Honest Support for the Real Journey of Adoption
Holding both sides of the adoption story as both an adoptee and an adoptive mother, I guide parents through trauma, complex behaviors, and identity with honesty, practical tools, and zero judgment.
Honest Support for the Real Journey of Adoption
Holding space for both sides of the adoption story—the child trying to make sense of their story, and the parent navigating complex trauma and love.
"Adoptee & adoptive mom raising 4 children through foster care."
Core Philosophy
"You don't have to do this perfectly, and you don't have to pretend it's easier than it is."
I'm an adoptee, raised in a loving family, and I grew up knowing there was more beneath the surface of my story than anyone talked about.
Like many adoptees, I learned how to be grateful, how to be "fine," and how to keep the harder questions quiet. It took years to understand how deeply adoption can shape a person's sense of identity, safety, and belonging—not only in childhood, but across an entire lifetime.
"Today my husband and I are parenting four children all adopted through foster care. Our family story includes joy and deep connection, but it also includes trauma, mental illness, grief, and seasons that look nothing like we imagined when we first said yes."
Parenting children with complex needs has changed me. It has humbled me, stretched me, and forced me to let go of easy answers in favor of deeper understanding. And it's why I do this work.
I know what it feels like to be the child trying to make sense of their story, and I know what it feels like to be the parent holding that story with love, fear, hope, grief, and a thousand unanswered questions.
I don't believe families need more pressure, more rules, or more performative positivity. I believe they need honesty, support, and language for what they're living through—especially when their experience doesn't fit neatly into the adoption stories they were told to expect. I believe healing is possible even when the road is messy, slow, complicated, or nothing like you hoped it would be.
How Can I Help You Today?
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Books I Love & Recommend
Essential reading on trauma, attachment, and adoptive family dynamics—curated for parents, caregivers, and advocates.
Adult Trauma, Parenting & Adoption
Bridging Resilience: A Guide to Healing for Adoptees and Former Foster Youth, Families, and the Leaders Who Walk with Them
Mary Ann McMillan
Written by a former foster youth and adoptee, this book weaves together lived experience, therapeutic insight, and biblical reflections to explore the lasting impact of separation, identity loss, and attachment wounds.
Trauma-Informed Foster and Adoptive Parenting
David Adams
This book gives parents the tools and strategies to respond to challenging and oppositional child behaviors – particularly those that stem from a child’s potentially traumatic history.
Reclaim Compassion: The Adoptive Parent's Guide to Overcoming Blocked Care with Neuroscience and Faith
Nancy Verrier
Reclaim Compassion answers the questions, “How did this happen?” and “Will it ever get better?” Rooted in faith and backed by neuroscience, this practical and powerful guide offers a simple step-by-step process for reclaiming compassion for your child and yourself.
The Sixteenth Year: An Open Adoption Memoir
Leah Outten
When a pregnancy test turns up positive, Leah has some tough decisions to make. At just sixteen, what will she do? Leah pulls you into her story as she shares her heart.
Simply Neglect: Redemption Beyond Poverty and Foster Care
Lainie Hartley
Aware of the injustice affecting today’s foster children, and the urgent need for foster and adoptive homes, Levi and Lainie become licensed and open their home to several children, including their forever son through adoption. Lainie’s story is a testament to faith, forgiveness, and the resilience of the human spirit.
Children’s Adoption Books
A Heart That Holds It All: A Story Of Adoption
Lauren J Haas
This beautifully crafted story provides young adoptees with a sense of belonging and understanding, addressing the complex emotions and questions they may face.
Adoption Is Both
Elena S Hall
This children's book addresses younger adoptees and their families.
Tell Me My Story: What Does Adopted Mean?
Raquel McCloud
This book is meant to be relatable to a young audience as they process all the different questions and emotions that come with adoption.
The ABCs of Adoption
Raquel McCloud
This book gives a kid friendly explanation of some adoption focused terms that are oftentimes hard to understand. Words like kinship, international, transracial and more are all laid out in an easy to digest format for young readers
My Adoptee Voice
Elena S Hall
In this follow up to the children’s book Adoption Is Both, Elena S Hall aims to help spur conversations about adoptees’ identity and safely sharing one’s adoption story.
Coaching & Digital Resources
Get direct access to trauma-informed coaching, custom intensives, and resources rooted in lived experience as both an adoptee and an adoptive mother
Book a 1-on-1 Call with Anna
Direct, personalized guidance for adoptive parents and families looking for one-on-one clarity, strategy, and compassionate support.
The Roadmap Forward
A 4-week 1:1 coaching intensive designed to help adoptive parents navigate complex behaviors, attachment, and family dynamics with structured clarity and dedicated support.
- 4 Dedicated Weekly 1:1 Coaching Sessions
- Personalized Action Plan & Trauma-Informed Tools
- Direct Chat / Email Support Between Calls