Creating an Adoptive Family Profile

The family profile is a collection of photos and information about a prospective adoptive family. It should include the birthmother letter you have written. If you have explored the different adoption websites on the internet you have probably seen or viewed a couple’s family profile. It is one of the most important parts of the adoption process. The family profile is the document that a birthmother will view to help her decide on a family. If you are working with an agency, the agency will provide you with guidelines to create your family profile. The agency may also help you … Continue reading →

Adoption Doctors A Great Resource For Families Adopting Internationally

Families adopting internationally often have questions about the medical and health information they receive for a baby or child. There may be different health issues to consider in another country. Parents may not know much about the medical terminology another country uses to describe a health or medical condition. Many adoptive families look for a doctor who is willing to go over a child’s information and health records in order to help them understand what the implications and true needs of a baby or child really are. During my research to write a Blog about choosing a doctor who is … Continue reading →

Adoption Transitions #9 Toddler Adoption

The “toddler” years are a well defined and distinct stage of development however, most of the adoption information parents find is about newborns and older children. The lack of information about adopting a toddler often leads adoptive parents assume that a toddler is not much different from an infant. Some parents feel a toddler has no real conscious memory of birth parents or foster parents and are not affected from neglect or abuse. Adoptive parents may hope toddler adoption means they will skip the demanding baby stage, or a toddler will become an instant playmate for other children in the … Continue reading →

Reviewing a Baby or Child’s Family Medical History Before Placement.

When it comes to the health and medical care of an adopted child, there are some special issues and concerns adoptive parents may want to keep in mind before, during, and after the adoption is complete. If your adoption will be open or semi-open adoption, it may be possible to get a lot of the family health history from your child‘s birthmother. In an open adoption, you may be able to go with the birth mother’s prenatal care, go with her to doctor visits, and be present for the birth. With international adoptions, most families get a picture and sometimes … Continue reading →

State Adoption: Legally Free for Adoption or Legal Risk Placements

A child in state foster care who is legally free for adoption is a child who’s birth parents rights have been terminated by the state. This means the child is a ward or orphan of the state and has no legal parents. All the paper work is done, and there is no risk that a child placed for adoption will not be adopted by the family selected as the pre adoptive placement. Legally Free children are those considered as “Waiting Children” and depending on the length of time in care and the number of families interested in adopting more aggressive … Continue reading →

State Adoption: Matching and Placement Decision

Pre-adoptive families with approved home studies are given a method to review some information about children the state is looking to place in adoptive homes. Families may review the state waiting children listings for children legally free for adoption. In many cases, approved adoptive parents are provided with a one to two page profile of children still classified as legal risk pending the termination of their birth parents rights. Potential adoptive parents decide if they are interested in being considered an adoption resource for a child or children. When hopeful adoptive families see a baby, child or sibling group who … Continue reading →

State Adoption: Approved and Certified Home Study

When the adoption social worker has all the required paper work and the home study is written adoptive families may or may not be given a copy of the actual documents. Some states do give families a full copy of the home study for review either automatically or upon request and others states do not. We did not receive a copy of the home study our social worker prepared and had to trust that it was a true and clear picture of our family. If adoptive families are able to obtain a copy I would recommend doing so and reviewing … Continue reading →

State Adoption: Home Safety Inspection.

The home safety inspection was the most stressful part of the home study process for me personally. Not because our home is unsafe just because I felt the need to be sure and make sure we were ready for anything that might come up. During the adoption training, or at some point along the line, families are given the Home Safety Inspection Check list. The state children’s services will outline all the rules and regulations about your home and the requirements for having children placed to live in your home. There is usually a definition of how much living space … Continue reading →

State Adoption: Home Study Interviews and Documents.

By the time your application to adopt a child from the state foster care system has made it to the top of the pile and you are assigned an adoption social worker you will be over the initial excitement of the decision to adopt. There is a part of me that believes the process starts so slow intentionally. At this point families acting impulsively will have dropped out and only the die hard, trained parents willing to jump over any hurdle are left. The reality is that with any government program time is measured differently and things tend to take … Continue reading →

State Adoption: Your Physical and Mental Health History

It seems like it has taken forever and your application to adopt a baby, child or sibling group with your state has been signed, sealed and delivered for weeks now. You have tried hard to not dwell on the subject and move forward with life. All the while knowing you have placed your heart on the line. During this waiting period you would have been smart to make doctor appointments and had you health checked. Most often this is simply routine and something we should do every year anyway. Disabled families are welcome to adopt and often seen as strong … Continue reading →