I have been putting off writing about foster care adoption because it is a tough topic for me. On one hand, we hear over and over how many children are languishing in foster care, desperate for adoptive families and all the campaigns to get adoptive families for children in foster care, and then on the other hand, when you talk to families who have gone through the foster care system to adopt, they usually have some tough stories to tell.

We tried unsuccessfully to adopt from the foster care system several years ago. We were open to one child or a sibling group of two or three... more

I am writing today to spread the word that adopting children who are HIV+ is now very possible. It used to be that the U.S. did not allow children with HIV to enter the country, and that other countries that allow international adoption, did not allow HIV+ children to be adopted.

However, with the rapid improvements in medications and expectations for a person with HIV, things are changing. Did you know that HIV is not even considered a terminal illness in the United States anymore? It is considered a chronic, yet manageable disease. People with HIV require daily medication and quarterly check-ups (including blood tests), but beyond that, many people with HIV who receive the proper... more

When my husband and I first started adopting children, we never considered a domestic adoption. We had heard so many “horror” stories about families having babies taken back after placement, etc. and that it was extremely difficult and expensive, etc. It wasn’t until we had an international placement fall through and an agency mention to us that they had an African American domestic newborn program that they were recruiting families for, that we started to think about it.

Private domestic adoption of a newborn or young child (I will discuss foster care adoption in its own post), is a very different experience than an international adoption. What appeals to one family is scary to another,... more

Vietnam is a country and an adoption program that are very close to my heart. Five years ago, Josh and I were embarking on our very first adoption journey, and between our research, our hearts and our prayers, we were led to Vietnam. We brought home our daughter Maggie at the ripe old age of 3 ½ months, and although the process was a bit rocky at times, overall it was a wonderful experience.

For multiple reasons, including allegations of corruption and a program lacking in set procedures and guidelines, adoptions between the U.S. and Vietnam are just re-opening after being... more

Thailand is a country in Asian that borders Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia and Myanmar. Thailand presents prospective adoptive parents with another smaller, Asian international adoption option.

Parent requirements- Parents need to be at least 25 years old and no more than 40 years older than the child being adopted. Older couples or couples with one older parent may be approved for waiting children. Parents should be married for at least three years and up to two divorces are accepted per couple. Smaller families are preferred, with no more than two children already in the home,... more

I was unaware that adoptions were currently possible from Mongolia, but a friend pointed out that they were and asked me to include Mongolia on my list of “transracial adoption options”, so here it is.

Please note that I was only able to find three agencies who claimed to have Mongolia adoption programs, and I also found a very out of date (from June of 2002) note on the U.S. Dept. of State website that stated that adoptions from Mongolia were currently not recommended because the Mongolian adoptions did not meet the U.S. immigration requirements. Again, this note was almost... more

Taiwan is one another one of those smaller Asian adoption programs that seems to be getting more and more attention as parents look for options other than the long referral waits associated with China and Korea. In 2005 the USCIS reported 141 adopted children from Taiwan coming into the U.S. on immigrant visas.

Taiwan is a small island off of mainland China, with a population of over 22 million people. Birth mothers in Taiwan are given the option of choosing a family for their baby, which is unlike most international adoption programs. The birth mothers in Taiwan are well... more

One of the first decisions that parents will have to make once they decide to adopt is “domestic or international” adoption. While I am writing the “Transracial Adoption Options” category and giving information on countries/programs for transracial adoption, I am writing this post because this topic goes hand in hand with that information.

I know from firsthand experience that one of the questions that bothers parents of internationally adopted children the most is, “Why would you adopt from another country when there are children who need a home here in the U.S.?” There definitely are a lot of people who have the attitude that we should take care of the orphans here in the U.S. before... more

Hong Kong is a transracial adoption option that is lesser known than many of the other adoption programs and yet while it is a smaller adoption program, it is a wonderful option for the right families.

Because of the fact that there are many Hong Kong residents who desire to adopt healthy infants, almost all of international adoptions from Hong Kong are special needs adoptions. Hong Kong adoptions are NOT processed along with China adoptions, and Hong Kong has its own adoption regulations, procedures and authorities. All adoptions are processed through the Hong Kong Social... more

While it is not as big of an adoption program as some of the other Asian programs, a steady stream of families have been adopting from the Philippines since the last seventies. The children available for adoption are of Asian/Malay/Spanish descent, and come from orphanages and foster care throughout the Philippines. Children are available for adoption due to social, economic and other reasons.

Parent Requirements- Parents should be at least 27 years old, and no more than 47 years older than the child they are adopting. Married couples must have been married at least three years... more