When planning to grow your family it is important to gain some insight into the foster care to adoption process. Today we chat with Amanda and learn how her family grew through a foster care adoption.

The Path to a Foster Care Adoption

Amanda and her husband were lead on the path to adoption through foster care due to not being able to conceive children after trying for four years. Reflecting on the beginning of her journey, Amanda expresses, “Never could we have anticipated or imagined how much the capacity of our hearts would grow for everyone involved in the process. From social workers to bio parents, to CASAs, to judges, and the children. Every single person creates a lasting impact on you, some even when you least expect it.”

Opening Your Heart and Home

Amanda and her husband welcomed their two children Tyler and Noelle into their home in May of 2018.  At the time, Noelle was three years old, and Tyler was four days of turning one year old. Both Tyler and Noelle were with Amanda’s family for eighteen months until their biological parents relinquished their rights.

The day after Tyler and Noelle’s biological mother relinquished her rights; she got one more visit with them to say goodbye. “It was such an emotional and intimate moment for her. Yet she allowed us to be a part of it and sit in the room with them as they played chess, and read books. We took photos as a family, all 5 of us, and it was in that very moment that we were humbled and grateful beyond measure for her kindness towards us when her heart was breaking. It is the reason our children can have such a healthy relationship with her to this day.”

An Unexpected Call

Two months after the termination hearing, Amanda got an unexpected phone call that would change the dynamic of her family forever. As she was boarding an airplane to Nashville, Tennessee for a girl’s weekend, Amanda’s social worker called and informed her that a six-week-old baby named Everly needed a home. Amanda and her family welcomed Everly into their homes and hearts. Amanda expresses, “She was certainly unexpected, yet she was the perfect plot twist to our story. May 9th, 2018, after two years in foster care, almost to the exact day that they entered our home, Tyler and Noelle officially became ours forever. And as of a few days ago, November 16th, 2018 Everly is officially ours as well!”

Sound Advice

To the current and future foster families, Amanda urges. “We certainly never expected to have a genuine relationship with a birth parent. We weren’t even remotely open to the idea in the very beginning because of certain circumstances. But, when you refuse to allow anger to manifest in your heart, an internal transition takes place, and you can see them for more than what you believe you know them to be. If you are ever allowed to create a relationship with a birth parent – take it! I promise you; you’ll be surprised by the magic that can take place when you don’t confine your thoughts and your mind to the parameters society sets for you.”

To Conclude

Thank you, Amanda, for sharing your insight on the foster care adoption process. If you are considering adoption through foster care, we offer free photography for adoption days through our Framing Forever program. Click here for more information.