As your adopted children head to school — whether for the first time or not — you may wonder how to talk to your children’s teachers about adoption and adoption-related challenges your children face. Heartofthematterseminars.com has prepared a wonderful document to help you think through how to help both your children and their teachers. Download [...]

I don’t claim to know a ton about attachment and bonding, but we have read a fair amount on the subject and tried to prepare ourselves for anything. If you are waiting for your adoption to be completed right now, spend some time reading about attachment.

Recently I was asked by a colleague my thoughts regarding an adoptive couple who wanted to stand outside an abortion clinic and tell each woman that they would adopt the unborn child if  she would choose adoption over abortion. After considering the family’s plans  for a moment and all the negative press that they could receive, I said it was all [...]

A response from Nightlight’s Executive Director, Ron Stoddart: When a child is legally adopted in the United States, that child bears the same relationship to their adoptive parent(s) as a biological child would to their parents.  The adopting parents accept all of the rights and obligations of the parent-child relationship.  When a child is legally [...]

This National Pubic Radio article is based on a survey to determine how children who were adopted fare. There is not a separation under the term ”domestic” adoptions  for those adopted as infants, as opposed to those who were adopted by relatives–and usually older. It is estimated that 40% of all domestic (non-foster care) adoptions are by step-parents and relatives. Although [...]

Open to openness means that the adoptive parents should be willing to meet with the birth mother before the baby is born, be with her at the hospital, and provide her with pictures and letters after the child is placed with them.

Tree, gifts, spiral ham and sparkling cider – we are not talking about gross excess here, but the simple things that are a traditional part of our culture. It’s the question of spending money that does not absolutely have to be spent while we are facing the inevitable reality of significant bills related to adoption.

Over at the Adoption Guide’s Advice page, I came across a document labeled “Accurate Adoption Language,” which links to a PDF entitled “Positive Adoption Language.” The fact sheet (reprinted from OURS Magazine, May/June 1992), has a fairly complete listing of preferred language (which it calls “positive”) and dispreferred language (called “negative”) for talking about adoption. [...]

On October 7, I posted a call to action from JCICS. JCICS’s advocacy — in conjunction with the advocacy of other stakeholders and concerned Americans — has resulted in at least limited success. Here is JCICS’s announcement. Dear Colleagues, After advocating on behalf of adoptive families for the past 6 months, Joint Council is very [...]

JCICS is urging all adoption stakeholders to actively participate immediately in encouraging USCIS to implement a policy that’s good for families and children regarding I-600A Renewals.

Joint Council and others in our field have great concern regarding the one-time renewal of I-600A approvals and the impact on Potential Adoptive Parents (PAPs). It is very clear that the authors of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 intended to ‘grandfather’ all I-600A petitions filed prior to the date on which the Hague Convention went into force in the United States (April 1, 2007). At the time the legislation was drafted, the authors did not foresee the lengthy processing time now associated with adoptions from countries such as China and Haiti.

Today, September 1, 2008, the current Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the United States and Vietnam expires.

Michael Monroe, leader of Irving Bible Church’s adoption ministry Tapestry, believes that the church should be “the safest place on earth for adoptive and foster families.” Unfortunately, it often is not. Read Michael’s two-part series on this important topic: The Safest Place on Earth – Part 1 and Part 2. Check out Tapestry’s many other [...]

Helping Your Adopted Child: Understanding Your Child’s Unique Identity by Paul David Tripp Publisher’s Description: Long before you decided to adopt, long before your child was born, God planned to put your adopted child into your home. Your child is an amazing gift from God, but nurturing an adopted child also brings unique challenges. Understanding [...]

In a post two days ago, Dorothy Bode wrote in answer to those who ask the question, “Am I making a terrible mistake by adopting transracially?”: The main thing I help them question is their motivations. “Is God building your family or are you trying to do it in spite of Him and in your [...]

In this June 2 online education course, learn creative ways to pay for your adoption while keeping your finances in good order.

The following is an informal book review by Claudia-Jacqueline Semar, M.Ed. She has granted us permission to reprint it here. Ms. Semar is the Executive Director of International Child Foundation. She has worked in adoptions for more than 15 years, and as an adoptive mother, she has first-hand experience in the things she writes about. [...]

Two days ago I blogged about A4everFamily.org, a website put together by adoptive families to provide information about bonding and attachment in adoption. The post elicited this comment: after reading A4everFamily.org site I am scared. we are looking forward to adopting from an orphanage in Uganda (hopefully being able to pick up our child by [...]

I was just alerted to this great website for adoptive families and prospective adoptive families that deals with a full range of adoption attachment issues, from “normal” bonding to severe attachment disorders: A4everFamily.org. Pass this on to any families you know that are pursuing an adoption. Being educated about what’s typical and what’s possible is [...]

[Update, 10/11/2008: Carolina Hope now offers a live online education course to assist families domesticate an intercountry adoption in South Carolina. More details available at the course page.] The following information is adapted from the post-adoption support files here at Carolina Hope. Note that this information is directly applicable only to SC residents who have [...]