Choosing the right adoptive family for your baby is one of the most gratifying aspects of the adoption process. Every adoption is different, and if you follow your heart, finding the right adoptive parents may be the best decision you’ve ever made. With the right people by your side, you, the adoptive parents and your baby will be able to conquer anything.
Abby’s One True Gift Adoptions helps you find available adoptive parents looking to adopt in a private, secure environment. To help you make your choice, our network of adoption professionals has compiled a list of the most common factors birthmothers think about when considering available adoptive families.
How to Choose an Adoptive Family
Many birthmothers ask us about the right way to choose an adoptive family. The answer to this question varies from person to person, and it always starts with asking yourself what’s important to you.
Here are a few considerations to reflect on as you begin your search.
2. Location
Considering the location of your potential adoptive family may be important to you. Location can play a role in determining how much physical contact you’ll have with your family.
If you desire a semi-open adoption with mostly text, letter, phone or social media communication, finding a family close to you or in the same state will not be essential in your search. If you prefer to have more in-person contact with your adoptive parents, you may want to find a match in your state of residence or a state near you.
You may prefer to choose a couple waiting to adopt that wants to prioritize spending time with you as the birthmother. If you choose an available adoptive family that has already adopted and doesn’t live close to you, you can observe how they prioritize visiting their other child’s birth family. If they value making time for their current birth family, you can feel some reassurance that they will do the same for you.
If you choose an adoptive family who lives in a different state, it’s important to note that adoption laws and regulations may differ between their state and your own. Remember — you don’t have to do this alone. The team of adoption attorneys and professionals at Abby’s One True Gift Adoptions can help you navigate any state-by-state legalities associated with the adoption process.
3. General Interests
After narrowing down your search for families waiting to adopt based on factors like location and whether the family is home study-approved, you can start looking at the general interests of available adoptive families. You will gather the interests and preferences of waiting adoptive families via both video and print profiles.
Many parents waiting to adopt may have the same passions and interests as you, which is a great way to build a strong relationship with them. When searching parent profiles for adoption, look for the following:
- Interests
- Hobbies
- Personality
- Careers
5. Children or No Children
Would you prefer your child to be placed in a home with no other children, or for them to have siblings? While some waiting adoptive families may have biological children of their own, others may have struggled with infertility in the past. Depending on the type of environment you’d like your child to grow up in, considering if prospective adoptive parents have children or not may be important to you.
You can choose between families who want one child, who already have kids or who plan to have more. It’s also important to specify if you want your child to grow up with close access to grandparents or other extended family members.
