Adoptive parents are used to fielding questions about adoption — and most of us have an arsenal of replies to give the stranger in the checkout lane, but when it’s a family member making the rude remark, snappy comebacks don’t suffice.
Adoptees on Open Adoption: “I Have All My Pieces”
Teen and young adult adoptees who grew up in fully open adoptions talk about their relationships with their birth parents and adoptive parents and the many benefits openness has brought them.
Ask AF: Explaining the Birth Mother Relationship
My husband and I have a friendly relationship with the birth mother of our 3-year-old daughter. We talk on the phone, exchange letters regularly, and visit a few times a year.
Big Tummies, Big Questions
Don’t let your preschooler catch you off-guard! Be prepared to talk about the birds, the bees, and adoption.
Flights of Fantasy
Imaginative play can bring your preschooler hours of fun — and offer a window into her adoption story.
Ask AF: Sex Education Assistance
Can you recommend some books that will help us explain the facts of life?
“What We Wish We Had Known” – Older Child Adoption
A mom and her daughter share lessons learned about older child adoption.
Your Earliest Adoption Conversations
Not sure when — or how — to bring up adoption with your toddler or preschooler? Here’s where to begin.
Telling the Tough Stuff
Here’s how to tell your child the difficult facts about his adoption in positive, age-appropriate ways…and how to keep the conversation going.
It’s All Relative!
Nothing brings out a tween’s awkward side like a holiday family gathering. What can you do to help?
Ask AF: Too Young to Understand Birth Family?
We have an open adoption with our 30-month-old son’s birth family. Last night we were looking at a photo album.
Starting the Adoption Conversation
Keep talks with your child simple and relaxed. Your ease with discussing adoption lays the groundwork for a lifelong dialogue.
Talking with Children about Adoption
Is it what you say, how early you say it, or how often you say it that matters most to your child? Barbara Russell gives tips on talking about adoption with your child.
“Too Many Questions”
When you and your child look different, the world wants to know why.
Gearing Talks to Your Child’s Development
Let what your child can understand about adoption guide what you tell him about his story.
Ask AF: A Difficult Reality
We used to have a good relationship with our son’s birth mother, but haven’t heard from her since he was two. He’s now nine. I recently searched for her online, and learned that she’s in jail.
Ask AF: Explaining Adoption to a Special-Needs Child
Answers to your parenting questions.
A ‘Lost’ Daughter Speaks, and All of China Listens
I went to China to find the birth mother who left me on a street corner. Instead, I became the focus of a nation’s buried pain.
Ask AF: Not Too Late to Tell
Our son is four. We adopted him at birth. I know that you’re supposed to talk about adoption from an early age–but the years kept going by and we failed to do so. Did we wait too long?
Ask AF: Birth Sibling Contact
When kids find out they have birth siblings, they’re usually interested in meeting. Here’s how parents can help facilitate the relationship.