Here's what's going on in my household these days...

Little J is doing super on his medication for ADHD, although I think something went awry with his dose at school yesterday because it was like a flashback to pre-meds last night. I will be wuite relieved when he goes to longer-acting meds. He has a dramatic and unpleasant reaction when they start to wear off and I'd like to spare him that if at all possible. He's going for his 4-year-old check-up this morning and then will have a fun day with Mommy! I'm excited. We have a favorite place to eat (the... more

I recently became aware that the phenomenon of precocious, or premature puberty, is much more common in children adopted internationally than in the population at large. At least according to a Danish study.

According to Kidshealth.com, these are the signs of precocious puberty:

In girls, the telltale signs of precocious puberty include any of the following before 7 or 8 years of age:

breast... more

I know I am giving my age away by quoting this old public service message about the dangers of drugs, but that slogan has been on my mind for the past week or so, largely because we have made the choice to give my younger son drugs for ADHD. Drugs specifically meant to effect his brain. Therefore: this is your brain, this is your brain on drugs.

Drugs = frying your brain.

In Little J's case, if I were able to redo the commercial it might first picture an egg frying in a pan,... more

In the last installment of this story, our anxious couple was waiting in a room in an orphanage in Somovo, Russia, waiting to meet their new little boy!

But wait - I just remembered a part of the story that I'd forgotten. We won't get to meet little Yuri (that was Little J's Russian name) yet.

After we visited with the social worker we were then taken to see the orphanage doctor.

I don't know who I had expected as the orphanage doctor - a man? an older woman? but the doctor who we met was very young - probably in her mid 20s - and the first Russian... more

When last we saw our expectant couple they were in a van, hurtling through the Russian countryside, feeling sick from all the swerving to avoid potholes and trying desperately to take it all in so they would never forget.

After traveling about 15 minutes through birch forests and past ponds, we came to the village of Somovo. This was most fascinating to us. It was the middle of the day and there seemed to be sort-of farmer's market going on. The town was basically one street with some shops and some tables where people were selling various items. We saw... more

Over the past few weeks I've been doing school visits to various local schools (mostly year-round, which is why I visited in August). I talk to them about adoption, about writing, and about my book, When I Met You: A Story of Russian Adoption.

I wrote about my classroom visits a bit at the end of the last school year (in this blog entry, this... more

Well folks, it's only taken about 6 months from our first social worker visit to our most recent pediatric psychiatric trip but Little J has finally been diagnosed...with ADHD. Complete with his very own prescription.

After spending 6 months searching and reading every single ADHD website and about 5 ADHD books (more are in my pile) I wasn't the least bit surprised by the dx, but it still managed to unsettle me a little. I guess it's because now, when I read the books, instead of focusing on Little J's symptoms and thinking 'this has to be it,'... more

Someone (yeah, I'm talking to you, Mom) has accused me of being too negative on this blog (because of the last post I wrote about John Belushi) so I decided it's time for me to focus on the super great side of life for a change. I am, after all, a glass half-full kind of gal.

First, things are moving along in the accreditation slow-down. European Adoption Coalition, Frank, WorldLinks, Happy Families, International Assistance Group, and Small World Adoption Foundation all have received approval of NGO status and seems like that means reaccreditation is right around the corner.

Here are some nice links... more

Oh my friends are so funny! They think Little J is like a mini John Belushi, or rather Bluto, the character he played in Animal House . Apparently because he's the life of the party, often runs around screaming and grunting, and if, at 4, he could be doing keg stands, he would be doing them...

This strikes fear into my heart.

It's pretty easy to imagine Little J as a frat boy if you just see him in public situations. When we walk into pre-k in the morning, everyone gravitates to my boy. "Little J's here!" they all say. When he puts... more

Yesterday morning was a typical one in our house. Mom and Dad get up, kids get up, Mom makes kids breakfast, Dad goes to work.

It's like we're the Cleavers or something!

But then something not-very-50s sitcom happens, like my youngest one doesn't eat...and doesn't eat...and doesn't eat....

Instead, he talks, or pokes his brother, or looks out the window, or jumps up from the breakfast table to run around the house, or decides he needs to hug Mommy or scream at the cat or go to the bathroom. He doesn't play with toys (because they're... more