One of the things you have to think about in foster – adopt is an open adoption. With some foster adoptions, you already know the birth parents or some of the birth family. Perhaps you’ve been taking the child to visits with their birth mom – perhaps even for reconciliation or reunification.

If the children are older, they may know where the parents live, or how to reach them. They may have court mandated phone calls.

After adoption, it is up to you how much contact you want to have.

I’ve been reading a bit about open adoptions. There are many schools of thought as to what constitutes an open adoption. Some believe that having contact information available to them for a later date is open, others firmly state that if you don’t have a lot of contact with the children and birth family, it isn’t really open. For most families I know, something in-between seems to be the reality.

We see K’s birth mom once or twice a month. K calls her by her first name and sort of understands that the other girl living there is her sister. Our visits are usually one – two hours long and are often at the playground or at birth moms house. I’m comfortable with this level of contact.

Safety must be your most important concerns when dealing with open adoption from foster care. There is a reason the child went into foster care so take note, - was it Violence? Drugs? Abuse? Research and get the facts before you open your home and address to your child’s birth family. If you are at all hesitant, trust your instincts and go slowly – better to err on the side of caution.

But, if you feel comfortable with the birth family consider an open adoption. There are a lot of resources, this open adoption blog being just one of many.