Cross-cultural and international adoptions have increased dramatically over the last several years. An estimated 20,000 children are adopted each year from places like China, Russia, and Guatemala. Once the adoption process is complete, the next challenge for these families is learning how to integrate different cultures into the familial DNA.

"'They need to understand that race and ethnicity still matter,' [Judy] Stigger says. 'Love is not going to be enough. Where your child came from is part of them, whether that's a neighborhood in Chicago or an orphanage in China.'"

Stigger has experienced this first-hand as she's raised her adopted daughter Kathy, an African-American. Having friends with similar ethnic backgrounds, celebrating ethnic or culture-specific holidays, and learning some of the language if the adopted child is from a foreign country are all ways to help the child understand and appreciate where she’s from and help the family become truly multiracial. Read more at SunTimes.com.

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Labels: cultures, international, parenting