I hadn’t planned on making this a weekly feature, but there were a lot more articles worth sharing in a short amount of time.  When I started the draft for this, the big news was the Justin Harris case in Arkansas.  As I finished it up, all of the China adoption community online was discussing an adoption disruption where a girl who had waited two years for her family to complete the adoption process to the point of travel, was left behind with just a few weeks remaining until her 14th birthday when she will no longer be eligible for adoption.  The family allegedly declined to adopt her because of her trouble walking, although her special need was cerebral palsy affecting her legs.  There are a lot of thoughts swirling in my mind about the many discussions happening about these events, so you might expect another “most depressing adoption blog” post in the future.  For now, I can only point to the timeliness of the NHBO disruption/dissolution series and urge you to read Amy Eldridge’s concluding post which is much better than anything I could have penned on the topic.

Casting Out Demons– Very detailed account of the Justin Harris case in Arkansas.  This case has been in the news, and it is a worst case scenario of a family who felt that God was calling them to adopt a specific sibling group despite being warned by many professionals in the adoption community that they were not a good fit for that family.

When orphan care goes bad– Russell Moore is a big figure in the evangelical adoption movement.  Many couples point to his Adopted For Life as a catalyst in their decision to adopt.  In light of the Justin Harris case, Moore writes a nuanced essay acknowledging the challenges of adoption and calling for community support which continues after the adoption.

The Ghost Children – A long article in the Globe and Mail about the life consequences for those born without a permit in China.  You might also enjoy an article I had already posted in China 101 about a racially mixed Chinese boy who was informally adopted, and finally was able to receive the hukuo.

Are You Cut Out To Adopt More Than One At A Time? – Creating a Family gives a list of characteristics of families who are successful at adopting two unrelated children at once.  I shared this in a group, and it was interesting to see how many families who had adopted two at once said they met all or most of the characteristics.  Similarly, it confirmed that adopting one at a time was the best choice for our family.

Part IV from the NHBO series on disruption/dissolution.  This is is written from the perspective of a family who adopted from a dissolution.

Amy Eldridge, of Love Without Boundaries, pens the final installment in the disruption/dissolution series.  Disruption: 3 things for parents to consider is an absolute must read.