Parents arrive at adoption from different places. Some adoptive couples already have children by birth when they choose to adopt. Before you adopt, it’s important to prepare your child for the arrival of a new baby brother or sister. Also, you’ll likely be traveling to adopt your baby, so you’ll need to think about child care during that period. Today, Lifetime Adoption shares tips on preparing for adoption, and how you can achieve both of these goals.

Lifetime encourages you to pre-arrange for the care of the child(ren) you’ll be leaving at home when you travel to get your baby. Write or type out an authorization that gives permission for your child’s babysitter or caregiver to get medical care just in case. Also, leave a copy of your insurance cards at home if the caregiver needs to take your child to the doctor. If your child will be staying at someone else’s house, do a practice run. Have them stay at their caregiver’s house for one or two nights while you and your spouse have a romantic getaway.

Throughout your adoption wait, provide your child with extra attention and affection. For a child used to seeing you every day, your absence may be upsetting. Young children have trouble understanding the passage of time. “I created a paper chain with my daughter with links for each day Mommy and Daddy would be gone. Each morning she got to tear off a link. This provided her with reassurance, and helped her get a sense of how much longer it would be before we returned!” Lifetime adoptive mother Melissa shares.

Depending on your child’s age, involve him or her in the choices and process of adopting a baby. Ask them to pick out clothing and toys for the baby. This will help your child remember the amazing journey it took to bring their baby sister or brother home. It also gives him or her a sense of control over what can be a turbulent situation.

Another one of Lifetime’s adoptive moms shares, “My husband and I bought and wrapped inexpensive gifts for our son to open each day we were going to be gone. They were small things, like crayons, a coloring book, and a ball. He loved opening a new present every day. Also, the diminishing stack of gifts was a visual reminder of how soon we’d return!”

Written by Heidi Keefer

Heidi Keefer is a Content Creator for Lifetime Adoption and has 15 years of experience in the field of adoption. An author of thousands of blog posts over the years, Heidi enjoys finding new ways to educate and captivate Lifetime’s ever-growing list of subscribers.

Heidi has a keen eye for misplaced apostrophes, comma splices, and well-turned sentences, which she has put to good use as a contributor to Lifetime’s award-winning blogs. She has written and published hundreds of adoption articles which explore the various facets of domestic infant adoption today.