My name is Kathy Sheldon and I live in Northern NJ with my husband, Jeff, my 15 month old son, Connor, two cats, a bird, and the newest addition our 10 week old Bernese Mountain puppy. I graduated from Buffalo State College and then went on to earn a Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology from Pace University. Prior to my son being born I worked for 7 years in a Domestic Violence Shelter in New York City with women and their children. I counseled women and their families individually and in groups. For the last five years at the shelter I was in administration and management. I resigned from my position as Director of Client Services after Connor was born because my commute into New York City was too long from where we live.
When my son Connor was 4 months old I decided to start my Direct Sales Business with the Traveling Vineyard. I chose In Home Wine Tastings because I really enjoy wine and wanted to learn more about it. It was then that I started to write my first blog, "Traveling Wine Adventures."
Since my son was adopted and my husband, and I had such a wonderful experience with our adoption and American Adoptions, I inquired with them about doing Adoption Home Studies and was hired contractually in September. I also have started to do Adoption Seminars locally for prospective adoptive parents.
In August of 2005 I started my second blog "Working Moms Wanted". I started it because I found myself in place like many new Moms, needing to find work but not knowing if it would be better to work out of my home or get an outside job.
My husband and I are socially active people and enjoy spending a lot of our time with families in the neighborhood and our own families. In addition we enjoy many hobbies. I enjoy running, reading, writing, cooking, and of course spending time with Connor.
Once a couple has decided to use a private adoption agency, the next step would be to choose an agency. However, choosing the right agency for a couple can be a difficult task. There are a number of different types of agencies to consider. Each with advantages and disadvantages. In addition, some agencies will be for profit while other will be non-profit. Also, you will find that an agency will usually focus on either Domestic adoption or International Adoption so this will play into your decision on which agency to choose. Always be sure that the agency that you are … Continue reading →
I wanted to use this post to clarify the adoption terms Private Adoption, Private Adoption Agency, and Public Adoption. Below is a brief overview of each. I will elaborate further on Private Adoption and Private Adoption Agencies on later posts. Please refer to Anna’s posts in regards to Public or State Adoptions. Private Adoption Privateadoptions.net states, “”Private adoptions” is a term synonymous with “independent adoptions.” Private adoptions are arranged without the use of an adoption agency, generally through an attorney or facilitator (where legal).” Typically in this type of adoption the family takes a proactive role in the adoption process. … Continue reading →
When the decision was made by husband and me to adopt a child it really didn’t take us much time to decide that we wanted to adopt domestically. Now, I spent some time in the last week, knowing that I would be writing about our decision, thinking about the reasons why. What came to mind was the primary reason we adopted domestically was because we wanted to adopt a newborn. I’m sure my husband and I are no different then many other couples who have found that they have infertility issues and then decide to adopt as a means to … Continue reading →
I have not personally gone through the experience of the International adoption process therefore the information I have compiled is made up of resources available on the Internet that I have found. Please feel free to make a comment if you find any of the information that is provided to be inaccurate. International or Inter-country adoption emerged soon after the Korean War when a number of Korean born or Asian American babies were born who needed homes and families. In 2002, 20,000 children were adopted from other countries. Many countries participate in International Adoption with America. These include Asian countries, … Continue reading →
As I have mentioned in previous posts there are many choices that a couple or one has to make after making the decision to adopt, the first of which is to decide what type of adoption you would like to pursue. There are three primary ways to adopt: 1. Through the state or foster care, 2. Domestic adoption, and 3. International adoption. I will be discussing domestic adoption in this post. I’ll also comment in another post about international. If you have been reading Anna’s posts you will find the information that you need to adopt through the state or … Continue reading →
I went to a bookstore today to look for my favorite book on adoption, Adoption Nation, by Adam Pertman. When I got to the Family and Childcare section I skimmed four bookcases on pregnancy before I came across a couple books on Adoption. They were mixed in with other books on sex education on the same shelf. I then recalled my frustration of looking for books on adoption when my husband and I were waiting for Connor. I remember finding books on adoption on the Internet and thought I would just go to the bookstore and pick them up and … Continue reading →
My eyes are blue and so are my husbands. Our birthmother’s eyes are also blue. I think it was one of the reasons she choose us to adopt, Connor. I think she also choose us because I have dark brown hair and my husband is blond. Our birthmother was blond, but the birthfather had dark brown hair. I always figured that she also considered that whether Connor had blond hair or dark brown hair it would be like one of his adoptive parents. I think we all just assumed he would have blue eyes. When Connor was born he had … Continue reading →
As I continue to write this blog I will be using adoption language throughout the posts. I will often refer to myself as an “adoptive parent”. I may on occasion say “when my son was adopted”. But in truth each day I wake up I am just a parent and a mother first and Connor is my son. The fact the he was adopted does not play into our day at all. I will give you an example by telling you about our day. Connor started his first full week in Daycare this week. I dropped him off this morning … Continue reading →
So you decided that you want to adopt a baby or child. You are excited and committed to your decision. If you had gone through fertility treatments, you have put away the calendars, hormone injections, and have decided to put that part of your past behind you and move forward. You are ready to build your family through adoption. But then you can’t even figure out where to begin the process. Anna recently posted on finding information about starting the adoption process through the state. Therefore, I thought this would be a good opportunity as well to talk about starting … Continue reading →
Recently it came to my attention that I had made a faux pas in one of the posts that I had written. I had used the word “naturally” when describing a mother giving birth to a baby. I should have used the word “biological” or “biologically”. I regret making this error since I am one to be very conscious about the words I select when referring to adoption, the adoption process, and my son. I made changes to the article so I would not offend anyone and use the proper terminology. But I thought it brought up a very a … Continue reading →
