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Tag: Adoptive Mother

National Adoption Month: V is for…

National Adoption Month: V is for…

#NationalAdoptionAwareness Month. V is for #Vulnerable “The primary mission of the social work profession is to enhance human well-being and help meet the basic human needs of all people, with particular attention to the needs and empowerment of people who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty…” – National Association of Social Workers: Code of Ethics Preamble Before getting into the social work field, I knew that I had a duty to give back to the adoption community by educating…

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National Adoption Month: U is for…

National Adoption Month: U is for…

#NationalAdoptionAwareness Month. U is for #Understand “Do you understand that you are relinquishing your parental rights and in the state of Oregon once this document is signed, everything is final?” Prior to hearing these words in the hospital, I had counseling sessions with my adoption social worker in her office about what it meant signing the legal documents that would relinquish my parental rights. These forms were something that I had to read every single word and fully understand what…

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National Adoption Month: S is for…

National Adoption Month: S is for…

 #NationalAdoptionAwareness Month. S is for #Similarities Over the past 13 years I have heard how much Lil Miss looks like me, and some have called her my Mini-Me. We both have blonde hair, blue eyes and same body shape. As she ages, I can often remember what I was doing around the same age. A couple years ago, she entered the age in school where students are encouraged to pick a musical instrument. Later that year, when I was at…

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National Adoption Month: R is for…

National Adoption Month: R is for…

#NationalAdoptionAwareness Month. R is for #Reasons for #Relinquishment “What were the reasons you gave up your daughter for adoption rather than being a parent?” Plain and simple answer: I did not give up my daughter, I chose to create an adoption plan for her as that was the best option at that time in my life. This is a common question that my family members and I are asked when people find out that I chose to place rather than…

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National Adoption Month: Q is for…

National Adoption Month: Q is for…

#NationalAdoptionAwareness Month. Q is for #Quick   How does the word Quick relate to adoption? Individuals who are in the adoption world wish and hope that the process of #planning, #waiting, #choosing and #laboring are all things that will be quick and painless. But #adoption is something that is NOT quick for many individuals. Prospective Adoptive parents are told once their home study has been approved to have a bedroom/nursery ready because they will never know when they will get…

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National Adoption Month: O is for…

National Adoption Month: O is for…

#NationalAdoptionAwareness Month. O is for #Open Adoption & Family Services Open Adoption & Family Services (OAFS) is the agency that I chose to work with for placement of Lil Miss. OAFS is in Portland, Oregon but has locations in Eugene, Seattle and was the first agency in Oregon to offer fully open adoptions back in the mid-1980s. I chose to work with OAFS because of how they treated me with the first contact I ever made with them. The counselor…

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National Adoption Month: N is for…

National Adoption Month: N is for…

#NationalAdoptionAwareness Month. N is for #New When it comes to being a birthparent, I have always had some anxiety when it came to meeting new people who do not know my adoption journey. I mean, what do you say when someone asks if you have kids? This is something I have always struggled with and have responded different ways. Sometimes I will say, “Yes, I do and she is <enter age>.” I then try to move the conversation to something…

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National Adoption Month: K is for…

National Adoption Month: K is for…

#NationalAdoptionAwareness Month. K is for #Kaylee While I was pregnant, the name of the baby was something that her parents and I spoke about. My only request was that either my first name or middle name was part of her name. We had talked about having Lil Miss and I share middle names, Rae. First names that were talked about were Katelynn, Karlee, and Hailee. When she was born, I looked at her mom and said, “Well mom, what is…

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National Adoption Month: K is for…

National Adoption Month: K is for…

#NationalAdoptionAwareness Month. K is for #Kinds of Adoption When a birthmother is beginning her placement journey, she is first asked what type of adoption is she looking for, as there are different types of adoptions. The three most common are Open Adoption, Semi-Open, and Closed. Open adoption is when the birthmother choses the future parents of her child and can receive pictures, phone calls, facetime, emails, and visitations with the placed child. Semi-Open Adoptions are adoptions where the birthmother has…

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National Adoption Month: F is also for…

National Adoption Month: F is also for…

#NationalAdoptionAwarenessMonth F is also for #Fears and/or Questioning. When it comes to Adoption, you can not talk about the word Fear. Fear is an emotion that everyone faces, and it acceptable to have the fears when going through an adoption process or after the adoption has been finalized. Fears are normal for Birth parents, Adoptive Parents, and even Adoptees. Here are just a few that are normal for each side if the triad…. Fears from a birth parent: Will the…

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