.com has a wonderfully written, and heartwarming story written by Mark Schneider, for his adopted children, about their own adoption and how their family came to be. While writing a story for your child is an excellent idea, those... more

Very young children may not be able to understand what adoption truly means, but they will be able to pick up on mom or dad’s body language, and if the parents seem uncomfortable, and nervous, then the child will feel the same way. Children should not feel uncomfortable about their adoption. It is part of them, and their life story, and it is nothing to be ashamed of. If the parents seem confident and upbeat, the child will feel the same, and have no issues bringing the topic back up when they have more questions. If the child feels that his or... more

Again on the adoption.com forums, this is a hot topic. Some lawyers require that the child be told before they will go forward with a stepparent adoption case, some families get pressure from friends and family members, and some parents are simply not sure as to when the right time to ‘reveal’ to the child that he or she is adopted should be. Some feel that waiting is best, while others want things out in the open as soon as possible, and are just unsure... more

April 25, 2007 will mark the second annual Parental Alienation Awareness Day, Which was started by the Parental Alienation Awareness Organization, or PAAO. This organization was created to help get the word out about parental alienation, as well as hostile aggressive parenting. This year there will be a workshop, sponsored by the PAAO, as well as PsyCare held in Palmetto, FL from April 14 through the 15th.

The workshop will cover legal, psychological, social, and familial aspects of Parental Alienation, child abduction, child... more

Recently I wrote a post about how a county in Ohio is attaching posters to pizza boxes featuring the photos and last known addresses of parents who are failing to pay their court ordered child support. This is the first county in America to think outside the box in such a manner, and try to go above in beyond when it comes to catching parents who are not taking on responsibility for the children that they have created.

However, one reader brought up a great point. What about the parents, the custodial parents, who go out of their way... more

Three pizzerias in Ohio have decided to think outside the [pizza] box and help find parents who don’t pay their child support. Instead of attaching a poster of coupons to the pizza box as so many establishments do these days, they are attaching a poster of a different kind, a wanted poster. Ten different deadbeat parents are featured on the poster, pictures along with last known addresses, followed by a toll free number, a tip line if you will, for pizza lovers to call in if they have any information regarding one of the faces on the poster.

The... more

With about two trips of randomly circling the parking lot, and a lurch out of nowhere towards the curb with an abandoned building behind it, which had the voice in my head screaming “Oh Lord this is it, here we either die or the insurance goes through the roof, JUMP, now, before its too late,” yet he managed to swerve the car back towards the entire empty large space of the parking lot, and bring the car to rest back at the same spot we had begun.

He sat there for a moment, and finally I reached over and put the car in park before he managed... more

He jumped out of the car and walked quickly around to the drivers side and hopped right on in, buckling up his seat belt. I got in the passenger side, and buckled up, while he firmly placed his foot on the gas peddle, revving the engine quite hard. “I am going to die in a church parking lot” was the first thought to come to mind, as I gently reminded him that he had to take the car out of ‘park.’ I got the typical ‘oh yeah’ response from a teenager who is half listening as he grabbed the shifter and began yanking at it with all of his might. “Yep,... more