Stories of adoption show sacrifice, love, and inspiration. Each adoption story is different, but each story is wonderful in its own way.

As a member of the adoption community, I have come across many adoption stories. I find each inspiring. I have seen families being matched with expectant parents and then bring home a new baby. I have seen families foster a child and then ask to adopt the child. I have seen courtrooms of adoptive families being granted their petition to adopt.  I have seen communities come together to support families who are hoping to adopt. There are stories of people adopting a child with special needs, and the adoption is a blessing to all those involved.

Adoption is amazing, and the people involved are amazing. Adoption has helped me become a mother. I am inspired by other adoption stories. 

My Family’s Adoption Story

My three sons were adopted. They have different adoption stories, and they are inspiring in their own ways.

With our first adoption, we decided to go the traditional route. After we submitted paperwork, completed our background checks, endured interviews, passed our home study, and paid an initial fee, we were approved for adoption. The chances of being matched with an expectant parent were better if we told everyone we knew that we were hoping to adopt. Our Christmas cards that year included cards with our picture and information about our profile and blog.

About a year after being approved for adoption, my aunt called me to tell me that she knew someone who was pregnant. She had told this woman’s mother about us and gave her our information. Because of other contacts that did not pan out, we were cautiously optimistic that this would turn into something.

A few days later, we received an email that would change our lives. It was from the expectant parent that knew my aunt. She told us about her situation and the range of emotions she’d felt since finding out she was pregnant. J wrote that she had decided to place her baby for adoption and was hoping we would consider adopting him. My husband and I immediately hugged and jumped for joy. Our relationship with J grew, and we felt close to her, but there was some concern with her ex-boyfriend, S.

S had different thoughts about adoption and was persuaded by his family to change J’s mind. When the baby was born, we flew several states away and arrived at the hospital hours later. The next day we went to the hospital again, and S arrived after to meet his son. He had started to turn his heart towards adoption, but what sealed it was meeting and developing a relationship with us. The hospital staff allowed us to go into another room with S and the baby. He lovingly held his son and asked us questions about our lives and how we would raise his son. Over the next several days, we grew to love S and built a relationship of trust. It was more than we could have expected.

When we signed the adoption papers four days after the baby was born, both birth parents knew they were making the right decision. We embraced them and expressed our love for them. The caseworker commented to us, “I did not know how this adoption was going to work out, but you helped change his heart.” The open adoption we have enjoyed for ten years has been a beautiful journey. 

My Family’s Foster-to-Adopt Story

After our son became a toddler, we decided we wanted more children and for him to be a big brother. Because it had worked the first time, we decided to go on the same path to find our next child. This time it did not work as we had hoped for. Our son moved out of his crib not because a new baby needed the crib but because he had grown. This was difficult for our family because we had envisioned having children close together.

After two years, we decided to pursue foster-to-adopt. It seemed like, this time, there was even more paperwork, interviews, and background checks. The day after we were licensed, we got a phone call from a caseworker. There was a little boy who was almost a year old who needed a permanent home. He was in another foster home, but the family was unable to take in his baby brother, who would be born within a matter of weeks. The state wanted to find a home and family for both boys with the potential for adoption. We felt like this was what our family needed. The little boy was transferred into our home, and three weeks later, we picked up his baby brother from the hospital.

We went from a family of three to five quickly, and the children were all three and under. It was a whirlwind of emotions. It was different from our first adoption because the two boys were still in foster care. The state’s goals were reunification, so the boys had visits with their biological parents. After enduring court dates, state visits, and renewing our license, we were able to adopt the boys when they were four and three years old. Our family celebrated with a big party, and we invited family and friends to celebrate with us. We felt blessed to be a family with all the same last names.

The T Family’s Influential Adoption Miracle

I like to follow other adoptive families on Instagram. They all have unique and beautiful adoption stories. I have been following the T family for years. They have a daughter who was adopted, and they were hoping to adopt another child. It had been years of waiting and hoping. They were scrimping and saving because they knew that they would need to pay the adoption fees if they were quickly matched. Even after trying to save all they could, they knew they were still short of some money.

Her friends and family rallied around them and organized a fundraiser to help them. A few Instagram influencers posted about this fundraiser, and within two days, they raised a significant amount of money. These friends and family stopped by their house with the surprise. The T family was in shock that this had been organized on their behalf. The video showing their reaction was tear-filled and full of gratitude.

The next week a caseworker contacted the T family and told them an expectant mother had seen their profile and wanted them to adopt her baby. She was heading to the hospital at that exact moment to deliver the baby. The T family quickly bought some diapers, bottles, and other baby needs. A healthy baby boy was placed in their arms the next day.

The amount raised by their family and friends was almost the exact amount they needed to cover the adoption fees. It was a miracle. It shows that a community can come together and support a family in a very special way. 

The R Family’s Adoption

I first got to know A from church. She and her husband had been married just a few months longer than my husband and me. My husband and my infertility issues were not a secret, and we shared it with others. She confided in me that she and her husband were also having infertility issues. They had tried all they could to have a biological child but had nothing to show for it.

After taking the time to grieve this, they decided to pursue adoption. They were devastated when an expectant mother chose them to be parents but then chose to parent. A family friend put them in contact with a young woman from another country. She had been in college and found out she was pregnant. This expectant mother decided to place her baby for adoption. The R family took her into their home and developed a great relationship with her.

She taught them to cook dishes from her native country, and they taught her some of their favorite music. They brought her to family gatherings. She became a part of their family. When her baby was born, she placed the baby with them and knew that it was the right choice. She felt peace and love knowing the R family was a good family that would love and support her daughter. 

The B Family’s Sibling Adoption Story

The B family was living in Chicago. He was a doctor, and she was a lawyer. They were focused on their careers but had always hoped they would be able to have children. After years of trying, they were not given the opportunity to be parents. They knew there was a different plan for them.

She contacted a lawyer friend and talked to her about adoption and legally free children, meaning their parents’ parental rights were terminated by the state. One day the friend emailed a link to a sibling group of four in Texas hoping to find a forever family. The B family looked at these children’s faces and immediately knew they would do whatever it took to bring them home.

Even though they were legally free, the B family still had to jump through many hoops. They had to become licensed foster parents in Illinois. They needed to move from their two-bedroom condo to another home that could accommodate four children. They needed to buy a car that could fit everyone. There were also issues with moving the children from Texas to Illinois. But even though it was not immediate, the children were placed with them. The children ranged from four to 13 years old.

This is an inspirational story because many families are unable to adopt four children at a time. These children wanted and needed a family that could open their hearts and home to all of them so they could remain together. The B parents embraced their new roles as mom and dad even while driving a minivan.

The C Family’s Decision to Adopt While Pregnant

I met the C family years ago. They were a young family with three children and one on the way. She stayed at home with the children. The husband worked in real estate.

He was chatting with a couple, and they had a 10-month-old baby. He asked about the baby, and the woman told him they were fostering this child. The baby had been in their home since she was three weeks old. The woman told him the baby’s case was heading towards adoption, but she and her husband were not looking to adopt. The C husband went home that night and told his wife that he thought they should adopt the baby. He felt a strong connection.

At first, the wife was in shock. She was five months pregnant and had three other children at home. But the more the husband talked about this baby, she knew it was something they should consider.

The baby had special needs, so they started researching the therapies she needed as she grew older. They started the paperwork and classes they would need to become foster parents first. After frequent visits with the baby and the state officials, they decided they would adopt her. She came to their home two months before another baby came into their family.

This is an inspirational story because they felt called to adopt this baby. The baby needed them, and they needed the baby. 

Adoptions Are Inspiring 

For Christmas a few years ago, my son’s birth mother made him a sign that said, “Every adoption story is beautiful, but ours is my favorite.” There is so much goodness and hope in adoption stories. Adoptions start from something broken but can be molded into something beautiful. 

Considering adoption? Let us help you on your journey to creating your forever family. Visit Adoption.org or call 1-800-ADOPT-98.

Alicia Nelson is a wife and a mother to three rambunctious boys. She is an online teacher and teaches English to Chinese children. Adoption has become her passion. She loves connecting with others on infertility, adoption, and foster care. She enjoys woodworking, being outdoors, listening to podcasts, and reading good books. She lives in Washington state with her family.