"When my daughter was in her teens, we sent a letter to her birth mother via our adoption agency, but never heard back. Yesterday, I got a social media message from her birth mother's sister, which shared sad news. How do I break this news to my daughter?"
Before the moody teen years, pre-adolescence can present its own challenges for parents. How should you respond to tweens’ questions about adoption or initiate conversation with a preteen who doesn’t seem eager to talk?
"My biological brother was adopted as an infant. When he found us, he was eager to claim us as family. But is that really what we were?" A woman shares the story of meeting her birth sibling and offers advice for others contemplating search or faced with a reunion.
A parent wonders how to explain the painful possibility that a foster child might return to her birth family to the young child she's already parenting.
Parents share the biggest false beliefs about adoption that they've encountered, from 'love heals all' to 'your child is lucky' to 'now you'll get pregnant!'
Readers share feedback about articles published in the March 2018 issue of Adoptive Families magazine.
By talking through possible actions and consequences, you can help your child develop decision-making and long-range thinking skills.
An unexpected emergency tests the strength of a mother-daughter bond.
"Adoption makes a family different." It may also make it stronger.
"From an early age, my children needed to know where they belonged—and the birth country where they came from."
Whether your adoption takes place in the US or abroad, its sure to involve travel to another city. Here's what you need to know to bring back memorable photographs and video footage of your adoption trip.
Although we knew our South American-born son would face challenges growing up in a predominantly white middle class suburb, we were totally unprepared for what was to come.
If your family is thinking about adopting a child of a different race, spend some time answering these six questions to help determine if it's right for you.
Pictures help show our children that their lives matter, and that they are part of a family. A photographer and adoptive mom offers her advice for taking and preserving meaningful moments.
My parents were immigrants from Germany and India, my husband also comes from a mixed background; we have one biological child, and one adopted from South Korea. What makes my daughter Korean? What makes her American?
"Recently, my 12-year-old has been questioning whether an adoptive mother can really love her children as she would biological children. She'll say things like, 'You think you love us, but you would love a child you gave birth to more. How should I talk with her about this?"
We asked our readers how they respond when someone comments that their child "looks just like" them. Read the answers.
As the parent of an Asian child, I am constantly called upon to help my daughter navigate between diminished achievements and heightened failures.
Readers share feedback about articles published in the February 2018 issue of Adoptive Families magazine.
When you struggle with infertility, baby showers can be painful reminders — and often lead to nosy questions, like, 'So, when are you going to have a baby?' Parents who've been there advise on how to respond.
