Four writers look back at the roads they’ve traveled since wrestling with infertility.
How Long Does It Take to Adopt a Child?
The adoption timeline can vary dramatically, depending your chosen route. This general overview explains a typical adoption schedule, requirements at each step, and common expenses.
“Why We Chose Foster Adoption”
Foster adoption was right for these three families. Read their stories to find out why.
“Choosing Which Country to Adopt From (Twice)”
Growing up in a mostly white, Midwestern town in the late 1970s and early 80s, watching reruns of The Donna Reed Show and Leave It to Beaver, I figured I would finish school, find a girl to marry, buy a little house with a white picket fence, and have a couple of kids who looked like me. This was the middle-class American dream, and at the time it never occurred to me that life would turn out any other way.
“When I Knew I Was Ready to Adopt”
Even after we turned in our paperwork, I wasn’t 100-percent certain I was ready to adopt. But when the time was right, I knew.
“What Plans?”
Adoption can be an unpredictable journey. We never realized just how unpredictable.
“Our First Choice”
I always knew I wanted to grow my family through adoption.
“Giving Me Her Quilt — and Her Dream”
When my grandmother handed me her precious quilt and said, “I’m counting on you to have a girl,” I knew I wouldn’t let her down.
“If at First You Don’t Succeed…”
Before trying to have kids, I’d never failed at anything. Though I still believe in planning and hard work, it was something else that brought me my two beautiful boys.
Specifying Gender When Adopting
We surveyed our reader’s feelings on specifying gender when adopting. Here’s what real adoptive parents had to say.
Building “Nontraditional” Families
Our legal expert explains what gay, lesbian, and single parents need to know when building their nontraditional families during the process of adopting.
Why We Chose Adoption
Parents share the story of how they decided to become parents through adoption, and what factored into their decision.
Hot Topic: Should Parents Choose a Gender?
If given the option, many parents choose to adopt girls. We reported on this preference, as well as the unintended consequences for the boys who are left behind, and the article has sparked quite a debate. Here’s what our readers had to say.
“In the Beginning” — Part 1 of Foster Adoption Series
In part one of our family’s adoption odyssey, we make our way through our state’s Fost/Adopt program and find that things don’t always go according to plan. But sometimes, that’s for the best.
Are You Ready to Adopt?
You’re thinking of adopting a child. You’re learning as much as you can about the process and the issues. But, you keep coming back to the same question: How will I know when I am ready to take this life-changing step? To answer this question you need to think about why you want to adopt.
“Helpless Love”
There is an irrevocable moment when you become a parent, an instant when the idea of your child enters your heart forever.
Pursuing a Second Adoption
Parents who confidently dove into the unknown for their first child are sometimes more hesitant when it comes to doing it again.
“All’s Fair in Love & Waahh!”
We had our fair share of disagreements over adopting for the first time. Now that we’re moving forward to a second adoption, not much has changed.