News & Library

Keep up with the latest news about Firefly Children and Family Alliance, from recent announcements to new programs and services

Kris’ Corner – Therapy for Yourself

This post kind of dove-tails into the previous one in which I talked about our grief and loss journey. And I personally don’t think this is something talked about often enough in the foster world…and that is the idea of foster (and adoptive) parents seeking therapy...

Kris’ Corner – The first few hours of placement

When a child comes into a foster home, whether it’s their first removal or not, each foster home is going to be different…from each other and from the home of origin…so they’re going to need a minute to adjust to this “new life”. I don’t just mean the obvious things,...

Domestic Violence Awareness Month: DV does NOT discriminate

October was first declared as National Domestic Violence Awareness Month in 1989. Since then, October has been a time to acknowledge and be a voice for survivors.  Domestic Violence does NOT discriminate. It affects... 1/4 women  1/7 men  43.8% of lesbian women and...

Kris’ Corner – When Siblings Move Out

So now I want to piggyback on my last post about older siblings going to college…but now I want to talk about those older kiddos moving out completely. Obviously, this may happen right after high school, thereby skipping the transition to college piece. Or it may be...

Kris’ Corner – When Siblings Go to College

So going along with my last post about sibling connection…another thing that doesn’t seem to be talked about too much in foster and adoption is the impact when an older sibling going away to college. If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you already know that in...

Kris’ Corner – Death, Grief, and Loss

So one thing I have touched on previously, but not really delved into is walking alongside a child who has experienced trauma through the death of a loved one. Now, to be clear, I’m not walking that path fully yet, but I am about to. My grandmother, who turned 100...

Kris’ Corner – Weekend Rituals

Now…I will freely admit that my family is probably not a great example of having a bunch of weekend rituals, with the exception of going to church on Sunday morning. Saturday morning might be an opportunity for us to catch up on some chores around the house. As you...

Kris’ Corner – Summertime Rituals

Summertime rituals… Now this might be a little bit trickier, and open to a lot more interpretation, especially if you have a newer placement. But if you are attuned to what your child enjoys, and you try, to the best of your ability of course, to tap into that over...

Kris’ Corner – Post Visitation Rituals

As you probably know by now, most children (there’s always an exception of course) in care have visits with biological family. But one thing that is often not discussed is the reentry into the foster home after a child has a visitation. Now…you won’t know (often until...