Adoption Advisor Archives

This discusses the role of an adoption advisor in a domestic infant adoption process. An adoption advisor is a coach, planner, guide for an adoption process, providing guidance and education on all aspects of an adoption journey.

Respecting Expectant Mothers: Boundaries in Adoption

Kelcie Grace Germano2023-09-15T12:42:28-07:00September 15, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Adoption Process, Domestic infant adoption, Drug/Alcohol Exposure, Hoping to Adopt, Learn|

In this blog post, Katie Zimmerman, founder of Purl, explores a topic that's often misunderstood: the boundaries and limitations inherent in being a prospective adoptive parent. It's crucial to understand and respect that the expectant mother holds the autonomy to decide what medical information to share and your level of involvement during her pregnancy. Knowing the difference between what you can 'expect' and what you're 'entitled to' in an adoption proceeding is vital for anyone considering the path of adoption. Click here for a comprehensive guide on how to navigate this sensitive and intricate journey.

Adoption is NOT Surrogacy

Kelcie Grace Germano2023-09-15T13:02:50-07:00September 14, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Adoption Perspectives, Adoption Process, Domestic infant adoption, Drug/Alcohol Exposure, Embryo Donation/Adoption, Hoping to Adopt, Infertility, Learn|

In this article, Purl Founder, Katie Zimmerman, aims to shed light on a pervasive misconception: treating adoption as if it were surrogacy. Prospective adoptive parents, particularly those looking into domestic infant adoption, must understand that the two paths are not interchangeable, particularly when it comes to interacting with expectant mothers. This article explores the key distinctions between surrogacy and adoption to equip prospective adoptive parents with the insight they need for a respectful and ethical adoption journey. Click here to read more.

Giving Young Adoptees Tools to Discuss Adoption (OR NOT!)

Katie Zimmerman2023-07-29T13:04:49-07:00July 28, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Adoption Perspectives, Domestic infant adoption|

As you may know, I (Katie - Founder/CEO) have two daughters that are only eight months apart in age. We are that cliché that everyone talks about, we discovered a very unexpected pregnancy after already being placed with our daughter through adoption. Before someone asks, it was not because we "relaxed and stopped trying and then it just happened". There was nothing relaxing about the adoption process or the adoption disruption we had around the time we must have conceived our younger daughter. But, we were very lucky to have become pregnant naturally after being unsuccessful in multiple rounds of fertility treatments, and we feel so lucky to have our two daughters. But having siblings through adoption - one adopted and one a biological child can present some unique situations and considerations for adoptive families, especially if they are close to the same age, or if they are of a different ethnicity. To read more about education that is necessary for our kids in these situations, click here.

Problems in Domestic Adoption and Purl Filling a HUGE Gap

Katie Zimmerman2023-07-10T09:53:17-07:00July 8, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Adoption Outreach, Adoption Perspectives, Adoption Process, Domestic infant adoption, Hoping to Adopt, Learn, Open Adoption (Learn)|

What a week it has been! Please excuse the rant that follows as I (Katie - CEO/Founder) share some of my frustrations about the current state of the world of domestic infant adoption. Whether it be recently explaining to an agency director why I won't recommend their licensed adoption agency that routinely ships the expectant mothers they work with across lines to their "adoption friendly" state, or having to justify the work that Purl is doing as an adoption advisor in a sea of unethical adoption professionals, I'm frankly exhausted and questioning why I make the huge effort to do the work I do. Today I candidly some of my thoughts on the problems with the current state of domestic adoption and explain again what Purl is doing to fill the HUGE gaps caused by other adoption professionals. Click here to read more.

Trauma in Domestic Infant Adoption

Katie Zimmerman2023-06-09T09:01:00-07:00June 9, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Domestic infant adoption, Hoping to Adopt|

We are continuing our series on the “Things I Did Wrong” in our own adoptions to help prospective adoptive parents better prepare for their own adoption journeys. Once again CEO/Founder is coming back to share more of her mistakes. This time, she’ll be sharing her mistakes in choosing infant adoption as a route to grow her family, erroneously assuming this would avoid any trauma in an adoptee, as compared to either adoption from foster care or international adoption. Click here to read more about trauma in infant adoption.

Saviorism in Adoption

Kelcie Grace Germano2023-06-09T09:20:10-07:00June 1, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Adoption Perspectives, Adoption Process, Hoping to Adopt, Learn|

Today we continue our series on “What I Did Wrong as a Prospective Adoptive Parent”. In this blog Purl Advisor, Kelcie Grace, will discuss the concept of saviorism in adoption and how prospective adoptive parents early in the adoption process often see themselves as “helping a baby in need of a loving home” and fail to grasp the complexities and trauma of adoption. To read more, click here.

Oversharing My Adoption Story

Aubrey Cortez2023-06-09T09:21:45-07:00May 27, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Adoption Perspectives, Drug/Alcohol Exposure, Hoping to Adopt, Learn|

Hi there! My name is Aubrey, I am one of the Purl advisors and today I am sharing one of the biggest mistakes I made on my personal adoption journey: oversharing my child's adoption story. Parenting is hard and it's easy to get caught up in all the things we could have done better. My hope is by sharing a sliver of my story, prospective adoptive families that are just starting their journeys can learn from my mistake. Click here to read more.

Celebrating Adoption Finalization Day

Katie Zimmerman2023-05-21T16:01:22-07:00May 18, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Adoption Perspectives, Adoption Process, Domestic infant adoption, Learn, Open Adoption (Learn)|

We are continuing our series on "What I Did Wrong as a Prospective Adoptive Parent" with a discussion about celebrating adoption finalization day. I know this one in particular may be hard to hear for some prospective adoptive parents or adoptive parents, and you may not agree with me on it, but please hear me out. I recognize that I too celebrated my child's own adoption finalization day for years, and still acknowledge it even now due to the mistakes I made early in my own adoption journey. But I wanted to at least post about this so people consider whether it makes sense to regularly celebrate this day, particularly once your child has a better understanding of its actual meaning? Click here to read more.

Insecurity About “Mom” and Fears About Open Adoption

Katie Zimmerman2023-05-21T16:02:22-07:00May 17, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Adoption Perspectives, Adoption Process, Domestic infant adoption, Open Adoption (Learn), Uncategorized|

As Mother's Day approached, I (Katie - CEO/Founder of Purl) tried unsuccessfully to get this blog post up. Because Mother's Day is complicated for so many people, including those touched by adoption. I struggled to organize my thoughts about my own insecurity with my own motherhood through adoption and how that related to my fears of open adoption. While it has been relatively easy for me to share my other mistakes in my adoption journey, this was one area that was especially hard for me. Maybe it was due to embarrassment, but after the 10th draft, here are my still scrambled thoughts... The mistake I'm discussing today centered around my own insecurity about the role of "Mother", and how that impacted my adoption journey and even the early years of my child's open adoption. Click here to read more.

Naming An Adopted Child

Katie Zimmerman2023-05-21T16:00:21-07:00May 9, 2023|Adoption Advisor, Adoption Education, Adoption is Hard, Adoption Process, Domestic infant adoption|

One area I (Katie - CEO/Founder of Purl) went wrong as a prospective adoptive parent was my thoughts and process on naming an adopted child. My perspective at the time of our adoption journey was that this was going to be my child and I should get to name my child. The adoption professionals we worked with didn’t give me any education on this area, and instead said the name the expectant mother gave the child didn’t really matter because we could change the name after finalization. Click on this link to read more about how dramatically my opinion has changed about the right and privilege to name a child, as well as a discussion as to how the issuance of the birth certificate works in an adoption setting, and what impact that has on adoptees' ability to secure a copy of their birth certificate later on.

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