Adoption Issues: January 2007

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Language Can Frame the Context of Your Relationship

M.M. Lyons is an adopted child who is very intentional about the words she uses to talk about herself, her adoptive family, and her biological parents. One word that she avoids using to describe her biological parents is "real".

"The word 'real' in this manner is used most often by people who have little or no experience with adoption. Although the mistake is an innocent one... my attention to correcting the mistake is fairly strict..."

Lyons' main concern is that certain words "frame the context" of an adopted child's relationship with parents and siblings. The words you choose can help others who are less familiar with adoption understand that it's a pleasant, joyful way to build a family. Read more online.

Monday, January 29, 2007

Ten Tips for Helping Babies Adjust

Rarely does a baby who's being adopted go directly from the hospital to his adoptive family's home. The trauma of transitions from an orphanage or foster home can be difficult to overcome. Adoptive Families magazine offers ten tips to help your new baby.

"Wear the baby in a chest carrier as much as possible. This is particularly important for infants who come from 'carrying cultures'..."

Other tips include finding lullabies in the baby's native language, and sticking to a routine as much as possible. Read more at AdoptiveFamilies.com.

Friday, January 26, 2007

California Group Offers Support for Adoptive Parents

The group is sponsored by a church, but you don’t have to attend the church to attend the group. Called "The Miracle of Adoption", it was co-funded by Pat and Kacie Van Winkle - a couple which knows first-hand the joys and struggles of adoption.

"The Van Winkles adopted Trent, 4 when he was 5 months old from Korea, and Diana, 2, was adopted from China she was 10 months."

The group exists to not only support adoptive parents, but to raise awareness of the needs of the 143 million orphans who live without basic necessities. Read more at OCRegister.com.

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Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Adoption Expenses

Most states, including the District of Columbia, have laws and/or statutes that regulate the fees and other expenses paid by adoptive parents. Though the specifics vary from state to state, most statutes cover such things as placement costs, agency fees, and legal fees.

"In a few states, the payment of expenses may not exceed a set dollar amount, unless the court grants an exception."

An article on the Adoption.com website outlines other statutes and provides links that allow you access adoption expense statutes by state. Read more at Adoption.com.

Monday, January 22, 2007

The History of Adoption

People who are entering into the adoption process often have many questions. This article was written in an attempt to help potential adoptive parents understand how the adoption process and laws came to be.

"Adoption was a general arrangement decided on by the birth and adoptive parents and an exchange was made before laws were introduced to regulate adoption in the United States around 1850."

Friday, January 19, 2007

Maryland Helps Adoptees Find Birth Parents

Starting in 2000, the Maryland General Assembly has passed several bills that make it easier for adopted children to find their birth parents. In the beginning only adopted children or birth parents could initiate a search or be contacted. Now, families of adopted children and birth parents can be contacted as well.

"Since the state instituted the adoption search process, Mr. [Frank] Turner says that there have been 'thousands of reunions, and 99 percent of them are positive. The way it's set up, you can't have a reunion unless both parties agree to it.'"

All searches are filtered through the Department of Human Resources, which maintains a statewide Mutual Consent Voluntary Adoption Registry. Read more online.

Monday, January 15, 2007

Motherhood Doesn't Always Happen on a Fixed Schedule

Susan Whiting adopted twins - a boy and a girl - after she became CEO of Nielsen Media Research and just before she turned fifty. Though she has always wanted a family, her career took some unexpected turns that forced motherhood to wait.

"Being a CEO didn't quell her wish for a child, however, and she began considering adoption. She tracked down and talked to other single parents who had adopted children."

Though her twins have caused her to rearrange her life and her work schedule, she doesn't regret anything. She hopes her story will encourage other women and help ease the pressure that so many feel to perfectly plan family and career. Read more at OCRegister.com.

Friday, January 12, 2007

The Hague Convention Takes Effect This Year

The Hague Convention, considered the "gold standard" for adoption, will take effect in the United States this year. All total, sixty-nine countries, including the United States, have agreed to the Hague Convention.

"It requires training for prospective parents, insurance for and forthrightness from adoption agencies, and proof that children are truly eligible to be adopted."

The hope is that setting these standards will reduce child trafficking and illegal adoptions, making the process safe for both parents and children. Read more at JournalStar.com.

Thursday, January 11, 2007

Foreign Adoptions Decrease in 2006

After steadily increasing for 15 years, foreign adoptions dropped sharply in 2006. Some of this is attributed to many nations reforming their child welfare systems and focusing more on domestic adoptions.

"Adoptions from China, the No. 1 source of children since 2000, fell 18 percent. Adoptions from Russia, the No. 2 source over the previous six years, dropped about 20 percent to a 10-year low."

Though regulations have tightened, foreign adoption is still a viable option for many Americans, and the new regulations in many nations will decrease the waiting time for those who still qualify. Read more at ChicagoTribune.com.

Monday, January 08, 2007

Embryos: A Unique Adoption Twist

An increasing number of couples from Western countries are heading to India to adopt. But they're adopting embryos, rather than babies that have already been born. When multiple embryos are produced during IVF, the unused embryos are frozen and stored. Many Indian women have agreed to allow the embryos to be adopted rather than being frozen indefinitely or destroyed altogether.

"Unlike traditional adoption, the couple does not have to go through a legal process to adopt, but through medical treatment. This means that the couple "biologically adopts" the embryo."

Current Indian law states that the birth mother and her husband are the legal parents of the child, though the law doesn't specifically address embryo adoption. Read more online.

Friday, January 05, 2007

Americans Big on Foreign Adoption

Though things may change this year, because of tightened adoption restrictions from countries like China, 2006 was a big year for foreign adoptions. The U.S. State Department issued over 20,000 visas for adopted children coming from other countries.

"The process of adopting a child from another country generally costs between $15,000 and $30,000. This can include the cost of travel, immigration processing, an orphanage donation, translation and medical expenses..."

The U.S. is planning, this year, to ratify the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption which ensures that adoptions won't involve abduction, sale, or trafficking of children. Read more at HonoluluAdvertiser.com.

A writer for a fashion magazine recently caused a storm when she declared that a transracially adopted child is the hot fashion accessory of the moment. Despite negative comments like those, there is a very positive side to the recent vogue in adoption. Learn more now >>

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Ukraine Resumes Acceptance of International Adoption Dossiers

Ukraine's central adoption authority (the State Department for Adoptions and Protection of the Rights of the Child, known as the SDAPRC) has said it will resume accepting new adoption dossiers from non-Ukrainian prospective adoptive parents, starting December 19, 2006.

Labels: inter-country_adoption, international

The Importance of Entitlement

Where adoption is concerned, "entitlement" is defined as having a sense that an adopted child belongs in the family. Developing this sense entitlement is vital to an adoptive parent's relationship with his or her child.