Adoptive Family Blog

Posted At: 12:30:00 PM | Posted By: Admin

Megan, it is hard to know what is best in regard to decorating the nursery and buying baby items. We don't want to wait until the last minute and be totally stressed out, but we also do not want to get ahead of ourselves and think it may be painful to look at an empty nursery for a long time while we wait. What do most couples do?


Posted At: 04:45:00 PM | Posted By: Admin

We are going to be 1st time parents when our adoption happens and were wondering if we should take some sort of parenting class and if so, where do we find one?


Posted At: 10:15:00 AM | Posted By: Admin

We are in the Traditional 2 program and have been waiting about 6 months. We're getting a bit worried and wonder if something is wrong with us to have not been chosen yet. Is there anything we can do to help us receive a match?


Posted At: 02:00:00 PM | Posted By: Admin

I thought it might be fun to switch things up a bit this new year and I have talked with several staff members about being guest writers from time to time. So, while you can still expect to read my answers most often here in this column, I will be posting words of wisdom and personal stories from different staff members and possibly even clients who have a story to tell or something that I think would benefit our readers. Today's column is written by Sara Wilper, one of our Adoptive Family Specialists. Sara is an adoptee and she has written her story about how her parents treated her adoption story and how they told her. I welcome any additional questions you may have for Sara or for birth mothers or other adoptive families. I look forward to sharing different stories and perspectives from not only my professional knowledge but from those who have personal real life experience. Enjoy! 


Posted At: 04:00:00 PM | Posted By: Admin

I would like to use my last column of the year to reflect back on the year of 2006. American Adoptions had a very big year and we look forward to an even bigger year in 2007. We created more families this year than ever before and are on pace to continue this trend next year also.


Posted At: 12:00:00 PM | Posted By: Admin

I usually do a good job of handling my emotions and staying realistic about the amount of time it could take for our match. We know that you and the agency do not have full control and that we do not have full control, but we feel like we are pretty open on our APQ with races, budget and substance usage according to what you have told us. Even though we know that it could take anywhere between 1-18 months on average, I guess we didn’t really think it would take longer than 9 months for us. We truly thought we would be parents in 2006. With 2007 fast approaching, it is just harder and harder to believe it is ever going to happen. Thanks for listening to me as always.


Posted At: 12:00:00 AM | Posted By: Admin

THE 8TH ANNUAL “A HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS WITH ROD STEWART"


Posted At: 03:00:00 PM | Posted By: Admin

When we see a situation that we are interested in, should we contact you to make sure our profile is being shown? We see some situations that seem to be what we are looking for and want to make sure we are not missing out on being shown. Also, it seems like most birth mothers are due 3-4 months from now, so should we expect that a birth mother we would be matched with now won’t be due until at least then?


Posted At: 12:00:00 AM | Posted By: Admin

We are beginning the process of joining American Adoptions and see that we must be open to sending pictures and letters to the birth parents for up to 18 years. Can you please give us some insight to why this is necessary and how often this occurs? I guess we are struggling with the idea that if we maintain this contact, we will never feel like this is truly our child and wonder what her motive may be as she receives these updates like changing her mind. Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.


Posted At: 10:22:50 AM | Posted By: Admin

Interstate Compact for the Placement of Children (ICPC) applies to adoptions across state lines.  The ICPC is law drafted in the 1950s, which today has been enacted in all 50 states, the District of Columbia , and the U.S. Virgin Islands.   ICPC was enacted to protect children who are placed for adoption across state lines and assign responsibilities for all parties involved in placing a child for adoption.


Posted At: 08:45:00 AM | Posted By: Admin

Susan Loscalzo wrote a great piece about how to handle grief during the holidays. It helps us remember that grieving is a vital step in the healing process. A process that everyone will face at some point during their life. A process that can be aided easily by the loving support of a family member or a friend.


Posted At: 09:30:00 AM | Posted By: Admin

Our parents mean well and are very excited about our decision to adopt a second time. They treat our daughter with so much affection and care. Sometimes though, they say things that may be hurtful as our daughter becomes old enough to understand her adoption. They do not mean to, but they just used outdated terms about adoption. For instance, when we talk about our plans to adopt again, they talk about how the birth parents will “give up” or “give away” the baby for adoption. How do we try to talk with them about some of these things they say without causing too much turmoil within our family? Do others ever have these issues?