There is no better way to learn about adoption, the adoption process and the emotions connected with adoption, than to read testimonials from adoptive families who have lived it.
The adoptive family testimonials below should give you insight and even help you understand what to expect from a domestic adoption. As you will read, there may be times of uncertainty and stress, but each story has a happy ending and a bundle of joy for new parents.
If you are interested in sharing your adoption story, we would love to hear it! Please contact us at editors@americanadoptions.com for details on how we can share your successful adoption testimonial with future adoptive families at American Adoptions.
| For some couples, the wait for a match can fly by in almost an instant. This was the case for Mike and Ashley. And for them, the match call also meant the call that their son was already born. |
| When Kelly and Jim embarked on their adoption journey, they never imagined the leap of faith that they’d take to reach their son Mason. The couple, who has been married for seven years, has one biological daughter Kristin who was conceived through IUI, and though they briefly pursued fertility treatments for a second child when Kristin was two, they turned to adoption pretty quickly. Initially, the couple had a more restrictive APQ. But with time, they opened up, even accepting heroin exposure in their son. |
![]() | Mike says that not too long ago he turned to his wife Silke and said, “Thank God you never got pregnant, because we’d never be in this situation. And I couldn’t imagine my life not being like this.” |
![]() | The holiday season is always a good time for reflection on where you’ve been, where you are going, and what you’ve learned during the past year. |
![]() | Adoptions sometimes have a way of reflecting the adoptive family’s personality. |
| There are two things in life for which we are never truly prepared: twins,” wrote American humorist Josh Billings. |
![]() | The inspiring story of a military family whose adoption journey spanned Mississippi to Afghanistan. |
![]() | Thanks to American and Adoptions and a wonderful birth mother, we adopted Hailee Elizabeth in less than four months - our second child that we adopted through American Adoptions. |
| My husband and I are a current waiting adoptive family with your organization. We were matched with a birth mother in December and she gave birth to a wonderful baby boy we named Nathan on Feb. 2, 2010. We had nine wonderful days with Nathan when his birth mother changed her mind and we had to give him back. This was the hardest day in both of our lives. |
| This is not only our story; it is the story of a birth mom too...Four months and a lifetime of change! |
| In January 2007 my husband and I started the process of adopting. Jim has 2 children from his first marriage, this child would be our first. We worked hard to get the initial process completed, home studies, background checks, finger printing, the process seemed daunting and endless but we knew the work would be well worth it. ... |
![]() | We feel so blessed to have found American Adoptions. With the help of their wonderful staff we were finally able to fulfill our dream of becoming parents. |
| Tim and Kathy got married in February 2005, and always knew they wanted to have more children together. Kathy had a daughter, Samantha, from a previous marriage, and had been a single parent for six years. Right after the wedding, Tim and Kathy starting trying the 'natural' way. ... |
| Dear American Adoptions: We are the proud parents of Tavin. Our birthmother is Ashlyn. We would like to thank you for all your support and help with a special thanks to Lara Sandusky. ... |
![]() | Michael and I have a wonderful and loving 6 yr old son, Joshua. But unfortunately, we were unable to have another child. We didn't even think twice about adopting. ... |
| I’ve been meaning to write about our adoption experience for months! We told Megan that we would write something up just weeks after Wyatt was born. Well, here we are 7 months later, we just completed our finalization…and I finally decided that if I don’t do it now I never will. So here we go. ... |
| Wow, what an experience the miracle of adoption is! |
| First of all we would like to say THANK YOU to our son Tustin’s birth mom, Mayriah, for making us MOMMY and DADDY! An absolute dream come true. |
![]() | Why me? That was the question I found myself repeating, day in and day out for seven years. Why me? |
| In some ways, our domestic adoption story is "typical," in that there are far more successful, comfortable open adoptions out there than people realize. We are also among many adoptive parents who would not have thought open adoption would be right for us. But the increasingly open nature of our son's adoption is a part of our unique story that we wouldn't change for anything, and we hope that by sharing it, we might help other prospective adoptive parents shape a happy adoption story for their own families. |
![]() | Our story of adoption was a fairy-tale dream-come-true. It honestly could not have gone more smoothly. We decided early on that we were interested in adopting twins. ... |
| We believe that every adoption story is in itself a miracle and a blessing. We want to share our story so that others can read it and know what a beautiful experience we have had. |
![]() | A thank you to American Adoptions and the entire staff. We are so grateful for everything you did for us throughout the entire adoption process. |
![]() | Our Adoption Story… Our adoption story begins in August of 2001. This is when we got married, and the very next month began trying to start our family. ... |
| It is hard to know where our story begins – so first let me tell you about ‘us’. We are “Tom and Dianne” ... |
![]() | Mike & I had been married for 4 years. We both wanted desperately to be parents. We spent the last two of those four years trying various infertility treatments and surgeries with no success. ... |
| Although my husband, Bob, and I had a biological son, “Anthony” born in 1996; we tried to conceive for five years, to no avail. ... |
![]() | Hi, our names are Milton, Sarah and Erin and we first want to say how blessed we feel by having Erin in our lives. |
| What an amazing, surprising journey adoption is. We had tried to conceive for about a year and a half before we sought professional help. We were diagnosed, and after much thought and prayer, decided we did not wish to pursue treatment. ... |
![]() | Congratulations on your decision to adopt. We are the proud parents of two children through adoption – one international adoption and one domestic placement. ... |
![]() | Our journey toward adopting our children began like so many other couples’ – fraught with infertility, miscarriage, heartache and deep longing. ... |
![]() | During 2002/2003, we had gone through 9 infertility treatments. The very first one resulted in a pregnancy, and then a miscarriage. We tried 8 more times and weren't able to conceive. ... |
| To future adoptive parents: We want to introduce ourselves. Our names are Michael and Karen, and we are adoptive parents. In March 2002, we received our call from American Adoptions, informing us that a prospective mother had chosen us and that the baby was due in three weeks. ... |
| Steve and I have been married for six years. We began trying to start a family of our own in the summer of 1999. I had one miscarriage and had no further success in getting pregnant even with a year of fertility treatments. ... |
![]() | Our adoption journey started in the fall of 2002. Like most couples that have struggled through infertility, it was intimidating but exciting to start the adoption process. |
![]() | Hello. Our names are Kara and Gary. In January of 2001, we were blessed with experiencing the adoption of our beautiful son, Sam. ... |
![]() | Dear American Adoptions, We just wanted to express our appreciation for all your help with our two adoptions. We now have two beautiful daughters. Both of our adoptions went quickly and smoothly. ... |
Learn what a home study is and why you need one to adopt a child.
While adoption home studies vary slightly from agency to agency and state to state, there are several key elements that are almost always included in every home study.
Find a qualified professional in your state to complete your home study.
There are several factors that determine the total cost for an adoption, including the program you choose. Variables such as medical bills, birth mother expenses and legal fees vary for each adoption. We strive to maintain affordable adoptions without cutting corners. Please see the Our Domestic Adoption Programs section for further details.
Have your heart set on a bouncing baby boy or a new little princess? American Adoptions now offers a gender-specific option for families hoping for a specific gender. With this option families would pay an additional Gender-Specific Fee to help our agency locate and work with birth mothers meeting this additional criteria. Please note that gender specificity may increase wait time. This fee is in addition to all other program fees and is not considered part of your adoption budget. Please contact us at 1-800-ADOPTION for minimum budget details.
No - American Adoptions has established relationships with some of the best adoption attorneys in the nation. It is important to note that adoption laws vary state-to-state and often even county-to-county. As such, it is important to utilize the services of an attorney that specializes in adoption in the state the adoption will finalize in, which we will not know until you are matched with an expectant mother. Retaining your own attorney at this time is not necessary and may be an additional expense to you that is not needed.
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Learn which famous Hollywood actors, sports stars, politicians and other icons have been touched by adoption.
Do adoption terms and phrases leave you feeling confused? Learn the meaning to key adoption words and phrases with our comprehensive adoption glossary.
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