Setting the Holiday Table in Complex Times: Nourishing Family Narratives
by April Dinwoodie TRJ Executive Director When I was growing up, my mom would always say a beautiful and simple Thanksgiving prayer. Every year, we’d close our eyes, hold hands, and listen to her voice rise and fall. The smell of turkey filled the air, and for a few moments everything felt still. I remember feeling thankful—surrounded by love, warmth, and the familiarity of family. But I also remember the ache—the quiet wondering. My family of origin was never mentioned read more
November Nourishment: Sustaining Strong and Healthy Families
Thanksgiving can be one of the more complicated historical holidays, and for many in the United States, one of the more family and food-centric holidays. Whether you are a family that chooses not to mark Thanksgiving in a traditional way, or your family goes all out with a big Thanksgiving celebration, this month we are thinking about the family table and what might be true when there are differences of race and culture with transracial adoption. November also brings National read more
Revealing: What’s Under The Mask
Whether you participate in Halloween or not, October 31st has many children and the young at heart dressing up in costumes and wearing masks. But what is behind the masks you don’t see? What do they reveal? Read this month's feature article by April Dinwoodie, "Behind the Mask: The truth about belonging, identity, and the narratives we navigate" for more perspective. Additional previous posts published on this topic over the years include: "Masks, Masking, and Mental Health." and Costumes and Code-Switching: read more
September: Navigating Life with Clarity and Confidence
In September we focus on navigating to move through life with clarity and confidence as it can relate to our family's relationship to the calendar. As we make our way through the year there are so many ways we can use the calendar to lean into conversations about the uniqueness of our families. Being thoughtful about how our families have to navigate the world differently and talking openly about what we might face can help ease the impact. This month, read more
August – Growing: Always Learning
Back to school is a time of transition for children and families. It’s a time to be thoughtful about what children need when they go into schools every day. A great way to prepare children from families that don’t match is by having intentional conversations about differences of race and ethnicity as well as family structure and culture. Read "Back to School, Plugged In and Present" this month's featured article, for more on the unique educational challenges faced by our read more
July – Expanding: Exploring Our Unique Identities
As we all learn more about our history and what freedom really means, July 4th gives us much to contemplate. Who is really free and when? Freedom related to adoption and exploring the truth of who we are as individuals and families is foundational and important. Read more about why Frederick Douglass and his speech "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" in this month's Black Excellence post. And learn how our 2025 Family Camp celebrates culture and read more
June Father’s Day: Family Titles, Roles, and Relationships
Officially celebrating Father’s Day came a bit later than Mother’s Day and there are many of the same things to think about and reflect on as we come to this day that is all about acknowledging the fathers and father figures in our lives. In adoption father’s of origin or birth/first fathers are often thought of after mothers. Sometimes there can be even less information about fathers and it can be harder to open up a conversation about the role read more
Mother’s Day: Family Titles, Roles, and Relationships
As a country we have been celebrating Mother’s Day since the 19th century, honoring women who play a pivotal role in the lives of children of any age. For some, Mother’s Day can bring feelings of both celebration and complexity. In adoption, mothers of origin or birth/first mothers play a vital role in the lives of children they are born to and separated from. It’s important that you have open and loving conversations about different ways mothers and mother figures read more
April Exploring: What’s in a Name?
Our names are central and significant to who you are and, in essence, can be the keystone of identity. When your child is adopted, there’s another world, another narrative, and perhaps another name that accompanies them along their identity journey. The way in which we build a strong and healthy identity often begins with our names as one of our central and original “keystone” building blocks. June-in-April Calendar Conversation Cards TRJ invites your family to experience the calendar in a read more
Preparing: Adoption Microaggressions… Lucky Me?
Being Prepared as a Transracial Family Have you had strangers ask inappropriate questions of you and your family? “Is she/he/them yours?” “Where are they from?” “Your child is SO lucky”. These invasive questions are part of being a family that does not match and where differences of race are obvious to the world around you. It is important to be prepared for these intrusions. March Pro-Tip to Foster Conversations About Transracial Adoptions At TRJ we send our families conversation cues read more