When we first decided to adopt a child, we do not consider adoption overseas. Overseas adoption, we knew, was costly, time-consuming, and extremely frustrating. Adoption in Michigan was supposed to be easy in comparison. We have been living in the state for a long time, and we felt a certain connection to the place and its people. A Michigan adoption seemed to have a significance that adoption in Russia, for example, would not have.
Nonetheless, adoption Michigan proved to be much more difficult than we had thought. Apparently, all of the traditional depictions of orphans are inaccurate. Gone are the days when there were desperate orphans all over the country, waiting to be adopted. Most of the children – unless they are special needs adoption cases – are adopted at a very young age. If you want to find a baby to adopt, adoption overseas is definitely your best bet. In many countries, adoption is still frowned upon and there are many unwanted orphans. Adoption in China, for example, is one of the best ways for childless couples to get children of their own.
We settled on adoption overseas, but we were not happy about it. When you are considering overseas adoption, you had better have a lot of money to throw into the project. Adoption overseas can cost upwards of 7000 dollars, not including travel expenses. You may have to take several trips to the country of choice, interview with government bureaucrats, spent months going through the bureaucracy, and still not be able to adopt a child overseas. Adoption overseas is only for the dedicated few. If you do not have what it takes, you should not even try.
Nonetheless, our efforts at adoption oversees proved fruitful at last. It took us more than two years, but we were finally able to take home a beautiful, new born baby girl from China. She was unwanted in that country, where the government strictly regulates the number of children that each couple may have. This is why adoption overseas from China is so popular in this country. There are thousands and thousands of Chinese children born each year who are not wanted in their own country. We knew that our baby would not look anything like us when she grew up, but we did not care. We would love her and provide her with a home, and she would be our daughter.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Adoption Announcements For New Born Children
I recently decided to adopt a child. I never had thought about it, but adopting a child involves a lot of difficult negotiating, especially in the first year. Don't get me wrong, we clicked very quickly. The problem was, I couldn't figure out exactly how to introduce him to the family. I have a large extended family, including many friends who are not technically related to me. They were all happy to hear that I had decided to adopt a child, and I wanted to have a party to welcome him into the family. Nonetheless, I couldn't decide on the issue of adoption announcements.
You see, adoption birth announcements can be pretty tricky. On the one hand, you do not want the baby boy announcements to make the child stand out. You want him to feel relaxed and comfortable in the family. Adoption announcements would be bad enough for a newborn child, but my child was already three years old! Although he would probably forget his early life, nonetheless I did not want to traumatize him with the party.
I could not figure out whether or not to send out adoption announcements. If you have worked with children, you might think that it would be an easy decision to make. A social worker friend of mine said that it was clearly a situation where I should let the event pass without celebration. She said adoption announcements can make them feel like they are outcasts or freaks.
Instead, she suggested having a few intimate friends over at a time and gradually introducing him to everyone. The problem was that I knew if I didn't send out adoption announcements, I was probably bound to offend someone. My family is very big on formality, and the adoption announcements were almost a given to them. They figured that if anyone was joining the family, whether they were adopted, newborn, or someone's fiancé, they should be brought around to meet everyone.
Finally, I decided not to get adoption announcements. Instead, I waited until his first birthday. Although a few people were miffed at the absence of an adoption announcements party, the vast majority of my relatives understood. You have to be very careful with an adopted child's feelings. Children in general can be delicate, but adopted children are especially prone to be so. Adopting a child, after all, is not like adopting a pet. You can not just show him around and expect him to love everyone and everyone to love him. It takes a lighter touch, and a longer period of time than that.
You see, adoption birth announcements can be pretty tricky. On the one hand, you do not want the baby boy announcements to make the child stand out. You want him to feel relaxed and comfortable in the family. Adoption announcements would be bad enough for a newborn child, but my child was already three years old! Although he would probably forget his early life, nonetheless I did not want to traumatize him with the party.
I could not figure out whether or not to send out adoption announcements. If you have worked with children, you might think that it would be an easy decision to make. A social worker friend of mine said that it was clearly a situation where I should let the event pass without celebration. She said adoption announcements can make them feel like they are outcasts or freaks.
Instead, she suggested having a few intimate friends over at a time and gradually introducing him to everyone. The problem was that I knew if I didn't send out adoption announcements, I was probably bound to offend someone. My family is very big on formality, and the adoption announcements were almost a given to them. They figured that if anyone was joining the family, whether they were adopted, newborn, or someone's fiancé, they should be brought around to meet everyone.
Finally, I decided not to get adoption announcements. Instead, I waited until his first birthday. Although a few people were miffed at the absence of an adoption announcements party, the vast majority of my relatives understood. You have to be very careful with an adopted child's feelings. Children in general can be delicate, but adopted children are especially prone to be so. Adopting a child, after all, is not like adopting a pet. You can not just show him around and expect him to love everyone and everyone to love him. It takes a lighter touch, and a longer period of time than that.
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