- my iParenting
- quick clicks
- iparenting adoption articles
- iparenting adoption q&a
- community & groups
- research baby names
- prepare a birth plan
- content channels
- ip channel rss feeds
- read birth stories
- read parenting stories
- recommended books
- e-newsletters
- safety recalls
- ip diaries
- ip store
- mom of the month
- dad of the month
- editor's letter
- letters to the editor
From Our Sponsors
- e-newsletters
- Sign up to receive our free weekly e-newsletters
- award-winning products
The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families.
From Freedom Fighters to Fathers and Mothers
Adoption and the Military By Alina Kelly
Waiting is a process common to most adoptions, and prolonging that wait is often heart wrenching for parents. In the case of the Chase family, once they received the referral packet from China with their child's photo, it was impossible for them not to instantly bond with her. "I had to make several copies of her referral photo, as I wore them out showing them!" she says. "At this point in the process, we just didn't want to have to wait any longer to get Baylee."
Jane Cramer, assistant program director at the Welcome House Adoption Program of Pearl S. Buck International, Inc. in Perkasie, Penn., says that some military families experience an additional complication at the time an adoption is finalized. In the majority of adoptions, there is a court hearing that both parents must attend. If one of the adoptive parents has been deployed for an indefinite period, this could further delay or complicate the finalization of the adoption.
for leave under the Family Medical Leave Act. However, according to United States Department of Defense Instruction 1341.9, commanders are encouraged to approve requests for ordinary leave once a child is placed in the home of a service member. According to the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse, interpretation of this instruction varies from installation to installation. Maternity leave military or civilian is to provide time for the mother to physically heal from the process of childbirth, not time to bond with her child. A good working relationship with superiors is a distinct benefit in negotiating leave.