Adoption Adventures

I was able to attend our regional agencies staff conference and hear about all the great work that they had been doing for the past year and their plans for the year ahead. It is really exciting to hear what they have been able to achieve and how they have been listening to their adopter community.    The year ahead looks set to be super exciting, can't wait to share more as the year progresses. ...

Show week is over, but the stage calls me back in 4 weeks!!! :-)    I have been consulting with adopters about their preparation training and how they found the experience, what was missing and what stood out, we are using this information to create a "uniformed" training across our region, to find the best parts and what else we could be doing to get parents ready for life as an adopter. I would...

It has been a super busy time and I have been reflecting on how our identities change and how we want our children to follow in some of our footsteps, we work to pay attention to their interests and hope that they have an interest in ours. Lately, Little Dude has shown a great interest in my hobby and I have loved it!     

After yet another uni tour, I wanted to catch up with you and let you know all that is happening with our Little Dude, I managed to also bring in a special guest to chat about everything, hope you enjoy it! 

As you scroll through your social media you will, I am sure, see many photos of children standing in front of doorways getting ready to go back to school or for their first day. It has got me thinking about how that has felt over the years and the varied emotions that can bring, I share them with you in this episode. 

Dad and I went away to the Edinburgh fringe festival, we had a great time, but this was a perfect moment for Little Dude to test the boundaries and see what limits there were in life, I was far from amused at my discovery and I thought I would share the whole thing with you! 

This week the Little Dude got back from his Army Cadet camp, he had lots to talk about from the trip, it then lead us to think about university and what life could look like. I then attended an Adoption Information event where I met two groups of prospective adopters and got to hear some great thoughts and views. Finally, today was our last day of training with the new agency that I have partnered...

I have had 2 recent interactions on Twitter which got me thinking and wondering about who you can save and who you need to let go. It helped me to reflect on what I can do and indeed what I can't. It's ok if you are not perfect, it is fine if you are not able to help everyone.    But what about that child that you felt you had to say no to? Or that person who has reached out and needs support, but...

I took Little Dude out for a trip to view a university and he also took us out for a drive! All of these huge milestones happening and we were asked to share more about it and then more about any fears we had when he was young, so here is the update from our trips and what we thought would happen.    Thank you so much for listening, if you have a story you would like to share with our audience or...

I have started delivering training with a new agency and it is really good fun, I am learning new things and having new conversations which are great. I have also found out about a new app called Youbo which I shall share with you...let me know what you make of it!     

Well, not quite, but I did get to meet one and have a great conversation about our journey during the filming of a documentary which will be coming out in February 2023, obviously I will share more when I can, but I get to talk through what I expected and then what happened....enjoy...And please contact my agent for any further questions! 

Through a number of meetings and group sessions I have been able to talk about foster carers, matching and introductions and how this can affect us all. It brought to light some scary stories and some wonderful ones too! 

The boys and I went on holiday, so I was able to lock them down to get on the podcast, I asked for some questions to be asked and get the views they had. The recording is split into a few chapters, but I am sure you get why. :-) 

You're the first one in your group to be approved.  You're the first one in your group to find a match.    How do you begin to tell your support group and make sure that they remain your support group?    This week we are talking about just this, a listener is in this position and is really worried that it could upset people and want to know how best to manage it, a truly lovely question. Let's se...

I asked on Instagram if there were any questions or topics you wanted discussed, I had 4 great topics to chat about.  -Linkmaker/Matches and the frustrations  -Worries for the birth family -Pre-stage 1 worries -Early days issues    I have covered each of these topics in todays episode and hope that you enjoy hearing my views. Drop me a line if you need more details 

It has come to the time when Little Dude is ready to open his letter and go through the details. This was a really interesting chapter in our world and I am hoping that it will give you all some great things to think about and to consider for your little ones too.    Thank you so much for listening, if you have a story you would like to share with our audience or comments you would like to add, yo...

Charlotte reached out to me following last weeks episode, she had been to parliament to discuss contact and the language that we use. Charlotte is a birth mum and shares her story with us. It was great hearing from her perspective and seeing what good contact can do for all parties. And just wait until she gives you the top tip for adopters!    You can find Charlotte here:    https://charlottebutl...

I have been asked to delve into the topic of changing the term contact into 'keeping in touch' and to see what people thought about the idea. I reached out to our supporters and the results were rather interesting....have a listen to learn more. 

Recently as part of Adopter Voice, we went out to our network to ask families about their children's behaviours and what support has been a positive impact on them, it made for a really interesting read and I thought I would share the responses with you and then our recommendations to the board. 

It is show week, which means, time is not on my side and I must away to my pages (if you see the show, that line means a lot more!).    I had just a small amount of time to give you an update on where we are and what is happening in our world, hope you enjoy. 

A few weeks ago we chatted all about the funding that is available, I discussed the ASF and what it was used for, and I shared some worries that I had about the fund and its uses. So, I went on an investigation to find out more, here you will learn what I have learned.    Thank you so much for listening, if you have a story you would like to share with our audience or comments you would like to ad...

The language that we use is so important, the impact that it has can quite often be missed, but we have to consider the long-term effects. In today's episode, I share some of the experiences of language that I have had and some of the thoughts I have about the impact. I would love to hear your views too.    If you have a story to tell and would like to be a guest on the show, please drop me a line...

I was asked if I could put an episode together breaking down the acronyms within the world of adoption. I am hoping that the episode will help you navigate the crazy world of this new language. Let me know if I have missed any acronyms that you need me to explain. :-) 

I have been asked to support setting up a new LGBTQ+ group and wanted to add some changes to it, I have spoken before briefly about being part of the LGBTQ+ community, but am hoping that this episode will just delve a little deeper and ask some questions for others.    I have made some comments in this episode and tried to explain certain aspects of the LGBTQ+ community but fully appreciate that I...

Following last week's episode, I am pleased to announce that Little Dude asked us to have a family day out and it could not have come at a better time, we had a great day and it allowed me to reflect on some great moments that we have shared and the incredible man that our son is becoming.    Hope you enjoy the update from our latest adventure!