Sometimes I read the warm, loving letters my birth daughter’s parents send and feel almost incapable of responding. But I always do.
What’s in a Name? For an Adopted Child, A Lot!
When a child joins a family with his own history, his own culture—his own name—parents may want to look beyond the pages of a baby names book.
“Writing, Then Re-Writing, Our ‘Dear Expectant Mother’ Letter”
What do you write when the merchandise on offer is your heart?
“How to Be His Mother”
Twenty-six years after placing my son for adoption, we found each other. That’s when I started learning—the hard way—how to be a mom.
“The Blank Spaces” – Prenatal Alcohol Exposure Effects
I am angry at the price my son has to pay for his birth mother’s decision to drink while pregnant — but I can’t be angry at her.
Teens and Open Adoption
As teens seek independence, they rethink their relationships with all the adults in their lives — including birth parents.
What Is Life Like for Birth Mothers After Placement?
On Your Feet Foundation’s national survey provides insight into birth mothers’ emotional experiences after placement and what can help them heal.
The First Year of an Open Adoption: Four Families Share
Families with different levels of contact offer glimpses into their relationships with birth parents during their first year home.
Should You Friend Your Child’s Birth Mother?
Facebook has dramatically changed the way information is exchanged in adoption. Experts and parents offer advice on navigating social media.
“When Will an Expectant Mother Pick Us?”
During the long wait for an adoption match, friends and family may be sympathetic, but they don’t understand the anxiety that leads you to question every aspect of your adoption profile — and yourself.
“From Our Hearts”: Letters to Our Child’s Birth Parents
Writing about the little things in letters to our daughter’s birth parents often tells a bigger, warmer story in the end.
What Should We Include In Our Contact Agreement?
We’ve been selected by a birth mom who is due in two months. Our attorney advised us to draw up a contact agreement prior to the birth. What should we include?
“Was I Alone in the Hospital?”
Seeing where she was born—where she stayed with her birth mom and where we met her—gave my daughter greater confidence in her adoption story.
How Should New Parents Navigate the Hospital Experience?
Our open adoption expert explains how prospective adoptive parents can best navigate the emotional time spent at the hospital with the birth mother before bringing their new child home.
Is Open Adoption Right for Your Family?
A legal guide to open adoptions and open-adoption agreements.
“Intimate Strangers”
She was going to have a child but couldn’t keep it, I wanted a child desperately but couldn’t have one. She was the mother at birth; I was the mother right after. It sounds simple, but it wasn’t.
Visiting with Birth Parents
When we adopted our son three years ago, our relationship with his birth mother was semi-open (letters, phone calls). Since then it has grown more open, and we’re discussing a visit. Any advice?
Why Didn’t They Keep Me?
Answering kids’ questions about birth parents.
What if My Birth Mother Shows Up to Claim Me?
Reassure your child that you are his parent, forever and always.
“Guarding My Heart During the Wait”
After years of grappling with infertility, I could only focus on what might go wrong during our (in hindsight) perfect match and my daughter’s birth.