Mix one American couple, one preteen Russian boy, and one summer program…and what do you get? Family.
“Meeting My Cousin for the First Time”
Somehow, I turned out to be both an adoptive mom and a member of a birth family.
“Is Blood Really Thicker Than Water?”
I could have merely been her stepmother, but Taylor and I chose to love each other. Not even adolescence can take that away from us.
“My Decision to Adopt Transracially”
I thought. I researched. I talked. But in the end, it took a leap of faith to adopt across racial lines.
“Presenting Adoption to My Fifth Grader’s Class”
Adoption presentations in first and second grade are easy. Then what?
“Pre-Parenthood: Surviving the Home Study”
It’s home study day and I’m not perfect yet.
“Googling Her Birth Parents”
Would it really be possible to fill out my daughter’s hazy memories by typing names into a search engine?
“Adopting a White Child Across Racial Lines”
When the social worker brought my new daughter to my house, she wasn’t the African-American girl I was expecting. And so we became a transracial family.
“Simplifying My Life as a Single Parent”
As crazy as it sounds, the transition from being childless to becoming a parent has given me time I didn’t have before.
“Dear Infertility Patient”
From a woman who finally became an adoptive mother after a decade of trying, here are a few things I wish someone had told me years ago.
Refugee Adoption: A Whole New World for Our Daughters
Although the adoption of refugee children was more complicated than I expected, it has been infinitely rewarding. These children and their past are now part of me.
“Will I Ever Be Able to Love This Child?”
When the first few weeks of parenthood were rocky, I found myself worrying: Did we adopt a child I’ll never be able to love?
“Welcomed By Our Daughter’s Birth Family”
I asked my family not to come to the hospital when she was born, then mourned their absence. Enter her birth relatives.
A Mother’s Day Ritual
A simple ceremony with flowers and candles helped my children celebrate their love for two mothers.
Planning for “the Call”
Are you prepared to receive the news that you’ve been chosen? If not, here are six things we wish we had known, before we became a family of three.
“Rooting Our Children in Our Latino Heritage”
As Latino parents, we know firsthand the discrimination our children will face.
“My Resilient Son”
Dr. Jane Aronson shares her own story of adopting a child with developmental delays and reflects on the healing powers of love and permanence.
“Instant Mom”
Nia Vardalos describes her first meeting with the preschooler she adopted from U.S. foster care.
“Gifts to and from My Child’s Adoptive Family”
In an open adoption, what do you give to the person who means everything to you? Thoughts from a birth mom about the gifts that mean the most.
“From Foster to Adoptive Parent”
As foster parents, you open your hearts and home to a child even as you’re preparing to reunite her with her birth mother.