There's another adoption story in the news, this one about a pair of open adoptions in Iowa. Like most such news reports, it uses personal stories as a departure point to jump off into the topic of adoption in general.

The story, in case you have trouble with the link, is called "Open Adoption Creates Additional Love," by Shawna Richter of The Hawk Eye in Burlington, Iowa.

I have to say, I like the title very much.

As far as the article goes, there are two separate stories recounted. The first is a nice tale of what seems like a good, solid open adoption, in which all the adults generally understand their roles and responsibilities, and respect each other's dignity. The adoption is quite new, so everything could change in the future, but for now, everyone involved seems to "get it," and to be committed to the needs of the child.

To me, the best part of this story is that shortly after the birth, the adopting parents personally asked the surrendering mother if she was sure about her decision, and gave her the chance to change her mind.

That is something that needs to happen far more often.

You know me, though--I have to find something to quibble with. And here, it's that the adoptive parents refer to the birthmom as "Aunt" Dana. Now, it sounds as though the parents are being open and honest in all other respects about the fact of Dana being the child's birthmother--so this is probably just a question of personal preference. Still, I wish people would not call birthmothers "aunts," as it isn't exactly honest, and could be quite confusing.

The second story is also a very open adoption, again of a fairly young child (22 months). I stress this point about the newness of the adoption because often adoptions start out very open, but shut down as the parents get more fearful as the child becomes more and more aware.

In this situation, the contact between birth and adoptive families is very frequent, and even involves babysitting by the birthfamily. That's the kind of openness that tends to freak people out, especially "civilians" who don't have any connection to adoption. However, once again it seems to be working well for those involved (thus far).

As I wrote yesterday, a personal story is just that--one person's story. However, it's nice to see some truly open adoptions being covered, instead of the kind that are misrepresented as being open simply because pictures are sent or first names are exchanged.

Pictures and identifying details do not make a relationship. Here's to the ongoing ties that open adoption creates!