Natasha and I recently toured a food bank. I was amazed to find out that about 11% of the United States population are food insecure.

I delighted in Natasha's very developmentally appropriate behavior during the tour. Natasha is now 10 years old and came home from the orphanage 6.5 years ago.

Her longest lasting post-institutional... more

I was reading old emails and found one about my darling and food. In this email, Natasha had been home for 13 months after being adopted from a specialized (think handicapped) Ukrainian orphanage. I had forgotten how she used to beg food off strangers.

The above picture is of Natasha in front of her "food cabinet".

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Natasha has food issues. She has been home for 13 months and still has some problems walking away from food. If we are at a restaurant she feels a strong urge to see what other people are eating.... more

Food and other Security Blankets

My daughter, Natasha, was 3.5 years old when I adopted her from Ukraine. After the adoption was final, I picked her up from the orphanage as quickly as I could. I was very excited, scared and a little numb. And I did something very right at that moment….

I gave Natasha a small canvas bag. And in this bag, I placed Ziploc bags with goldfish crackers and graham crackers. Natasha was thrilled with this present. She didn’t eat many of the crackers. She knew that I had more food in my purse. But she loved to count the food. She loved to move crackers from one bag to another bag. She loved carrying her food around everywhere. It gave her great comfort.

We... more