Fifteen years ago, two professors from the University of Pittsburgh were invited to go to Russia by city government officials in St. Petersburg. The Soviet Union had dissolved, and with it, a lot of government support for child welfare initiatives. What policies, what services should we put in place, the city fathers asked the academics?

But while Robert McCall and Christina Groark, respectively a professor... more

If you are at all apprehensive of how a child who has been living in a Russian orphanage will bond with you and your family, I want you to read Susan's March 6 post on her blog "Our Forever Family".

There is always a lot of discussion about bonding issues on adoption chat boards, particularly when the subject of Russia comes up. But these issues were thrown into high relief after November 2005, when psychologists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison released a... more

Continued from part 2.

I'm writing about a great article I found in the International Adoption Articles Directory, called "Oppositional Defiant Disorders," that talks about the difference between ODD and attachment disorders, although many of the behaviors overlap.

Here's how he explains you can tell the difference between the two:

Children with ODD are most effectively treated with a program that begins with paying attention to and reinforcing... more

Continued from part 1.

I'm writing about a great article I found in the International Adoption Articles Directory, called "Oppositional Defiant Disorders," that talks about the difference between ODD and attachment disorders, although many of the behaviors overlap.

What is most interesting about the article, however, is that Dr. Art explains the similarity... more

Sharlene's recent post about ODD got me thinking about my little bundle of love, Little J. Little J has some of the characteristics of a child with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD). He is almost 4 1/2, but sometimes he acts like a 2-year-old screaming "no!" at normal requests that shouldn't elicit such a strong response.

Imagine the scene. I am the uber-mom, calm and collected (HAHAHAHA...I do try):

"Little J, it's your turn to set the table." "No! No!... more