The homestudy is a stressful experience for any prospective adoptive parent, but it can be especially nerve-wracking for those with health concerns or youthful indiscretions. Our readers offer advice on getting through this stage of the adoption process.
"It's been almost five months and my husband and I are still in labor. The pregnancy was even longer—twelve months. When will this baby come, we ask ourselves."
What if my daughter doesn't choose me? What if she grows up and moves to live near her other mom—her birth mom? I think about that and I get scared. Then I think, so what if she does? I can’t worry about that; I can only parent now.
From my own search for my roots through adopting older children from foster care, life has taught me to treasure my children’s biological connections while knowing that we don’t have to look alike to belong together.
Readers share feedback about articles from the October 2016 issue of Adoptive Families magazine.
Born in America, raised in England, and meeting her birth mother for the first time.
Though society doesn’t know what to do with birth mothers, I knew I had a place with my son’s parents. At his second birthday party, I learned that I had a place with their family, too.
RE: “Rethinking the Family Tree and Other Tough Assignments” This article was an excellent reminder to provide other options for all students when completing school assignments about families (so as not to draw attention to something that might be a sensitive topic). I’ve had students write about who is in their family and who is...
If so, when and how did you decide to share it with your child? If not, how have you handled discussions about the birth family?
It's hard enough to achieve a strong ethnic identity in a big city, but for those of us living in rural areas, the challenge can be even greater.
Nurture your child's love of reading with tales that shine a light on diversity and adoption.
When to encourage your child's flights of fancy, and when to insist on truth-telling.
A mother who adopted older children asks what to say to her children's birth grandparent when her children don't ask for contact.
Two adult adoptees are working on the first edition of a Chinese Birth Parent Search Manual, to be released at the end of 2016.
China’s central adoption authority, CCCWA, has announced a new program to advocate for waiting children on the country’s former "Shared List."
School projects that focus on family or personal history can be challenging or painful for children who were adopted. Learn why, and what you can do to create a more inclusive environment for the entire class.
My daughter came to me at nine years old, so neither of us knows what she looked like as a baby, but walking these aisles is a way for us to recreate what we both lost.
RE: “Raising Black Children to Become Black Adults” As Chad Goller-Sojourner writes, failing to prepare black children for the world they encounter beyond their home and family only puts them at risk of greater danger Stef Ryan • via Facebook This article highlighted many things we don’t think of as white privileged Americans. We are...
How our children feel about a separation, and how we can help them cope.
For eight years, my wife and I watched our chances of having a baby evaporate. Then our eleven-year-old niece came to live with us, bringing with her a bittersweet deliverance.
