I love articles that feature success stories of young mothers who experienced an unplanned pregnancy and then parented successfully. With my first unplanned pregnancy I was so doubtful of my skills as a young mother and hearing that other women had faced the same obstacles as me was helpful. It’s also helpful because these types of stories usually tell the challenges in parenting as well.

This particular article features a young mother, Megan Torres. She became pregnant when... more

I found today’s Dr. Phil show very interesting as it pertained to Putative Father Registries. On the show, we were introduced to Bryce, a man from Oregon in his mid 30’s. He is now fighting for his baby girl, who is about five months old and living with the people who want to adopt her. The adoption is not final yet as Bryce is fighting for custody of this little girl.

Bryce’s ex-girlfriend, Esther, had gotten pregnant and wanted to place the baby for adoption. He repeatedly told her no, that he wanted to raise their baby.... more

An expectant mother considering adoption recently asked me:

“I have recently chosen a couple that will become my baby’s adoptive parents. I still have about ten weeks of my pregnancy left and would like to spend time with the adoptive family getting to know them better however my parents think I shouldn’t. What are your thoughts on this?”

Once I had chosen S and A to be Charlie’s parents and we were moving forward with the adoption plan I, like you, wanted to spend a lot of time with them getting to know them better.

I had a few... more

If you are pregnant and making an adoption plan, one thing that you may need to prepare for is how you plan to leave the hospital. You want to give these things some thought now as you may be pretty emotional when you are discharged from the hospital, especially if your baby is going directly home with his/her adoptive parents.

Also, you’re baby doesn’t have to leave the hospital immediately with the adoptive parents if you need more time to think through your decision or you want to try parenting, then you can of course take your baby home with you. If your baby will... more

I was recently reading the blog of a friend and fellow birthmom. In one of her posts, she talks about attachment and whether or not birthmoms attach to their babies. In a nut shell, she said that she tried not to attach, but she did, because it was almost impossible for her not to.

I tried not to attach myself to Supergirl. Boy, did I. I tried to tell myself that I was not pregnant. You couldn’t tell me that I was. I fought about it. I denied it.

I tried not to attach but then I was... more

I recently had the opportunity to interview a birthmom who relinquished her child through her state’s safe haven laws. Before I dive into the heart of the post, let me tell you a little bit about safe haven laws in case you are unfamiliar with them. Safe haven allows allow a mother to safely leave her newborn child at a designated safe haven such as a fire department or hospital anonymously without being charged for abandonment. The child is then placed for adoption through the state. Safe haven laws are now in effect in each of the United States.

I have always thought women who used safe haven laws to relinquish their children were mysterious. They typically remain anonymous and we... more

It’s prom night at some of the local high schools in my town. My nephew and his girlfriend will be attending. She has the perfect dress. He has a corsage for her. They’ll go to dinner with friends before the prom and the bowling after party to end the night. They’ll come home, tired but happy. But before they crawl into bed, they’ll check in on their sleeping son.

I’ve written about my nephew and his girlfriend before. They are teen parents. When they found out that L was unexpectedly pregnant, L was sixteen and T was seventeen. At first, they were not sure what they were... more

In my last post,I wrote about taking your time making the decision of whether you will parent your child or place your child for adoption. So, while you are taking your time making this decision, what should you be doing?

First of all, take care of yourself. Sometimes when you are stressed, taking care of yourself becomes lower on the “things to do” list. Try to make taking care of yourself a priority. Go... more

The decision of whether or not you should make an adoption plan for your unborn baby is not one that should be rushed into. It is a decision that takes a lot of thought, contemplation, and soul searching.

I think often times expectant mothers may feel rushed into making a decision. The impending due date is like an alarm clock sounding off and you may feel like you have to have a decision made, a family chosen, and everything ready before that due date comes. You know, I totally get that. I felt the same exact way during my pregnancy. I’m a planner by nature, so... more

In my last post, I talked about being envious of a friend who is experiencing an unplanned pregnancy and although she thought she would make an adoption plan, her family has agreed to help her. I suggested that if you are pregnant, you should consider talking to your parents about whether or not they would be supportive of your decision to parent, but you may be wondering how you go about this.

I know if I were reading that post in the position I was in over six... more