Tina Traster Archives - Mothering in the Middle

Preparing For a Tough Exchange
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Preparing For a Tough Exchange

Adoption, Commentary, Daily Living, Mothers Over 50

Preparing For a Tough Exchange

by Tina Traster

In so many ways, Julia is a young soon-to-be twelve year old. Though she’s in middle school, she’s unconcerned with fashion, boys, or other pre-pubescent experimenting.

My daughter Julia, adopted from a Siberian orphanage at 8-months old, is on track intellectually but is still catching up emotionally. She is a wonderful violinist and a gobsmacking artist and an honor student, but she hasn’t yet learned how to make a BFF, nor, and I suppose I should be thankful, she had not attached herself to a clique. My husband and I are her whole world. […]

Rescuing Julia Twice

by Tina Traster

Dr. T couldn’t have been more pleased with Julia’s progress. At 18 months, my baby was in the 95^th percentile for her weight. She was talking, walking, her muscle tone was excellent. All good signs for a child adopted just 14 months earlier from a Siberian orphanage.

Dr. T specializes in treating internationally-adopted children. During my daughter’s third well-visit, he recommended a second round of vaccines because he didn’t trust the ones she received in Russia. He asked me how Julia was eating, glancing over his bifocals to read her chart. I told him she’s on an organic, whole-foods, non-meat diet. He said, “good,” and with a kind glint in his eye, added, “She looks great. You’re doing a great job. Bring her back in six months.” […]

Music To My Ears

by Tina Traster

There we were, on our winter break vacation, driving to our hotel after a day of skiing in the Canadian Laurentians.

“I miss my violin,” Julia sighed, dreamily gazing out at the frozen tundra, not really talking to either my husband nor I. Just thinking out loud.

“Really?” I said, whipping my head around to the back seat.

“Yeah, I should have brought it with me,” she lamented. “I miss it.”

[…]

American Adoptive Parents Don’t Deserve the Heat

by Tina Traster

A few weeks ago, a filmmaker for Radio Free Europe spent the day with my family at our home in upstate New York documenting our “ordinary” moments. Olga Loginova, the filmmaker, promised to produce the six-minute documentary within a week. She said it was urgent to show the world there are “successful Russian adoptions.”

Why? Because Americans’ ability to parent Russian orphans has become a flashpoint in a complicated political struggle that began when Americans took aim at Russia’s handling of human rights by passing the Magnitsky Act. The conflict escalated after Russia retaliated by shutting down adoptions to Americans after more than two decades. […]