I can say I don’t believe in fate, unless it is a fate directly connected to God’s ultimate design and plan for our lives. We ebb and flow through life, many of us hoping that we are landing somewhere within His will for our lives. This is why I don’t believe fate took us to…
Read MoreAll articles filed in Tracy Dee Whitt
Supporting adoptive and foster families and families living with autism.
most recent article
My article, Connecting with Compassion is in the June issue of Adoption Today. The issue focuses on Neglect and Trauma. Click on the photo to view it. Bonus: This issue is being offered FREE!!! Additional bonus: My daughter’s on the front cover!
Read Moreis this a vacation?
After a week of vacation from down-under (of which I will go into detail at a later time), we made our way across Nebraska. A storm loomed above us so ominous that I was intent on watching for tornadoes out all windows and the sunroof. After checking into the hotel my husband, Justin, opened the…
Read Morerocking: a simple first step to bonding, and it doesn’t just apply to infants
Have you found that discipline and having consequences for negative behavior doesn’t work with your hurting child? As one mom phrased it, “They don’t care.” So, our first goal is to focus on creating a bond. As you work on making connections with your child, be sure to keep in mind that this is a…
Read Morehow Paradoxical Parenting works
I will be writing an extremely important post on bonding next week and this information will be helpful in implementing the upcoming technique. But first, I would like to say that there is no quick fix for our hurting children. The information below is not an instant solution, but it will help you move forward…
Read Morelet’s bond already – creating attachment with an adopted child
When our daughter, Payton, came to us, she was young, but she was completely broken. Naive people have said to us, “It’s a good thing she was so young when she came to you, she won’t be affected by what happened.” That’s the generally held consensus isn’t it? If a child is removed from a…
Read Moresigns of neglect, trauma, and attachment issues
My last post delved into attachment issues and what we need to know so we can begin helping our children. In that post, I said we would be looking at what attachment issues can look like and how we might not notice them. I would like to change that verbiage a little. I will be…
Read Moreattachment in adoption – the first things we need to know
In Chris Cleave’s novel Little Bee, he writes Little Bee’s thoughts, “Take it from me, a scar does not form on the dying. A scar means I survived.” This makes me think of our adopted children who struggle with attachment issues because they have scars. A scar also means they’ve been through a traumatic experience.…
Read Morewhat creates a resilient adopted child?
You’ve probably heard the phrase, “Children are resilient.” I’ve heard naive adults, who have no concept of what pain a child carries when they are neglected and abused say this, but worse than that is when I hear an adoptive parent place this expectation on a hurting child. The latter shocks me the most. If…
Read MoreTemple Grandin shares her perspective on Autism
In this video, Temple Grandin has some great tips for parents of Autistic children. She touches on so many issues in the Autism realm. Here are some points she expounds upon: Slowly stretch your child: Give them opportunities to do activities that expand their current reality. Have them take turns with a sibling every day.…
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lovin' adoptin' & autism 