Today, Colin and I took a little drive to Eau Claire to go to a 4-hour adoptive parent education group, required by our home study agency.
It was so wonderful!
There were only two other couples there, both of whom were preparing for domestic adoptions. An intimate group, which was perfect for getting to know each other and asking plenty of questions.
The social workers leading the group were all from adoptive families. It is one thing to read material based on research, but to have education and experiences come straight from adoptive families is such a great learning experience.
We learned a ton about:
cocooning
attachment
triggers of grief
trust
identity
trans-racial families
coping
positive adoption language
talking to extended family
sharing with our children their birthstories
and more!
We were also given information on adoptive families and adoptive mom get-togethers in Wisconsin. This is a huge blessing! We live in such a small town, that we don't know anybody within an hour's drive that has adopted from Ethiopia. So, it is nice to know of get-togethers happening within a few hours of where we live.
Overall, a beautiful day!
(Minus the 90-something degree weather we have and will be having for over a week! HOT!)
Yay! Another thing checked off the list. I love that you got to meet adoptive families. It will be so awesome to have that support system! I am so proud of all that you and Colin have accomplished so far! And it's only going to get better!
ReplyDeleteWonderful to hear that everything is going so well :)) Great news xoxo
ReplyDeleteI am so jealous of the training you had in person! :) We had all our courses over the web, watching old videos, and we don't have near the interaction you did and will do in the future! That is GREAT!!!
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