A child of your own.

Adoption is bringing a stranger’s child to your home, giving him a name, a chance to be the best he could ever be, and loving him with all your heart.

Every year, tens of thousands of babies are born without a mother, a family, and a home. They are all over the world. In Russia, six thousand babies go to American home every year. These Russian babies will be taken care of, nourished, raised, and schooled in America. And so are other babies and children from other countries who are brought home to the country through adoption.

It is human nature to want to have children. For those who are not able to conceive, adoption is one of the alternatives. Some people would go to great lengths in order to have a biological child like getting a sperm donor, taking fertility medications, and even hiring a surrogate mother.

The adoption process is complex no one goes through it without considerable difficulty. Rules vary depending on the type, the agency, and the country where one is looking to adopt.

There are two types of adoption. The first is called closed adoption where the adopting parents would never ever meet or know the biological parents of the adopted child. The other one is the open adoption where the adoption process begins before the baby is born. In the open adoption, both the parents giving up their babies for adoption and the adopting parents are matched and they are encouraged to cultivate a friendly relationship. Everything is transparent between the two families and long after the child has been entrusted to the adopting parents, the biological parents still have visiting privilege.

Most adoption agencies favor normal married couples as prospective parents. However, there are many instances where single parents or same-sex couples are allowed to adopt. They all undergo background check, screening, and scrutiny to ensure that they will be capable parents. When one chooses to adopt in Russia, it doesn’t matter whether you are single or married.

Adoption comes with a substantial cost. That is why adoption is for more established couples or families. This is understandable because having a child calls for financial stability in order to support and sustain the child. Also, adoption is a civil matter that requires the participation of the social worker, the court, medical authorities, and other approving agencies. It involves tons of paperwork and it even adds up if the child is coming from another country because an immigrant visa is involved. To adopt a child in Russia, it will cost $35,000.

Additionally, the adoption process is an emotional ride. If you are planning to adopt, be ready for some disappointments and distress. Expect that it may take longer than what is on paper and that delays are part of the whole process. And for several reasons, the adoption may not push through at all. Hopefully, the end of the tunnel would be bright for you like the many others who did.

People vary when it comes to selecting children to adopt. Well, if you can hand-pick your own child, wouldn’t you? Some people want babies in blankets; other people want children that are a little older. Some people want the perfect, the healthiest among the batch; other people want the special needs children, the most unwanted of them all.

The thing is, there are so many children all over the world who need to belong to a family and each completed adoption means one less child.