THE BABBLE TAKE
In some ways having an adopted baby is not much different from producing a biological one, in other ways it can be daunting. When you have a biological child you prepare for the rather standard experience of caring for a newborn. In many cases adopted children don't come home to their parents until they are at least a few months old and so preparing for their arrival can be different from a practical as well as an emotional standpoint. Adopted children may also have special emotional or medical needs, especially if they are older and have been bounced around between different caregivers before being adopted. Some parents worry about their own reactions to their new child and how to best welcome their baby home. However most adoptive parents say they quickly find their way with their children and soon can't remember what life was like without them.
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BabyCenter ®
"When an older baby or young child comes to us with a history — having experienced, say, the loss of an adored caregiver at his orphanage — many of us worry: Will this child form a strong attachment to me? The basic steps of healthy attachment are the same whether a child has been adopted or born into a family. Attachment is a process. Just as one wonderful moment of love and protection does not make an attachment between parent and child, neither does one difficult moment mean an attachment problem."
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Adoption.com
"Preparing for the arrival of the adoptive child is an experience that is filled with hopes and dreams that may have extended far beyond the nine months of a typical pregnancy. That dream which may have spanned years of expectation can occur within a moment. As long as your heart is ready, the rest will fall into place. The process of planning for your adoptive child has involved a home study, legal paper work, the emotional journey of connection to the birth parents who have chosen you, and has evolved into a dream come true. Adrenaline replaces anxiety and you take on your role as parents, unaffected by lack of sleep, your focus is summed up in a word — family."
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iVillage
"Baby stores provide long lists of must-haves for newborns. But if you're selecting the essentials for a toddler or young child you're adopting, planning your wish list can be tricky. Here's how to figure it out. If you know someone who has a child about the same age as yours will be, find out which items she finds indispensable, and which things her child has already outgrown. For instance, many new mothers request a swing to soothe the baby, but if your child will be eight months old by the time he arrives home, he may be too big to use it."
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BabyCenter ®
"The adoption process led you to the joyous moment of meeting your child, but it absolutely did not include preparation for the overwhelming feeling of "baby shock" that all new adoptive parents experience to some degree. Day-to-day life with a new child, who is scared and perhaps angry or rejecting (and who has apparently lost the ability to sleep at night), can make even the most self-confident parent lose that perky edge. What you are experiencing is natural. Though the rewards and joys of parenting are huge, the challenges can be draining, confusing, and...depressing."
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Adoptive Families
"Only a small percentage of adopted infants come directly from the hospital into the homes of their new families. Most spend some time in foster care or in an orphanage. Some react to the transition without much complaint. But many feel the trauma of adjustment: fear of new people and new surroundings, unfamiliar food, a foreign bed. Here are some tips for easing their entry and for facilitating parent-child bonding."
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