Adoption Red Flags: What to Look Out For

Adoption Red Flags: What to Look Out For

Adoption Red Flags: What to Look Out For

Hand Holding a Drawing - San Antonio, TX - Adoption Angels

The adoption process varies from state to state, and sadly, some untrustworthy adoption coordinators are out there. Whether you want to place your child for adoption or you hope to adopt, watch out for some red flags. 

 

It’s essential to ask questions such as, “Are you licensed in the state of Texas?”, “Are your services free for birth parents?” and “Can I meet with you personally?”

 

Here are a few other red flags to be aware of.


Red Flag #1: Are They Ethical?

A reputable adoption agency is fully licensed within the state where it operates. If the agency’s license is not posted on its website, ask to see it or check with your state’s licensing agency. If necessary, consult the Better Business Bureau

 

Read clients' reviews and ratings on their social media or business profiles. Ask the agency for referrals of other birth or adoptive parents they’ve worked with. You want your adoption to follow all state regulations without complications, so don’t be afraid to ask for information. 


Red Flag #2: How Do They Treat Expectant Parents?

If the agency speaks disrespectfully about the expectant parent or birth mother, do not work with them. Everyone in the adoption process deserves the utmost respect and honor. An agency that deeply cares for the birth mother is an agency that counsels her, thoroughly explains the adoption process, and does not coerce her into placing her child.

 

Listen to how they refer to a woman. Is she called an expectant mother before the adoption and a birth mother after? It matters. The agency should give the expectant parents or birth parents complete control over selecting the potential adoptive parents and the amount of contact they hope to have with them and their child.

 

An adoption isn’t a one-day event. Does the agency provide birth parent counseling before, during, and after placement of their child? If you are a woman considering placing your child for adoption, make sure you are the priority at the agency.


Red Flag #3: How Do They Treat Potential Adoptive Parents?

The adoption process is stressful for everyone involved. An agency must treat potential adoptive parents as individuals, not open wallets. The agency should fully reveal the cost of the process without unexpected financial surprises. 

 

Is the agency full-service? A qualified agency provides the necessary services or referrals to complete the adoption process thoroughly. Ask if they assist with the home study, photo book (profile bio), and legal and financial resources. 

 

Ensure agency representatives contact you regularly and are candid about wait times. Counseling and educational services should also be available. 


The Benefits of Working with Adoption Angels
If you are looking for an ethical, full-service, licensed child-placing agency in the state of Texas, come to Adoption Angels. We proudly list our

licensing  information on our website and encourage you to call the local licensing office to verify our status. We have seven locations throughout Texas to serve you. 

 

At Adoption Angels, we treat everyone in the adoption process with respect and care. When you choose to work with us, you become part of our family. We listen to your story and do our best to provide an unmatched adoption experience.

 

If you are currently pregnant and want more information about making an adoption plan for your child, please fill out our

confidential online contact form. If you prefer, you can call or text us at (210) 227-2229 to speak directly with an adoption counselor.

 

If you are a couple hoping to adopt, start by filling out our inquiry form. We will then email you an information packet and instructions for getting started.

 

Get the care and support you deserve, not just what’s required. Come to Adoption Angels.

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By Brittany Carvalho December 21, 2024
Hello & Thank You , My name is Kerstin, and I'm so grateful to you for considering me and my son Malakai as a possible match for you and your child. A single person might not have been your first thought for your child, but I have just as much support and love to give as a couple would have - or even more! My life is rich with family, friends, and opportunities. I have a successful career that provides my family with the resources to explore the world and experience new things. I would love the opportunity to share these wonderful experiences with your child. Malakai (Kai for short) was adopted at birth and is three years old. We have an open relationship with his birth mom and often send her pictures and videos. I am open and committed to whatever type of communication you would like. I want you to know that your child will always know their adoption story and the love you have for them. I am happy to answer any questions you have so that you can make the best decision for you and your baby. As you'll see in this profile, I have a deep love and appreciation for all different cultures, and I love to learn about people and places all over the world. Travel has been a big part of my life, and I also appreciate and value diversity close to home. We live on a street with families of many different backgrounds, and the schools and businesses in our neighborhood also reflect that diversity. I love languages and have studied Spanish and Haitian Creole. The public elementary school closest to our home is a dual immersion bilingual school (Spanish and English). I would love for Malakai and any future child I might have to attend this school because I highly value bilingual language skills and the opportunity to build relationships with classmates and teachers of many different backgrounds. I am committed to honoring and valuing your child's cultural background and ensuring that it is an important part of their daily lives. I pray often for you and your journey. I thank God for you and your decision to consider adoption. I pray for God to give you peace and comfort. Thank you for taking the time to learn more about me and Malakai and see if we might be a good match for you and your child. With Love, Kerstin
By Brittany Carvalho December 19, 2024
Hello & Thank You , First off, let's introduce ourselves. Our names are Amy, Hao, and our not so little man James Paul. We want you to know how grateful we are to you for looking at our book. Our goal is for you to get to know who we are in an honest and real way. Adoption has a complex variety of feelings for all parties involved, especially for you. We can't begin to understand the emotional and overwhelming circumstances you have had to face in making these difficult decisions. We want you to know we support you and think that what you are doing is selfless and generous beyond comprehension. From an early age, I knew carrying a child to full term would be highly unlikely. So, when we met, having children was a part of our early conversations. We always wanted a family and knew adoption was going to be how we would become parents. This led us to adopt our beautiful and sweet son, James. We have so much more love to share with another child, and James is waiting with open arms and a welcoming smile. Our upbringing has significantly shaped who we are today, including our parenting style and how we plan for our future. Both of our parents are still married, and observing their relationship through both happy and challenging times has taught us the importance of commitment in maintaining a long-lasting marriage. Our family includes no shortage of caring aunts, fun uncles, and many young cousins to grow up with. One thing you can be certain of is DOTING GRANDPARENTS!! We are blessed that we can go to anyone in our family for guidance, advice, and support. You could not ask for a more dedicated crew of family members. We promise to you that we will honor you in the way you deserve. We will share with you the progress of your wonderful and cherished child's life. You'll be part of their life story from their earliest days to the questions that arise with growing curiosity. Your role will always be respected, valued, and cherished. We hope that our book gives you insight into who we are as people and as a family. Our very different strengths will lead to us raising well-rounded children. Together, we will teach them the importance of acceptance and kindness to those around them while still allowing them to be independent and able to stand up for themselves. Hao and I share the greatest hope of raising our children and providing them with safety and security, all with an embarrassing amount of love and affection. Thank you for considering us; we could not do it without you. Sincerely, Hao & Amy
By Brittany Carvalho December 18, 2024
Hello & Thank You , First, we want to thank you so much for considering us to be the parents of your child and for taking the time to learn a little about our lives! We can't imagine what a difficult time this must be for you, though we don't know what you are feeling. However, we do know that we admire your courage and strength! We are Mike and Tiffany, a fun loving couple from Texas who have been together 10 years and married almost 9! We spent many years trying to conceive a baby on our own, and with no luck, we didn’t want to wait to grow our family any longer. We chose adoption rather than going through IVF and were blessed with our first son in 2022. The experience we have had with his adoption has been so wonderful, and we can’t wait to give him a brother or sister. We have always wanted a big family, as both of ours are relatively small, and we are so grateful for this adoption opportunity because, without it, we wouldn’t be able to have that. Tiffany is a stay-at-home mom currently and will continue to do so. She loves being able to be so involved with raising our children and growing a special bond from the beginning. Also, her parents and grandparents live next door to us, so they will always be surrounded by love and family. We promise to provide your child with a safe, loving home with fun adventures and a wonderful education. We will always be honest with them about where they came from, how much you love them, and how that love brought them to us! We will keep you and your child in our prayers, and no matter your decision, we wish you the best on this emotional journey. Love, Mike & Tiffany
By Brittany Carvalho December 14, 2024
Hello & Thank You , Hello, and thank you for taking the time to consider us as adoptive parents for your baby. We are so excited to be adopting and bringing a child into our family! We can’t begin to understand the weight of this choice and want you to know that your child's well-being is our top priority. Please understand that we wish you and your child all the best no matter what you choose. We hope this book gives you a glimpse of our family. We are Andrew and Julie. We have been together for eight years and married for five. After five years of infertility struggles, multiple fertility clinic visits, and miscarriages, we are ready to give our unconditional love to a child and expand our family through the miracle of adoption! Education, love, and respect are the core values we hold dear. We will encourage your child to explore their passions, embrace their heritage, and pursue their dreams. Our home will be a place of unconditional love, where open communication and understanding are paramount. We are prepared to become parents to a precious child and can’t wait to share our love of family with them. Many family members and friends are excitedly waiting to welcome a new baby to cherish. We want you to feel welcome and hope to get to join our families together for all the love. Your child will have the support of a large, connected family. Thank you for taking the time to read through our book, your consideration means the world to us. We wish you strength and courage during this journey. Sincerely, Andrew & Julie
By Brittany Carvalho December 13, 2024
Hello & Thank You , Just saying thank you isn't enough for us to express our gratitude for considering us to be adoptive parents. We cannot begin to understand how difficult this decision is and that it is not taken lightly. No matter your decision, you are in our thoughts and prayers. We are Amanda and Spencer. We have been together over ten years and have been married for three. From the very beginning of our relationship, we talked about starting a family, but God had different plans for us. Unfortunately, Amanda has faced health challenges that have led to infertility, which won't allow us to have our own biological children. Adoption has touched both our lives in meaningful ways. Spencer's mother was adopted, and she is ecstatic that we are pursuing this path. In addition, Spencer has two adopted cousins, and I have one as well. Both of our families are loving and supportive of our decision, and we are all ready to share unconditional love with a child. Since we both have relatives who were adopted, we believe it is important for your child to understand their adoption story from the very beginning. We look forward to sharing with your child just how special they and their birth family are to us. The relationship between a child and their birth family is significant, and we strongly support an open adoption. There is no such thing as too many people to love and support a child. Raised in the Catholic faith, we plan to instill the same values in our future child. We cherish faith, family, community, friendships, and love, and we will teach the importance of hard work and the achievements it can bring. With both our families and friends nearby, your child will be surrounded by a loving network of support. Thank you for the time to read our story and consider us as potential adoptive parents. We wish you peace on this journey and the very best for you and your child. Sincerely, Spencer & Amanda
By Brittany Carvalho December 12, 2024
Hello & Thank You , We are Damon and Amanda, and we thank you for taking the time to learn more about our family. We can't imagine how hard this choice must be, and we have SO much respect for you. Your courage is truly admirable. We hope our story will be helpful as you make your choice. Please know that no matter what you decide, we wish you and your child nothing but the best, and you will both be in our prayers. We would love to share a little about ourselves, and hopefully, this book will give you a clear picture of who we are! We have grown so much during our years of marriage! Our journey has included buying a house, starting new jobs, surviving a pandemic, experiencing years of infertility and loss, going on many trips, and so much more. Throughout the highs and lows, our relationship has only become stronger. We feel very blessed to have wonderful parents and grandparents who model healthy relationships. They have taught us invaluable lessons and instilled strong morals in us. From the beginning, we have known that we wanted children and planned to have them at a young age. However, we faced three years of infertility and treatments, which ultimately resulted in loss. Going through it all taught us many important lessons and brought us even closer to each other and to God. We have always wanted to adopt, and we feel that now is the right time to do it! For us, raising a child means reading books together before bed, quality family time, lots of outdoor adventures, supporting whatever dreams he/she may have, and a home full of laughter. We value communication, kindness, and passion. Our goal is to create a loving environment that inspires creativity and curiosity, embraces differences, and opens opportunities for learning and growth. Our home is filled with warmth, love, laughter, and support. Adoption means a lot to us! It represents strong people who love a child so much that they come together to build a wonderful relationship, ensuring the best care for that child. We have inspiring adoption stories within our extended family and friends, and we are grateful for their incredible support as we embark on this journey. Our utmost hope is to be the family that provides hope, love, support, and care for your child. We promise to raise them in an encouraging, safe, and loving home, striving to be the best parents we can be. We will encourage them to follow their dreams and support them every step of the way. Your child will grow up knowing their story and understanding just how loved they are by all of us. We can't express how grateful we are to be considered as potential adoptive parents for your child. Thank you again for reading about us! Please know that you are in our thoughts and prayers. Sincerely, Damon & Amanda
By Brittany Carvalho December 11, 2024
Hello & Thank You , We are beyond grateful for you considering us as prospective parents. Please know that what is best for you and the baby is the most important thing throughout this process. We can only imagine the difficulties that come with this decision, but please know that your child will be loved without qualification. We are so excited to begin our adoption journey and bring a child into our family. We are Will & Lorena, and we have been together for almost 7 years. Our path to adoption starts with Will being adopted himself at birth and from a young age, knowing that this was always going to be a part of his family plan. As we began to discuss having a family, Lorena was concerned about getting pregnant due to her infertility diagnosis, so turning to adoption was an easy call for us to start our family. The values that are most important to our household are love, kindness, and respect. Ensuring that, above all else, people are treated equally will be core to the teachings we share with our child. We want to encourage them to be curious and welcome diversity in all forms and to do so with a smile. Both of us love to laugh, and we want our child’s life to be filled with those unforgettable moments. To us, adoption is a beautiful journey shared by all parties involved. We are lucky to have extremely supportive friends and family to guide and join us on this journey. With Will’s own experience, including his relationship with his birth mother, we know we are lucky to have tremendous examples to mentor us along our own path as we welcome a child into our family. Should you choose us to welcome your child into our family, they will be unconditionally surrounded by love and warmth. We appreciate you taking this time to consider us as prospective parents, and should you choose us, we are prepared to listen to, support, and honor your wishes throughout this process. Sincerely, Will & Lorena
By Brittany Carvalho December 10, 2024
Hello & Thank You , Thank you for taking the time to learn a little about us. While we cannot say we understand the emotions, decisions, and journey you are facing, we recognize and honor the enormous gift you are sharing with a family like ours. We are Christi and Michael. We have been together for 6 years and married for 4. When we first started dating, I shared with Michael that biological children might not be a possibility for me due to the reproductive issues I had experienced. When Michael stated without hesitation that he was open to adoption, I knew he was someone special. After trying the recommended fertility treatments to ensure we were never left wondering, “What if?” we started our adoption journey feeling relieved and confident this was the path meant for us. Part of what drew us to each other was how we viewed our families and our desires to have a family of our own. Both of our lives have been touched by adoption in various ways. Therefore, we knew we were ready to start our adoption journey. In 2023, we welcomed our daughter, Isabel (Izzy), into our lives through adoption. Izzy has brought so much joy, laughter, love, and fun to our lives ever since. We are so grateful to have been chosen as Izzy’s adoptive parents and are blessed to guide her on this journey of life. We believe it is important for your child to understand their adoption story from the beginning and look forward to letting them know how truly special they and their birth family are to us. We welcome an open adoption as we value the relationship between a child and their birth family. Children can never have too many people who love and support them. We have established a small group of friends who have young, adopted children and enjoy meeting them throughout the year. We believe it will be valuable for our children to have the opportunity to be around other adopted children throughout their lives. There are adoptees in that group, and we talk openly with them about their experience as adoptees to help us gain insight into their perspective. With a large family nearby, your child will be loved and surrounded by many family members, friends, and a faith community. In addition to providing your child with unconditional love, we hope to instill the qualities of honesty, integrity, faith, kindness, the value of family, and perseverance. Both of us come from hard working families where we each learned to be independent, responsible, and self-sufficient, knowing we always had our families supporting us. We appreciate your time and continue to pray for you and the decisions that lie ahead. You are a beautiful person, and you are giving an invaluable gift. We hope you feel the love and peace you deserve. Sincerely, Michael & Christi
By Brittany Carvalho December 9, 2024
Hello & Thank You , There's no way for us to begin understanding your life, struggles, and victories. Hopefully, we can play a part in one another's stories- sharing and growing through all the ups and downs that this world has to offer. Know that if chosen, we will love your child unconditionally and fiercely protect and shelter them all the day of our lives. This whole process feels a little surreal, and finding the perfect words to say them is a challenge. Thank you, though, for even looking at this book and taking a peek into our lives. We want to reassure you that we have the utmost respect and admiration for you, regardless of the path you choose. We are confident that whomever you choose to raise your baby will be the perfect fit! Regardless of where each of our lives goes, we want you to know you are continuously in our hearts and minds. After struggling with infertility and going through several fertility treatments, we made the decision not to pursue IVF. We felt like God was pulling on our hearts to bring someone into our lives in a different way. After much prayer and conversation, we decided adoption was the clear path, and we're excited to grow our family this way. Following the completion of our home study and application with Adoption Angels, we were in disbelief one morning when Alexandra took a pregnancy test, and it was positive. However, during our daily evening walk that day, we both knew that we wholeheartedly wanted to continue to pursue adoption. Alexandra comes from a large family where many of her brothers and sisters are close in age, her brother Russ being a mere 18 months apart from her. Growing up so close in age, we were less siblings and more partners and crime- each other’s best confidants and adventure buddies as we traveled the world with the military. The loyalty, utter love, and connection we feel toward each other are hard to explain, and to this day, my siblings and my brother's wife are my best friends. We would be over the moon excited to raise children who would experience this bond and feel the same love and closeness. It’s becoming clearer to us every day that this is the path God has been leading us on all along. Know that no matter how a child comes into our family, we plan to love them exactly as we love our son, Adrian- with every fiber of our being! Thank you again so much for reading our story! Aaron & Alex
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