Adoption Acceptance and Race Relations

How is it that a year or more goes by in between my posts? Time is moving too quickly, and I'm trying so hard to enjoy these little personalities that are inevitably, one by one, being swapped out for hormones and attitude. I am an inactive blogger. I love to write and have so much to say, especially with the funny moments i witness all day long, and my passions for adoption, nutrition, and physical fitness. But my days get filled so quickly with "mommy things" and then at the end of the day I get sucked into Facebook- my choice of entertainment instead of watching TV, and I zone out, forgetting all about my blog. Here is another attempt to get back in it...

What's on my mind today? Adoption acceptance and race relations... in my little, tiny world. My boys are now 4 and 5, and will never appear to be related; the mix of straight black hair and curly blonde hair continue to puzzle people when we are out and about. Conversations with strangers often end with one of the boys explaining to the adult that they are brothers, not school buddies or neighbors. Thankfully this usually elicits smiles from the strangers, which reminds me that race relations aren't all that bad here in suburban Union County, as one might think. Just because my daughter is one of only a handful of Asians at her entire elementary school, and that both my boys are surrounded by mostly Caucasian faces every day at preschool, doesn't mean it's not diverse here. There are several children that I know of in my daughter's grade that joined their families through adoption, and many children from around the world can be found throughout the school and community. Why was I so apprehensive to move here 7 years ago when we were looking for a house with more land? Maybe it was me that was not open. I was prejudging a community based on it's (white) appearance, and doubted the possibility of this area being a great place to raise my ethnicly mixed family. Instead I found that neighbors celebrated with us each time we added a new family member, that teachers embrace the ethnic customs we try to share at school each year as a part of our children's heritage, and the local high school offers several opportunities for cultural awareness among their students and the community. I am so happy to have landed in a place where we are accepted, and that my children are growing up feeling "normal" and loved, despite how different they may look in thier environment.