Adoption

Adoption is a very fulfilling way to expand your family. Yet, as exciting as it is, the entire process can also be overwhelming, especially if you don’t have a professional in your corner. You need to be legally prepared to tackle everything that comes with adopting a child.

Everyone involved experiences many different emotions, both good and bad. You may be preparing for your first child, which means making major adjustments. Or maybe you already have kids, in which case you may have to deal with their feelings of rejection.

Either way, there are numerous resources, such as support groups and books, to help you face these challenges.

Types of Legal Adoptions

Adoption is a legal process that make a parent-less child an official member of your family. Just like most things legal, it’s recommended that you hire a local Texas adoption attorney to represent you instead of going it alone.

There are various types of legal adoptions, each one with its own pros and cons. These four are very common in Texas:

1. Domestic Infant Adoptions

This is when an American adopts an infant that was born here in the US. Generally, they are born to mothers who can’t care for them. In most cases, adoption agencies are involved.

With domestic infant adoptions, approval requires a lengthy application process. If the baby is a newborn, the birth parents have a specific amount of time to revoke the adoption and reclaim their parental rights.

2. International Adoptions

These types of adoptions involve Americans adopting babies born in other countries. In most cases, they have to take international trips to visit the child multiple times during the process. Many international adoptive parents choose to relocate to the child’s birth country until the adoption is final.

International adoptions require that the child being adopted obtain American citizenship. There are also laws set by the child’s birth country that must be followed. Because of all of this, these adoptions take much longer to become finalized.

3. Adopting from Foster Care

This is a very popular option in America. Many people start off as foster parents or turn to foster care to find children in need of parents. They often suffer from trauma due to issues that led to them being removed from one or both parents’ custody.

Adopting from foster care requires going to meetings and passing training courses to help you cope. The common practice is to become a local foster parent, taking in kids temporarily, to test the waters. Many people have fallen in love with foster kids this way and gone on to legally adopt them.

4. Open Adoptions

As open adoption allows the child to stay connected with birth parents, based on an agreement between them and the adoptive parents. This could be anything from regular phone calls and updated pictures, to annual visits and letters. Either way, it’s best to hire a Houston adoption attorney to draw up a legal agreement so it’s enforceable if things go wrong.