Adoption in Louisiana

Louisiana Adoption, Home Studies and More

Adoption Services for
Birth Parents and Adoptive Families

Please choose where you’d like to begin:

Information about placing
a child for adoption
or
Information about adopting a child

If you live in the Pelican state and are considering adoption, Lifetime Adoption is here to hep you. If you are thinking about placing your child for adoption or adopting a child to grow your family is something you are interested in, our adoption coordinators are available to provide all the information you need.

Pregnant and Considering Adoption in Louisiana

Adoption Services in Louisiana helping pregnant women

Your pregnancy test has come back positive and is not what you were hoping for. What now? Where do you turn? You may tell the baby’s father, your family, or friends, and will probably get a lot of different reactions. This can be very confusing.

Take a deep breath and consider your options. A Lifetime Adoption coordinator can help you understand all of your options. You can call, text, or fill out our online form, and a non-judgmental adoption coordinator will be there to provide the support you need. She can also offer the resources and the services of a professional or peer counselor if you like.

What is the Adoption Process in Louisiana?

For over three decades, Lifetime Adoption has been helping birth mothers in Louisiana understand the adoption process. Just call, text, or fill out our online form. A Lifetime coordinator will listen and give you all the information and resources you need.

You can look at adoptive family profiles and choose adoptive families you think may be right for you and your baby. You may want a family from Louisiana or from another state. You can talk to families open to the kind of contact you feel will be right for you now and in the future. Did you know that adoption isn’t just for newborns? You may have a toddler or older child you are thinking about placing for adoption and Lifetime can help. You will work with a professional counselor who will make a transition plan for you, and your child. Your counselor will also help you create a post-adoption contact agreement that works for you, the adoptive family, and most importantly, the child.

A hospital plan will be important if you are pregnant and have decided on adoption. Your coordinator will help make this plan which will document who you want in the delivery room, who will hold and feed the baby first, and other decisions. You also will have your own legal representation, at no cost to you.

Get In Touch

Open Adoption in Louisiana

Modern, open adoption is not a subject many people understand. Today, the birth parents make the decisions such as who will adopt their baby, how much contact to have in the future, and other choices. Your Lifetime Adoption coordinator will help you make an adoption plan for you and your baby. She will find out:

Do you want to choose the adoptive parent’s profiles or have an adoption coordinator choose for you?
What contact would you like to have with the family in the future?
Are there pregnancy-related expenses you need help with?

There is an adoptive family wanting to grow their family through for every child. It is a very loving and brave choice to place your child for adoption if you feel parenting is not the right choice for you and your baby at this time. Open, modern adoption means you are not saying goodbye to your child forever. Instead, you can receive updates, pictures, and even visits. Many of our adoptive families have close relationships with the birth mother, father and even grandparents of their child. Not too long ago, one of our amazing birth mothers was getting married, and she asked if her daughter wished to be there. She was not only there, but the adoptive parents were there as well, and the adoptive father even walked the bride down the aisle.

Help With Pregnancy Expenses and More

Eva, called Lifetime and was thinking of placing her baby for adoption. She was having hard times and wanted a different life for her baby. She was working on staying safe but was struggling with extra pregnancy-related expenses. Her Lifetime Adoption coordinator let her know that in the state of Louisiana, pregnancy-related expenses can be covered by the adopting parents. The expenses include:

Adoption-related legal fees including an attorney
Pregnancy-related living expenses of the expectant mother
Pregnancy-related medical and hospital costs including travel to appointments
Peer and professional counseling fees.

Louisiana Adoptive Families

No matter what you’re looking for in an adoptive family, you deserve to find the perfect family. With our search adoptive families tools, Lifetime Adoption provides more adoptive family profiles for you, giving you a greater chance of finding the right fit for your child. Once you enter your search criteria, you can click on each profile your interested in to find out more about:

the family’s lifestyle
other family members
their home and neighborhood
the family’s values and religious beliefs
their reasons for adopting
and much more!

Families Wanting to Adopt in Louisiana

Hopeful adoptive couple in Louisiana
Are thinking about adopting a newborn, toddler, or child up to the age of six in Louisiana? As one of the leaders in modern adoption, Lifetime Adoption is here to help you have a successful adoption journey. Our Lifetime Adoption coordinators have been matching birth mothers with adoptive families successfully for over three decades. They are dedicated to making sure our birth mothers have all the support and resources they need and to make the best connection between birth mothers and adoptive families.

Starting the Adoption Process

So, how do get started? It’s very simple. Just fill out our short online application. To apply is free and will not obligate you in any way. Once you have submitted your application and it is reviewed by our panel, you will be contacted by a Lifetime Adoption coordinator. She will go over our adoption process and provide guidance on creating a family profile that birth mothers will view. They will also help you get ready for your home study, and access education via webinars, blogs, podcasts, and other resources you need on our membership site.

As the founder of Lifetime Adoption, Mardie Caldwell created Lifetime Adoption because of the journey she had when adopting her son. The Lifetime program has now been a success for adoptive families and birth parents for over 30 years. Our coordinators will guide you through the adoption process so your adoption dreams are realized.

Adoption Laws in Louisiana

Louisiana adoption laws can be hard to understand all the details but don’t worry, your Lifetime Adoption coordinator will refer you to a Louisiana adoption attorney who will help you navigate the legal process.

In Louisiana, the timeline for legal documentation for adoption is as follows.

In general, a birth mother signs papers the third day after the birth. A birth father may surrender his parental rights by signing a Waiver of Notice or Denial of Paternity at any time, before or after the child’s birth. The adoption is irrevocable upon acceptance by the court.

For the adopting family, a home study is required before the finalization of the adoption. There can be various legal requirements depending on the individual facts of each adoption. Depend on your Louisiana adoption attorney to make sure all legal aspects are in place.

Louisiana Home Studies

A home study is a court-required, legal document that demonstrates your ability to parent and care for a baby in an adoption situation. Your Lifetime Adoption coordinator will refer you to a qualified home study provider in Louisiana.

With a home study be prepared to provide the following :

Background checks
Three personal visits, at least two of which in the home
Medical reports
Employment verification
Three personal references who will be interviewed
Education requirements

Members of your household will be interviewed during your home study visit and anyone in the home over the age of 18 must provide criminal background information. You will be asked why you want to adopt, what your lifestyle is like, what support system you have, what your parenting style is, your education level, and more. There will then be post-placement visits. The first within 7 days of placement and two more within 30 days.

Whether you are hoping to adopt or are a parent considering placing your child for adoption, Lifetime Adoption looks forward to working with you and providing the information and support you need for successful adoption.