James & DJ’s Story
We asked James and DJ about their experience in their adoption of beautiful Olivia:
“Early on in our relationship, we both very open about wanting to have a family someday, and knew adoption was an amazing opportunity to make that dream come true. Particularly for James, adoption is personal and has always been very close to his heart. His mother, Lyn, was adopted from Hong Kong as a baby by an American family. His grandparents always wanted a little girl and had four boys of their own. When they saw the picture of Lyn – they said, “that’s our beautiful baby girl”. We also want that chance to be able say those exact same words one day “that’s our beautiful baby”.”
How did you start the process?
We initially began the adoption process by contacting a few agencies to learn more about their programs, what they offered for prospective parents, and if we felt one was a good fit for us to work with.
What company did you choose?
From our research, we decided Alliance for Children was the best option for us and began the home study process. We knew it would take about 3-6 months to complete. At the time we completed our study in the middle of the pandemic, there was an overwhelming number of prospective parents waiting to adopt and we added to a pre-approved waitlist for the adoption program. As soon as an adoptive family was matched, the next waiting family would be moved into the agencies full program where your profile would be published on their website, and actively shown to birth parents looking to make an adoption plan. There were about five waiting families ahead of us on that list. Between the home study process and the waiting program, we were just over a year into the adoption process with Alliance for Children.
In addition to the agency, to expand our chances we also hired a private attorney that we were introduced to through friends of ours, who they worked with to find a match and adopt their baby.
When did you hear the news you were going to be parents?
We ultimately were matched with a birth mom through our attorney just two months after hiring her. We received an unexpected phone call that changed our lives forever. A baby girl was born, and the birth mom was looking to make an adoption plan. Within 15-minutes of receiving that phone call, our profile was shown to the birth mom, and we were selected. The next day we were on a flight to Arizona to meet our sweet baby girl. And after spending a couple of days in the NICU being treated for jaundice, she was discharged, and we were able to bring our healthy baby girl back home to Florida. Words cannot express how excited, happy and thankful we are, and how much love we have for her.
How has your experience been since having a baby?
Our experience as parents has been truly amazing. There are the typical challenges and growing pains we’ve gone through that any parent can relate to. But our daughter fit right into our hearts and lives from day one. From trips around the world, to spending quality time with our families and friends at home, the love we have for her just continues to grow every day. And watching her grow has been truly amazing, and we feel incredibly blessed.
How was the legal process?
Because our attorney’s firm specialized in adoption, the legal process was seamless. However, it was a true unexpected partnership – Alliance for Children was amazingly supportive and happy for us, but also helped with getting final documentation to our attorney and closing out our post placement home study process. It took us about 4 months complete and get a court date scheduled to finalize the adoption of our daughter.
What about Fees?
Because we adopted through our attorney, the fees were about $60k (not including the home study or post placement home study) which are slightly higher than fees of our adoption agency.
Any advice/suggestions to anyone looking into adoption?
The best advice we can give to any prospective parents looking to adopt is to be patient with the process. It will happen for you. Finding the right adoption agency or private attorney that specializes in adoption for you will help you through the process, every step of the way. The day you match is one of best, and most memorable moments you’ll cherish forever. Our just so happened to be captured on our home security cameras which we will have forever.