To honor their son Tristan’s birth family, a Canadian family initiated a long-distance relationship. Now, they’re taking him to Colombia to meet them.
“Promises the Adoptive Parents Kept”
The time I spent alone with my newborn daughter meant a lot. But the fact that she has grown up knowing me has meant the world.
“To My Son, From Your Birth Father”
Compiling a scrapbook for the son he’s never known, a father confronts his grief.
Ask AF: Building a Relationship With Birth Siblings
Answers to your parenting questions.
“Running to Mommy”
I knew it would be hard for my daughter’s birth mother to give her up. But I didn’t think I’d feel so guilty for taking her.
“The Birth Parent Reunion Roller Coaster”
After 26 years, I thought ‘happily ever after’ was about to begin.
“Becoming Craig’s Mother”
My younger son’s arrival signaled the end to a decade of heartache due to secondary infertility. So why was I so sad?
“Losing Touch with Birth Parents”
When my son was six years old, his birth mother closed the door on our open adoption. Were we wrong to include her in his life?
“How I Discovered the Meaning of Motherhood”
It wasn’t until the birth of my daughter that I realized my son’s mother was his adoptive mother.
“Double the Love”
Every Mother’s Day, I celebrate my relationship with my daughter’s birth mother.
Ask AF: Handling Requests for Financial Support
How should we handle requests for financial support from our son’s birth mother?
“A Complicated Privilege”
Was hiring someone to search for our daughter’s Guatemalan birth mother the right thing to do? We decided we had no choice but to try to meet her.
Five Families’ Creative Connections to Birth Parents
When it comes to keeping their children’s birth parents an active presence in their lives, many families are thinking outside the (mailbox and in)box.
“Knowing Their Brother’s Birth Mother”
We knew that our youngest son’s birth mother would be a powerful force in his life. We didn’t anticipate the impact she’d have on his older brothers.
“Adopting Our Son’s Birth Sister”
When we adopted our son’s biological sister, it felt both eerily similar and completely different.
“Our Kids Are All Right”: Birth Siblings in Open Adoption
Was moving from a semi-open adoption to a fully open one, with visits, the right decision for my birth son and for the daughter I was raising?
“Finding Peace with My Adoption Plan”
As a birth mother, my path to adoption was full of conflicting feelings. But at the moment my son was born — when two women came together in the same instant to love him — I felt at peace.
“Meeting the Parents Who Would Adopt My Grandchild”
My daughter “gave up” nothing when she became a birth mother. She lovingly placed her precious baby girl in the arms of parents who would prove eager to embrace us all.
Ask AF: Explaining a Birth Sibling’s Adoption
Answering your parenting questions.
“Open Adoption Is…”
For our family, open adoption is peach roses, scrambling to buy bottles, and feeling out our relationship with the birth mom.