Show Hope: A Biological Sibling's Perspective with Emily Chapman Richards [S8E13]

Heather Avis and her husband are parents of three adopted children, two of whom have Down Syndrome. At the start of their adoption journey, they set out to adopt a healthy baby, but after meeting their future daughter Macy, a baby girl with both Down Syndrome and a congenital heart defect that would require surgery and medication, they found themselves in limbo. Unable to say no to this little girl who needed parents, but unable to say yes to the effect this would have on their lives, they struggled with the decision to adopt her before finally realizing that while it might be a challenge, it was the right step for them to take. Heather is the author of "The Lucky Few" based largely on her experiences adopting children both healthy, and with special needs. On this podcast she shares some of that insight with us, as well as what a blessing it’s truly been for her and her family to take the leap and say yes to stepping outside of their preformulated ideal of what their adoptions - and family - would look like. This journey caused them to be one of "The Lucky Few."

27 Sep 201740min

Today on the podcast, we are so excited to feature Renee Hettich’s story of her experience adopting 4 children internationally. One of her children is from Guatemala, and three of them are from China, our first Chinese adoption story on the podcast! Renee shares how none of the four adoptions went exactly according to plan, with undisclosed health difficulties of which she was unaware at the time, developmental delays and a host of other issues. She knows better than most the challenges of adopting internationally, but she also shares her joy at being able to give lives to these kids who may otherwise have been stuck in the terrible conditions of an orphanage.

20 Sep 201737min

ADOPTION NOW has our first story from Canada! Andra and her husband, Chung, were our first family to apply from a different country. Tune in this week to hear about the Canadian foster care system and how this family found their daughter!

13 Sep 201745min

Do you have questions about PTSD related to adoption? Do you struggle as a parent to understand a child that has experienced early childhood trauma? On this episode of ADOPTION NOW, April Fallon talks with Carrie O'Toole about how to deal with a challenging placement and how to see signs of trauma in the brain. Carrie is an author and life coach with a Masters Degree in Counseling. She now works with adoptive families who are on the brink and trying to put their family back together.

30 Aug 201740min

Beverly Boerner-Reynolds is an adoptive mother from Texas who wrote a book about the love a birthmother has for her child. When she first met her son's birthmother she thought maybe she was a scam artist! When you hear this story, you might think so also!! But what started in doubt, turned into a beautiful friendship and placement of a healthy baby boy.

23 Aug 201741min

Stephen and Natalie had dreams of adopting from the foster care system but the process was not as easy as they had hoped it would be. By a miracle they heard of an infant situation on Facebook and they decided to apply. On this episode of ADOPTION NOW we hear about their rushed journey to bring home a baby through private infant adoption. They had only 6 weeks to get home study ready and figure out how to pay the agency. Their journey still continues as the birthmother is pregnant again! Are they ready to bring home another baby?

16 Aug 201742min

This week on ADOPTION NOW - "Telling Your Adoption Story," Annie Peguero joins the show! Annie was adopted as an infant, and though she loved her parents very much, she wondered about her birth family. This year she decided to go live on Facebook to find them. Her video got 70,000 views and she received a message from someone who thinks they may be related to her. The journey she goes on answers the questions she has had for years and brings her to a place of wholeness.

9 Aug 201742min

Ashley is a birthmother who placed her son 11 years ago and is navigating through open adoption. She talks very openly about the pain she went through the years after placement and now she is an advocate for other birthmothers. She has just released a new curriculum for adoption professionals to help other birthmothers in their journey of healing.

26 Jul 201741min