by Rosangela Bragança There are so many misconceptions about open adoption, adoptive parents, and birth parents. By sharing a little bit of my own open adoption journey, I hope some of these misconceptions will be clarified. I am the proud birth mother of a girl named Isabella. She is 14 years old now. It all … Continued
By Roberta Havens, MAEd Thirteen years ago this month, my husband and I made a road trip to Riverside, CA, to meet a pregnant woman. Two months after that first meeting, our son was born and placed in our care by his birth mom. Since that day, I’ve learned that parenting has as many joys … Continued
By Leah Sheldon Your Adoption Parent Profile is done, and you’ve decided to include a personal cell phone number so that an expectant mother can call you directly. Instead of getting a phone call, you hear a “ping” on your phone and receive an SMS message: “Hi! Are you still looking for a baby?” At … Continued
Creating meaningful ritual in open adoption By Leah Sheldon Rituals have always been used to signify a change or rite of passage, or to mark a transition in the life of a person or community. Although they are often interwoven with religious traditions, rituals can be anything that symbolizes and celebrates a life change. We … Continued
Written by Lynne Fingerman, MSW I recently got this email from a 24 year-old woman who was placed with her adoptive parents at birth and it made my day! Hello Lynne, My name is Susanna * and back in 1989 you were the one who was in charge of my adoption. You placed me with … Continued
Time to say good-bye After 27 years at Adoption Connection, I’ve decided to step down/retire/move on/get-going … what is the right word? I can vividly remember my very first adoption. In 1987, we were a staff of three very part-time workers. I did the homestudy, the birthparent counseling, the relinquishment, and the post-placement visits. The … Continued
By Nina Anderson, LCSW In open adoption in California, birth parents and adopting parents have an opportunity to create a future contact agreement that will define the type of contact that the birth parents will have with their child and the adopting parents. These formal post-adoption agreements, sometimes called kinship agreements, are formalized in writing … Continued
By Roberta Havens, MEd “Are you the nanny?” As a Latina adoptive mom of Caucasian children, I have lost track of the number of times I have been asked that question! I knew being a parent would be hard enough, with many people ready to share their unsolicited “pearls of wisdom” with you about parenting. … Continued
Adoption Connection is pleased to welcome author Lori Holden to the Bay Area. Her book, The Open-Hearted Way to Open Adoption: Helping Your Child Grow Up Whole, was written with the help of her daughter’s birthmother, Crystal Hass. Lori answered a few questions about her book in our recent interview with her. You’ve been blogging … Continued
By Rachel Herndon, MSW, ACSW Most adoptive parents and birth parents experience trepidation when they first approach the adoption process. They both report a fear of being judged, of being vulnerable in front of strangers and of not knowing if they can trust the other party to follow through on promises. What adoptive parents and … Continued