My name is Delaney, and I was adopted from The Cradle. I am twelve years old. I have a mom and dad living with me right now, and a dog. And I am very close to them and I love them a lot.

Every spring, my Mom and I take a trip together. It was so fun when we went to Disneyworld. My Mom works at home, so I get to see her a lot. My Dad and I have a strong relationship too, because we both like math, and he’s a math teacher. So he helps me with my homework. And he’s really fun because he tells me stories about his life.

I am also very close with my birth mother and siblings. I talk to them on the phone, through texting, and email. I talk to my birth mother about every month or so. She lives in Georgia now, but used to live nearby so I’d see them every few months. Over my birthday this year, we actually went to go visit them and had a great time. My birth mom always says it was really hard to give me to my parents, but she just knew that I would have a better life with a different family. And I am!

Why adoption is “cool”
I think sometimes adoption is taken the wrong way – as if the birth parents give away their kids because they don’t want them. That’s not true! Being adopted means that your birth mom wants you to have a better life than she can give you. I really don’t think she wanted to give me away because I was a bad child or anything like that. I love my birth mother, and I’m happy for her, and I hope she’s having a great life.

Actually, all of my friends think “wow, that’s really cool – I wish I was adopted and had a family like that, with both a birth family and an adoptive family.” And it is cool. I live in a really good house where I can do anything I want: use a laptop, draw in sketchbooks, play several instruments, and act in plays. It really is just an amazing thing to be adopted.