From the Author of "Adopting A Toddler," Denise Hoppenhauer brings you "Adopting a Daughter from China." Written for first time parents, the practical advice offered here combines the challenging aspects of parenthood, with personal experience and the unique needs of adoptive families. This easy to read, book covers every aspect of adopting from China: preparing the nursery, changing a name, the baby wardrobe, child development, selecting a pediatrician, child safety, feeding baby, the wait, packing for your trip, travel to China, early days together, pre and post-adoption resources, and more. "Even better than the first, the combination of Denise's research and experience as an adoptive parent makes "Adopting a Daughter from China," a must read for first time parents." Mary Mooney, Executive Director, Adoption Guides "Once again Denise provides practical, down-to-earth information for parents wishing to adopt, this time for those wanting a daughter from China. Her style is easy and enjoyable to read, her tips are excellent and her information well-researched." Anne R. Hughes, Executive Director, Beacon House Adoption Services, Inc. Denise Harris Hoppenhauer is the Author of "Adopting A Toddler: What Size Shoes Does She Wear?." She is the Executive Director of Adobaby, LLC, Adoption Consultants and Dossier Assistance. The Author is donating 10% of her proceeds to organizations that aid orphaned children.

At age 22, the author set out to find her English birth parents, a Jewish father and a mother believed to be an artist. The adventure led to parents, grandparents, and siblings, a kaleidoscope of relationships with one dark secret at its center. As an adoptive child in Britain, playwright Nicole J. Burton always wanted to find her birth parents. After immigrating with her adoptive family to the United States, she pursued the elusive characters haunting her imagination. With an appointment with one of Her Majesty's social workers and her birth mother's name in hand, she returned home to Britain. There she began a search that led to more drama than any play she could possibly conceive.

"IF I LOVE MY KID ENOUGH: THE REALITY OF RAISING AN ADOPTED CHILD" is based on the true story of Bethany. Adopted in infancy, she showed the promise of the perfect child. But early on there were indications that hers might not be a "happily ever after story." The book traces Bethany's erratic development and her family's attempts to find answers for her troublesome behavior. Parents of all children can benefit from studying the lessons of Bethany's life. In telling this one story, the authors provide both the parents' and therapist's points of view while probing the latest research on the early critical stages of development. This emphasis helps families focus on strengthening attachment so that they can provide the structure their children need to become mature and responsible adults. Also included are valuable strategies and resources for finding help when concerns arise.

Witness God's Handiwork...A Masterpiece of Joy
Does God really hear and answer very specific prayers? Can He really bring us from the depths of despair and bless us beyond belief? The answer to these questions is a resounding "yes" This story details the journey of one couple from the agonizing despair of infertility to the joy of open adoption.
. Are you facing infertility?
. Is someone you love walking through this devastating ordeal?
. Have you considered open adoption, but still have uncertainties?
. Are you facing an unplanned pregnancy and considering your options?
. Are there trials in your life that just seem impossible to overcome?
As you read this book, you will walk with the author through the darkness of disbelief, sorrow, anger, bitterness and hopelessness. You will be amazed as the pieces of a puzzle emerge and God miraculously joins them together. You will rejoice as the darkness fades and joy arrives with the dawn. You will marvel at the masterpiece. And your faith will be strengthened.

This is a personal and touching story of one women's journey to find a child.Tamra spent 8 years pursuing a child through fertility clinics without success. Her body would not cooperate and give her the child she wanted. The need for a child was so overwhelming they turned to adoption. Their adoption journey from start to finish took three years, while reading the story you will learn of the many pitfalls they had to overcome. The story has a happy ending with the adoption of their daughter.

Journeying Through State Adoption is a practical guide for anyone who desires to adopt a child and who needs information to begin. It gives you a complete roadmap for navigating the state foster care system. You will walk through the touching story of a family who pursued their desire to share love with a child in need. Additionally, Journeying Through State Adoption is for those who want to learn more about the state foster care system, professionals who work within the system, and people who serve as advocates for foster and adopted children. This guide helps readers answer some vital questions regarding adoption: * What are the requirements to become an adoptive parent? * How do I get started? * What kind of children are waiting to be adopted? * Is there a child right for my family? Journeying Through State Adoption includes helpful resources such as contact information for the child welfare agency in every state, listings for many nation-wide adoption support groups, help in identifying and obtaining subsidies for adoptive families, and a state-by-state definition of children with special needs. questions during their step-by-step journey

A solitary figure stands stoop-shouldered at the entrance to a closed China Air terminal at JFK, and he feels a creeping vulnerability that is foreign to him at age fifty-three. Peering through the rain and fog at the ghostly glow of streetlights on deserted airport roads, he wonders what in heaven's name he is doing there.alone.in the middle of the night.six thousand dollars strapped to his leg.and agonizingly unsure he'll be able to get to Cambodia in time. At First A Dream chronicles the frustrating, emotional roller coaster that led Jan and Jim Pacenka to pursue an adoption, all the way to Phnom Penh. The book highlights key events leading to their life-altering decision, and captures the drama of Jim's five-day intercontinental steeplechase to Cambodia, a Murphy's Law scramble to beat an adoption moratorium stopwatch triggered by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. At First A Dream is a story about a journey, both figurative and literal-a journey embraced by a man and a woman wanting to share their lives with a child of the universe. It is a story of love, courage, and above all else, perseverance.

So you've made the decision to adopt. What's next? For starters, how do you know whether domestic or international adoption is right for you? (And what are the real differences between the two?) Adoption insider Elizabeth Swire Falker answers these questions and many more. As an attorney who practices in the area of adoption and has worked with hundreds of families, and as an adoptive parent herself, she offers expert advice on each stage of the process. This comprehensive, accessible guide leads you with confidence through every decision you'll have to make-including the ones that you'd never know to expect. Complete with checklists, tips, sidebars, and plenty of counterintuitive advice, it shows you how to:

• Identify which adoption experts you do and don't need
• Find the right birth mother or choose the right country for your family-and how to spot red flags in potential situations
• Select an attorney or agency and prepare for your home visit
• Finance an adoption on a budget, manage the red tape, and get around the roadblocks
• Navigate all of the complex emotions that surface along the way. .
• .

This is the story of a boy placed in foster care while his mother was in prison. It is also the story of his foster mother and family, and the impact he was to have on their lives. During the first months in his new foster home, Billy's angry and erratic behavior made even this experienced mother and teacher question her decision to open her home to a child in need. However, as the child began to bond with his new family, they discovered in themselves a deeper caring than they could have ever imagined.

At times hilarious, at times sad and deeply moving, this story is a must for anyone who has ever considered fostering or adopting a child.

What is the experience of being an adopted person really like? An honest look at how adoption can affect the individual, families and partners. Claire Cashin was adopted. In her youth, she experienced many personal problems because her birth mother 'gave her away'. This led her in search of her biological mother. This is a true and very honest account of adoption, search and reunion. It examines in depth how adoption can affect the individual and their loved ones. It does not shy away from the reality of what a reunion can mean and how hard it can be at times, or indeed what joy it can add to peoples lives. The story describes in fascinating detail what the reality can be like for many adopted people and what challenges their families may face as they mature and wonder about the circumstances of their adoption. It attempts to offer advice to anyone considering searching for their own answers, from someone who has gone through the process, made the mistakes, learned some lessons along the way and is still smiling. This book describes the mistakes and triumphs she made along the way and how the news of a new birth family has affected her adopted family in Cork, and changed Claire forever. It gives hope and advice to families who wish to help and understand the dynamics involved in adoption and reunion.

This is not a book. It may look and feel like any other book you've held in your hands and plopped on your nightstand-but it's not a book. It's a blog in print. A book should be a fluid continuous stream of prose, with a climactic arch and a subsequent denouement. This printed blog doesn't really have those things. It has blog posts, posted comments, and emails in chronological order. It does tell a story, true-but it's neither edited, nor polished. This is an in-the-moment angst of a first-time mother going through a Russian adoption. A memoir would be told in the wise voice of a narrator who's been through the process successfully. This blog is told in the frantic voice of a chick who had no idea what was going on. It's not a book, but it's our story.

"Will you take her?" she asks.

When Beth Nonte Russell travels to China to help her friend Alex adopt a baby girl from an orphanage there, she thinks it will be an adventure, a chance to see the world. But her friend, who had prepared for the adoption for many months, panics soon after being presented with the frail baby, and the situation develops into one of the greatest challenges of Russell's life.

Russell, watching in disbelief as Alex distances herself from the child, cares for the baby -- clothing, bathing, and feeding her -- and makes her feel secure in the unfamiliar surroundings. Russell is overwhelmed and disoriented by the unfolding drama and all that she sees in China, and yet amid the emotional turmoil finds herself deeply bonding with the child. She begins to have dreams of an ancient past -- dreams of a young woman who is plucked from the countryside and chosen to be empress, and of the child who is ultimately taken from her. As it becomes clear that her friend -- whose indecisiveness about the adoption has become a torment -- won't be bringing the baby home, Russell is amazed to realize that she cannot leave the baby behind and that her dreams have been telling her something significant, giving her the courage to open her heart and bring the child home against all odds.

Steeped in Chinese culture, "Forever Lily" is an extraordinary account of a life-changing, wholly unexpected love.

"The book chronicles not only the adoption of their three children abroad, but follows each of their children (including their biological son) into young adulthood. It vividly depicts their difficulties in raising teenagers in a cross-cultural, transracial home, and also exposes the frightening conditions facing today's kids in our public schools, including gang issues, drop outs, and culture clashes. It provides valuable insights to parents and non-parents as well. This book was a real eye-opener and awakened me to the harsh realities our teens must face in what I would have thought were quality schools. Although told from a parent's point of view, they very effectively explored the emotions, indeed the angst, of their teenage children."
--Jo-Anne Weaver, adoptive parent of a Chinese daughter placed by Los Ninos International, and Senior Acquisitions Editor of Education and Developmental Psychology for Harcourt Brace.

The Cruelest Con is a unique book in many ways: it is deeply personal, emotionally powerful, and contains important lessons for everyone in the adoption community. We all should read it and learn from it - so that adoption can truly be the rewarding, ethical process that it should be.-Adam Pertman, author of Adoption Nation and executive director of the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute. For nearly three years, author Kelly Kiser-Mostrom endured the nightmare of an adoption scam. Through her heart-wrenching personal journey in The Cruelest Con, Kiser-Mostrom focuses on the changing and often frightening world of adoption. She exposes the treachery behind adoption facilitator Sonya Furlow who exploited and defrauded forty-four adoptive parents of over USD215,000, shattering their most basic dream in life-to have a family. Kiser-Mostrom points out the chilling truth about adoption laws in the United States. Facilitators are unregulated, and laws vary from state to state, leaving the adoption world wide open for many kinds of criminal activities and baby buying. Through Kiser-Mostrom's personal testament, you'll be able to form a foundation for a positive adoption journey. with an intermediary - Learn how to cope with grief as a victim of adoption fraud - Learn how and when to report suspected fraud - Follow guidelines to obtain an adoption professional - Find adoption resources - Gain a new perspective on the positives and negatives of adoption Don't let fraud and deception destroy your adoption dreams. Let The Cruelest Con guide you through the adoption process.

Adopting a child can be one of life's most rewarding experiences. Unfortunately, complex policies, legal risks, and fewer available children can make a domestic adoption difficult. International adoption offers a solution to parents yearning for a child of their own. Korea. John Maclean's The Chinese Adoption Handbook is a comprehensive guide to adopting a child from China and Korea. Adoption Handbook leads parents through the international maze, including: shopping. to be asked.

""Parents By Choice" is an excellent guide for researching adoption as a method for building a family. It is informative and enjoyable. I highly recommend this book for any prospective parent or parents wishing to pursue a domestic or international adoption."
--Chriss Barnes, Small Miracles International

"Few books move me to tears and laughter any more, but "Parents By Choice" did. The book is wonderful, so full of humor and warmth."
--Judy Stigger, LCSW, The Cradle Society, Author of "Coping with Infertility" and "Conspicuous Families"

"Parents By Choice" is a user-friendly book with easy to digest chapters, terminology, and questions concerning adoption and parenting of an infant and a toddler. "Parents By Choice" is an invaluable resource for potential parents, explaining the paperwork, financial, and emotional expectations of adoption as a normal, healthy option for creating a family. The authors, adoptive parents, present their story in an honest, engaging dialog full of knowledge and perspectives, which allow for a realistic view of living the process.

Adopting a child can be one of life's most rewarding experiences. Unfortunately, complex policies, legal risks, and fewer available children make adopting domestically difficult. International adoption offers a solution to parents yearning for a child of their own. Eastern Europe. John Maclean's The Russian Adoption Handbook is a comprehensive guide to adopting a child from overseas. Adoption Handbook leads parents through the maze of: food.

Finally, a childcare book written with the unique needs of adopted toddlers in mind. Written by an adoptive parent, Adopting A Toddler: What Size Shoes Does She Wear? is an indispensable guide to the wonderful world of toddler adoption. Filled with essential parenting information, Adopting a Toddler answers many questions that parents ask, including questions about changing a name, choosing a crib versus a bed, beginning potty training, and what size shoes to buy. Adopting a Toddler is easy to read and covers every aspect of adopting a one to four year-old; with sections on the toddler wardrobe, the nursery, child safety, mealtime, bath time, selecting a pediatrician, medical considerations, international adoption travel, pre and post adoption resources, and more. Adopting a Toddler provides the most up-to-date solutions for preparing for your new arrival. If you're a first time parent, believe me--this is the practical 'how to, how much, when, where and why' guide to preparing for and welcoming your toddler home. Highly recommended --Roberta Rosenberg, AdoptShoppeBooks.com Adopting a Toddler fulfills an unclaimed niche within the realm of older child adoption literature. Ms. parent. Parents will refer to it multiple times.--Susan M. Ward Editor, Older Child Adoption Online Magazine, www olderchildadoption.com Written with a mom's humor, this book contains the most practical advice on adopting a toddler I have ever read.--John Maclean, Author, Russian Adoption Handbook, Chinese Adoption Handbook Denise Harris Hoppenhauer is an adoptive parent and advocate. She is the Program Coordinator for an International Adoption Agency and the 2003 recipient of the Dave Thomas Advocate of the Year Award from the South Carolina Council On Adoptable Children. The Author is donating 10 per cent of her proceeds to Shoes for Orphan S

"I'm NOT going to school today!" Riley the Brave is a little bear with big feelings. Some days he wakes up feeling cheerful and ready to brave the day. He has energy to get dressed, eat breakfast and have some fun! But some days he wakes up feeling like a grumpy porcupine. His brow is scrunched and he thinks that it is going to be a terrible day. Today, Riley is having one of those days! What can be done to help him? All children struggle to make it to school some days, and this can be even tougher for children who have had difficult life experiences and extra challenges at school. This book creates a safe space for conversations about big thoughts and feelings, and offers positive tips for families to try. It also features an educational afterword for grown-ups which explains how the book helps children, and how to get the most out of it.

When faced with the prospect of being a one-child family, and yet having a strong desire for more children, this Midwest family embarks on what would become the adventure of their lives. Through the eyes of a mom, this book is written for all of us who know the joys and frustrations of foreign adoption as well those who may still be in God s holding pattern as they struggle through whatever pains life may deal them. A book of hope and perseverance, We Have a Baby For You, will bring you deep into the details of one family s journey, and encourage you in your own. Travel with this family to the Eastern European country of Romania in the days following the fall of Ceaucesciu, and watch as God opens doors, closes doors, and in some instances breaks down walls, to demonstrate His love for one special little boy and one faithful family.