AdopTalk Seminar

Tomorrow I will be hitting the highway and travelling 2.5 hours north to attend a 2 day AdopTalk seminar which is being put on by Children's Bridge. Even though I'm not using Children's Bridge as my agency I could still attend by of course paying a little more!! I really think it will helpful and hopefully I will come home with learning lots!! A big bonus is that I will be able to meet up with some of my bloggy friends that I have been talking with for months such as Lorraine & Rowan, Norma, Liam & Sherry-Lou and of course I will be travelling with Jeff & Cory.

Here is the outline of the seminar:

1) Coming Home- The “Coming Home” workshop will provide couples/singles with strategies to transition into parenthood. After attending the workshop, the participants will learn how to meet their child’s physical and emotional needs. Also, participants will discover the importance of establishing a support system for themselves through this transition period.

2) Health Matters- The “Health Matters” workshop will provide support and guidelines for families with infants, toddlers and preschool children. The goal of the workshop is to create awareness around the various health issues that our children will face when adopted internationally and provide resources and support for those families who need help.

3) Bonding & Attachment- “Bonding and Attachment” will provide pre-adoption support for families preparing to create their family through adoption. After attending the workshop the participants may become more aware of the issues around attachment, bonding and separation anxiety. “Make the Connection” methodology will also be used in this workshop.

4) Interracial Issues in Adoptive Families- The “Interracial Issues in Adoptive Families” workshop will provide support and strategies for families with children adopted from a different racial background. After attending the workshop, the participants will become more aware of the greater identity challenges their children will face and will be given effective strategies to assist their children with this special challenge.

5) Talking to your child about Adoption- The “Talking to Your Child About Adoption” workshop will provide participants with the tools and resources to support their child throughout the ages and stages of development. As well, the participants will learn the importance of networking within the adoption community and accessing post adoption services.

6) Journey of a Lifetime: Trip Preparation- In the "Journey of a Lifetime - Trip Preparation" workshop, prospective adoptive parents will learn about the referral process, and will also be provided with practical tips for their adoption travel journey.

We will start our day off tomorrow by of course doing a little "shoppy" and then we plan on meeting up with a few others for coffee/drinks. We will probably go to bed early as the seminar starts bright and early Saturday morning. Then for supper on Saturday Lorraine has made arragements for a large group of us to go to a Chinese restaurant for supper. I cant wait!!

Here is what someone who had attended the seminar before said:

“It’s BOOT CAMP for adoptive parents!”