In my last post I gave some advice about preparing for your adoption related travel.

One of my pieces of advice in that post was to get a good travel agent who has experience with adoption travel.

I have a lot of people that email me and ask if a travel agent is really necessary for your adoption travel. In this day and age, the internet gives anyone who has access to a computer the ability to be their own travel agent in a lot of ways. While it is true... more

Since I have travel on the brain right now, I thought it would be fun to share some of my travel tips and lessons learned from our many adoption trips.

These days, with the high number of international transracial adoptions and the high number of parents adopting domestically who have to travel to another state for their adoption, the majority of transracial adoptions involve some amount of travel.

Travel can be stressful, and adoption related travel can be ultra stressful. One of the things that you can do to relieve some of the stress is to do... more

Unless you are adopting through your local foster care agency or are having a child escorted, you will be doing some sort of traveling for your adoption. Most international adoptions involve international travel, and domestic adoption can involve travel to the next state or to the other side of the country. While most people think of adoption travel in regards to international adoption, our longest adoption trip was that to South Carolina to get our son, Marcus.

Since travel is one of the exciting parts of adoption, and the part that many adoptive... more

For families adopting internationally, a common question that pops up is if it is a good idea to bring the children they already have at home along on the trip to pick up their new child.

A reader of my blog recently left me this question:

We have 9 & 10 year-old bio kids. Would you recommend them traveling to Ethiopia to bring their adopted brother into the family? Do you think whether or not they travel with us will make a difference in their long-term bonding with their new brother?

There are good arguments... more

My last post in my Transracial Adoption ABCs for the letter "T" is going to be on adoption travel. Travel is a huge part of almost any adoption, and it can be a wonderful and exciting part, and also a stressful and very challenging part of your adoption experience.

Travel - Unless you are doing a foster adoption or domestic infant adoption from a very local agency, it is very likely that your adoption will involve some travel. While there are still some international adoption... more

In our house, May is a month of travel this year. Earlier this month, Josh, Belane, Marcus and I traveled to Chicago, where we attended a fundraising event for HIV+ adoption. I was a speaker at the event and Belane was a guest of honor. (You can read more about it here and here on my personal blog).

We just got home from Chicago this weekend and unpacked, and now are gearing up for our big trip to Disneyworld, Universal Studios and Sea World in Florida, thanks to Make A Wish (and to Belane, who wished to hug... more

In my last two posts I have written about fears that some adoptive parents have about their adoption travel, and then gave some tips on making your adoption trip less intimidating.

In this post, I am going to give suggestions to make it easier to leave children at home while you travel for your adoption.

-Try to keep things in perspective. Your children at home... more

Today I am discussing the adoption roadblock of travel worries and fears, and in this post I am going to give you some tips to help ease your anxiety about your adoption trip and offer ways to make it smoother and easier, and in my next post, I will write about tips to make is as painless as possible to leave children at home while you travel.

Tips for smoother adoption travel (and ways to calm your fears)…

-When you are early on in the adoption stage and still... more

Every time I think I have this category just about wrapped up, I think of another “adoption roadblock”. When I first started this I didn’t realize just how many reasons there are out there for people NOT to adopt. Hopefully by discussing them, sharing my experiences and providing additional resources, some people will feel inspired to move forward with their adoption plans.

Following this series of posts on travel, I plan on addressing ethical concerns related to adoption, and then some of the “irrational fear” that can creep on you. If you have... more

Continued from previous posts...

-Know about where you are going. I think this is especially true if you are traveling internationally. Learn about the country you are going to and what to expect. What are some of the cultural “to do’s” and “don’ts?” What is the area like? What sorts of food will there be? What will the weather be like? Is tipping expected? Will there be lots of poverty? Will I be treated poorly for being a white person with a child from that country? Is it safe to be out on my own? What are some good places to eat? What... more