by Gayle Swift | Mar 12, 2025 | Adoptee experience, Adoption constellation, Adoption realities, Relationships, Relationships shaped by adoption
Blinders and Rose-colored Glasses My colleagues recently interviewed guest April Dinwoodie, adopted person, former CEO of the Donaldson Adoption Institute, podcaster, and activist on our podcast, Adoption Matters. Real People. Real Life. Real Talk. They discussed...
by Gayle Swift | Dec 11, 2024 | Adoptee experience, Adoptive family life, Adoptive relationships, holidays
During the holidays we can easily get caught up in a whirlwind of making things “more.” More fun-filled. More extravagant. More memorable—all of which can make the holidays MORE STRESSFUL. Of course, it is impossible to completely delete the material aspect from the...
by Gayle Swift | Jul 10, 2024 | Adoptee experience, Adoption Attuned Parenting, Adoption constellation, Adoption success, Adoptive parenting
This familiar phrase plays out on nearly every family journey. It always seems to take longer to get to a desired destination. Children nearly burst with a need to vocalize their barely restrained anticipation. Parents might be less vocal. Yet often, they too are...
by Gayle Swift | May 8, 2024 | Adoptee experience, Adoption constellation, Adoption products, Adoptive parenting
Adoption, Expectations, and Mothering Since 2011, this blog has shared thoughts and insights on many aspects of adoptive family life and relationships. Consequently, our expectations, thoughts, feelings, and understanding about adoption and mothering have evolved in...
by Gayle Swift | Mar 2, 2024 | Adoptee experience, Adoption Attunement, Adoption success, Adoptive parenting, Adoptive Parenting Skills/Tool|Blogs by Gayle Swift
In our previous blog, we named Isaac Etter as the 2024 recipient of our SHAPING THE FUTURE AWARD. We believe that his insightful work is making a difference in support of adoptees and the families who love them. We wanted to recognize how Isaac was shaping the...
by Gayle Swift | Feb 7, 2024 | Adoptee experience, Adoption Attunement, Adoption constellation, Adoptive parenting, Deep listening, Intentional conversations
Adoption. We’ve GOT to talk! Adoption is complicated and overflows with coexisting ambiguities. It both creates and fractures a family. Adopting parents gain a child. Birth parents lose a child. The adoptee loses his birth parents and family. He also gains adoptive...
