You’ve decided on an infant adoption and you would like to help your older children accept the new baby into the family. Why not let the older children look through baby names with you and help you choose. If you already have baby names picked out, then have the older children help choose the spelling of the names. Infant adoption can be stressful on the whole family.

However, including the older siblings in on choosing some of the details can help them to accept and love their new baby. Older siblings can sometimes feel resentful and jealous of the time and energy their parents are putting into an adoption. Of course, once the infant arrives, much of mom and dad’s time will be focused on caring for the new baby.

Our daughter Ami was adopted from another state, 1500 miles from home. Our children had to give up mom (me) for 11 days while Ami and I waited for Interstate approval (ICPC) to come home. The children were really excited about Ami coming into our family and they couldn’t wait to meet her. I sent pictures to them from my cell phone but it was a difficult time of separation.

However, they had helped with choosing and spelling her name. They had selected some of her outfits and toys at the store. They were really excited about a baby coming to live with us that would be able to stay in our forever family. They helped with feeding her, changing her diapers, and playing with her, once she arrived home. She was definitely, their baby.

We have had many children placed with us over the years through foster care. Several children stayed with us for over a year, we would all became very attached to them, and then they would be placed elsewhere or returned home.

We grieved losing a special little girl named Lillie, in fact we still grieve losing her. The children didn’t want to foster any more children, it was too much like losing a brother or a sister. This was why we chose to do a private adoption after adopting six children through foster care. This is also why we including all our children in the adoption process.

This is one of Amigrace's newborn photos. Copyright Julia Fuller 2006

Link Between Antibiotic Use in Infants and Asthma
Will my Baby Have Hepatitis C VIRUS
Losing Lillie
Pediatric GERD
What if One Sibling Has a Name Change at Adoption
How to Lose Twelve Years Waiting on Adoption