How long will the adoption process take?
Timeframes in adoption are difficult to predict and vary from family to family. Timeframes will be dependent on the program and country you choose, and therefore, we cannot offer a guaranteed placement date. Some of the timing in the process is under your control as an adoptive parent. How motivated and available you are, how quickly you get paperwork back to us, and how flexible you are in your request for a child all will impact your timeframe in adoption.

How many adoptions do you do each year per program?
Last year we helped to form 214 families through adoption. Roughly fifty percent through our domestic program and fifty percent from other countries through our international program.

How do birthparents hear about The Cradle?
Many birthparents hear about us by reputation. After 14,000 adoptions someone usually knows someone who has been involved with The Cradle.

We advertise on TV, local newspapers and in the Yellow Pages to create awareness of our services in the community. And we also have Community Outreach Workers who visit clinics, hospitals and doctor's offices to spread the word about The Cradle and educate health care professionals on adoption practices.

Other birthparents learn about The Cradle through adoptive parent networking -- some birthparents feel more comfortable considering adoption if they can consider a specific family.  We will encourage you and educate you about the power of networking.

Does our age have an effect on our waiting time in the domestic program?
The average age for our adoptive parents across programs is 40. There are lots of factors that birthparents consider when thinking about the family they'd like to place with. Age can sometimes be a factor.

Why is there such a difference in fee between the Domestic and Sayers programs?
We have a reduced fee structure for our Sayers Center because of the need we have for adoptive parents wanting to adopt African American children. The Sayers center is The Cradle's effort to ensure homes are available to all children entrusted in our care.  The program is subsidized by the state of Illinois as well as by The Cradle.

Will it take forever for a single or same gender couple to be chosen by birthparents?  Do I realistically stand a chance?
In the past few years, we've placed many children with same-gender and single parents. 

Birthparents choose a family on their own personal set of criteria; realistically some will probably not be interested in a same-gender or single placement for their child. However, we have evidence to prove that some will not only consider but prefer a same-gender or single parent family for their baby.

Can we decide the amount of openness we would like?
The specifics of an open adoption is different for every family. We ask that together with your child's birthparents you develop an ongoing plan that you are both comfortable with. The open relationship is going to be different for every situation and will depend on what you are looking for in that relationship as well as what the birthparents are looking for.

How does openness change over time?
It is our experience that open relationships may gradually develop into something different than originally planned. Generally, adoptive parents look for more contact as time goes by than do the birthparents.  Most of our adoptive parents recognize the benefits that the relationship offers to their child and they look for continued contact. Initially most birthparents want the security that the decision they made was the right one for their child.  As time goes by, however, they are able to put closure on that decision, knowing that their child is being raised in a safe and healthy environment; so they may not seek out contact as frequently as they did in the first year or two after placement.

What about the birthfather? 
Whenever possible we provide counseling services for birthfathers during the process --- just as we counsel the birthmother.

There are specific procedures established to ensure a legal adoption is possible in situations where a birthfather is unknown or unavailable. You may click here to download the legal discussion article that goes into depth on this topic; and you may wish to consult an adoption attorney with specific questions.

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The Cradle is a private, not-for-profit adoption agency specializing in domestic and international infant adoption. Our mission is to benefit children by providing education, guidance and lifelong support on parenting choices. Our commitment is to serve as a partner in creating and sustaining nurturing families.

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