Well, it keeps getting better and better in Nebraska with their newly enacted safe haven law. With the law's wording of "child" and not infant, Nebraska parents are taking note and abandoning pre-teens and teens now at area hospitals without fear of prosecution for abandonment.

The word must be traveling because Nebraska has started to turn into a teen hot spot, and it's not for the dance music. It's for parents, and even grandparents, from out of state to drop off their troubled teens. Yes, Nebraska stated in the law that anyone can drop off a child in Nebraska. Kids, if grandma (or aunt, uncle, neighbor, or cousin Joe want to go on a long car ride, be suspicious. One frazzled Michigan mom drove nearly 12 hours to drop off her 13-year-old son. 12 hours on the road with any child may be enough to want to throw in the towel.

As parents most of us have had those days when we wonder, "What was I thinking? I chose to have these little people running around my house, on purpose." But we shake it off and all is right in the world when we get a Popsicle kiss or a dandelion bouquet.

However, as the kids grow, the kisses slow and the bouquets are long forgotten. We get the opportunity to parent struggling mini adults that throw two-year-old type tantrums. As adults we know nothing, the kids think they know everything and everything equals drama. Lots of drama.

However, abandoning your child is not OK. It may seem like it at the time, but it's not. Nebraska officials are very concerned about this trend and want struggling parents to know that this is not the answer. Seek help through resources in your area first and know that if you choose to drive to Nebraska, you may not be allowed to get your kids back, even if you change your mind.

This is not the intent of the law. The law was for children in immediate danger, especially infants.

What do you think of Nebraska's new law?

Thoughts on parents driving out of state to drop off troubled teens?
Click "comments" below and share or join us in the forum where we are discussing this topic.

SOURCE
2nd out-of-state teen dropped at Omaha hospital - seattlepi.com

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Suggested Reading

• A New Study Looks at Troubled Teens: Does Adoption Add to Troubled Teens?
• When a Child's Behavior Problem Threatens the Adoptive Family
• Rebuttal: Safe Haven Laws Seriously Flawed

Kimberly K. Emelyantsev was sentenced to 15 years in prison by a judge Friday, October 10 for the death of her adopted, 14-month-old Russian son. We first discussed this case last March, after Nikolai, adopted in February, died March 7, 2008, at a Utah hospital.

In June, Kimberly K. Emelyantsev pleaded guilty to second-degree felony child-abuse homicide and it's been reported by an attorney for Emelyantsev that she was suffering from a severe depressive disorder when the abuse occurred.

Emelyantsev and her husband had three biological children and another adopted child. 3 of the children, including Nicoli, were born with Down syndrome.

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SOURCE:
Mother sentenced in adopted son's death - The Associated Press.

Whenever I begin a new class of people training to become foster parents, there are always a few couples or singles in the group interested in fostering to adopt. They usually have many questions and are filled with excitement about adding to their family. Foster to adopt is not a quick route, but it is probably the least expensive one. There is such a great need as there are thousands of kids in foster care in need of homes within the U.S.

One of the main focuses during National Adoption Month, which is November, is the adoption of children in foster care. That is how our three boys joined our family, through foster care adoption. November is coming quickly. Is 2008 the year you decide to add to your family through foster care? November 5th is the date we finalized our adoption. Huh. I just thought of that.

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. I used to love dressing up (OK, I still do) and scaring trick-or-treaters as they came to our door. I was a rotten, rotten adolescent.

I have learned, however, that not every child enjoys enduring fright just to get a miniature Snickers bar. I would probably walk through an open flame for chocolate, but that's just me. We have had children in the past who have never trick-or-treated, or hadn't been out for a couple of years. When you're only seven-years-old and skipped Halloween the past two years, the memories are a bit mixed up.

So, I put together some quick ideas to help foster children or newly adopted children with Halloween and fall fun.

For those of you who have adopted internationally, how did you prepare your children for Halloween. It can be a bit scary for children who are completely new to the holiday.