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Foster and adopted children face educational obstacles that go beyond typical academic struggles. Frequent moves and school changes disrupt their learning. Trauma impacts memory, focus, and emotional regulation in the classroom. Learning gaps accumulate when children move between districts or miss school during transitions between placements. These students often need specialized student support to thrive... Read More

We think abandonment looks like Moses set adrift in the bulrushes, a baby left on the steps of a convent, or when Hansel and Gretel were left in the woods to fend for themselves. There are all sorts of abandonment. The Merriam Webster dictionary defines abandonment as “left without needed protection, care, or support”. As... Read More

Earlier this week I spoke with a mother who homeschools her three daughters and is fiercely committed to protecting them from what she sees as a dangerous world. I understand her fear. Many of us feel it. And yet, I also believe that much of childhood’s work is learning how to live among others. To... Read More

You don’t need big plans to make great memories. The most meaningful moments often happen in the simplest settings, where kids laugh freely and conversations happen naturally. Meaningful family time is really just about being present with each other. Here in Arizona, there are many ways to enjoy family time without spending much at all.... Read More

I apologize in advance for struggling today. Things are happening in our country that remind me too much of the shooting at Ohio State in 1970. In the past weeks, two citizens have been killed in Minnesota by people poorly trained for their jobs in law enforcement. I will not debate the facts nor defend... Read More

He may have been the young man I remember walking down the hall toward me from reception. On a Saturday night his single row of shoulder length hair would have been backcombed and doused with enough got to be glue that it would stand up an impressive 9 inches off his head. In that moment,... Read More

As I write this, yesterday was Thanksgiving and 2025 is coming to a close so I’m pretty wrapped up in wrapping up a mixed bag of a year. I think a lot about the effects of our current digital world on our children. Before laptops and cell phones, there were radios and televisions. Watching the... Read More

Some of you live with young adults facing a workplace unlike anything you have experienced. I remember when an oil company where I worked embarked upon the process of converting from punch card data entry to dumb terminal user data entry. I was their selected trainer (much to my surprise). I trained about 200 people... Read More

I want to discuss boundaries today from two different perspectives: boundaries or the lack thereof often observed in children with chronic trauma histories and boundaries for you as caretaker. This won’t be easy. It won’t be easy for me and it won’t be easy for you. Promise. Boundaries serve us and protect us. They organize... Read More

How do we prepare a young human to enter the adult world ready to participate? Let’s take a few minutes to look a little closer at our parental roles with an eye to which ones work toward this goal and which work against it. Those that are critical for children under 7 must yield to... Read More