Open Adoption Scams Pt. 3: You’re Good, but Thankfully Not that Good

This guest post is by Leah B., a hopeful adoptive mother, This concludes our special holiday series on how to protect yourself from open adoption scams. Read Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

I feel pretty blessed I’m not writing “The Twelve Adoption Scams of Christmas” as I only have three to offer. But I’m sure that many other hopeful adoptive parents could add their own stories to my list.

This last scam was definitely the best of the bunch. Luckily for others, the woman behind it had a bad memory or was a bad record keeper or took too many drugs to remember which couples she has already contacted. Continue reading →

Scam Stories Pt. 2: The “Nigerian Prince” of Open Adoption

This guest post is by Leah B., a hopeful adoptive mother, Part 2 of a special holiday series on how to protect yourself from open adoption scams. Read Part 1 here.

OK, he wasn’t literally a Nigerian Prince.

We all know about the omnipresent spam email “I’m a Nigerian Prince. I need $3,000. Please wire it into this bank account.” Yes, that one — the message we all wonder who the heck would ever fall for. Continue reading →

The Three Adoption Scams of Christmas, Part 1

This guest post is by Leah B., an adoptive mother whose profile had been posted on our Find A Family page, part of a special holiday series on how to protect yourself from open adoption scams.

You don’t need to have an advanced degree in human psychology to know that the holidays might not be so merry if, say, you’ve been on the waiting list to adopt a child for a while. This unpleasant fact is not lost on opportunistic adoption scammers.

This is my first holiday season on “the list,” and during the first couple weeks of this month I received three different types of scams. Two of the scams were pretty obvious, but one could have trapped someone. Continue reading →

Surviving the Holidays When You’re Waiting To Adopt

This guest post is by Preetha, a hopeful adoptive mother.

Typically, holidays should be a time for celebration and happy moments. But for some, especially those who have battled infertility issues and who are waiting to adopt, they might be a source of stress. They might be a reminder of what was lost and/or what is missing, and others may not be able to relate to this sentiment. Continue reading →

Adoption Connections: How The Internet Is Changing The Way Adoptive And Birth Parents Meet

The internet has changed the adoption landscape in ways that prospective birthparents and adoptive parents could never have imagined. Once upon a time the only way the two parties could have connected would have been through a pre-arranged meeting set up through an intermediary at their adoption agency. Continue reading →

What’s The Best Adoption Advice You’ve Received And Other Answers To Your Adopting Questions

What’s the best adoption advice you’ve received? If you could change one thing about your journey, what would it be? What do you know about adoption now that you wish you had known before?

These are just some of the questions we asked prospective adoptive parents, families who have adopted or have placed a baby for adoption, and adoptees as part of a series our sister site runs every year during National Adoption Month called “30 Questions, 30 Days.” Continue reading →

What To Do Before, During, and After You Post Your Adoption Profile Online

Adoption isn’t a one-time event. It’s just one step in a life-long journey.

Posting your adoption profile online isn’t any different. Finding the right words to grab the attention of prospective birthparents is merely the beginning of the networking process. There’s still lots to do to make sure that they see your message. Continue reading →