100+ Best Adoption Quotes To Inspire You

Georgia Stone
Dec 12, 2023 By Georgia Stone
Originally Published on Feb 01, 2021
Adoption sayings are so most inspiring
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Age: 0-99
Read time: 16.0 Min

Adoption is the act of legally taking a child to become yours.

Adoption is a beautiful process, that must be celebrated. This is why we have put together this list of great adoption quotes, including adoption poems and forever family quotes,  to celebrate the love and commitment surrounding adoption.

Although some people may not know this, there is a symbol for adoption. The symbol is in the shape of a triangle that is intertwined with a heart. This symbol is used to represent both international and domestic adoption.

Did you know that people often think it is expensive to adopt a child because of agency fees, international travels and attorneys, but you can hugely save costs by adopting a child domestically through the state's child protection agency? After all, all types of adoption are beautiful and worthwhile.

Adoption day is always a big day and there are several things you can say to encourage yourself and your child on this special day.

Affirming child adoption quotes like, "Adopting a child is as wonderful and beautiful as you get it from any other way," and adoption mom quotes like, "Giving birth doesn’t make anyone a mother, but the love and care you give makes it," are particularly positive things to say throughout the day.

Remember this is a special day to celebrate, so share as many adopted family quotes as you can find!

You can also encourage others to adopt by sending messages on National Adoption Day.

Adopted child quotes like, "Anyone can say ‘I love you’, but proving it through adoption is what it means," and inspirational quotes about adoption like, "Adoption starts a new life and a new journey towards getting blessings," will all spread the wonderful message of the joy of adoption far and wide.

Adopted quotes and adoption quotes can also be a great idea to share with your adopted child from time to time. Cute adoption sayings such as Nicole Kidman's claim that, "Somehow destiny comes into play," and Fleur Conkling Heyliger's beautiful words, "Not flesh of my flesh, nor bone of my bone, but still miraculously my own.

Never forget for a single minute, you didn’t grow under my heart but in it," are both beautiful sentiments to share with a growing child who went through the adoption process.

For more beautiful adoption quotes, including birth mom quotes, adopted daughter quotes,adoptive mom quotes and other adoption words of inspiration, read on, and if you are looking for more family quotes, you can also check out these funny parenting quotes and [family first quotes]. But for now, here are some of the best adoption quotes you will find.

Famous Quotes About Adoption

Nicole Kidman and Oprah Winfrey both talked about somehow destiny comes into play and you can  adopt and love someone who is not your flesh nor bone, yte is still family. These quotes have become truly inspirational for parents and kids alike.

Many come from popular figures like Mahatma Gandhi, Nicole Kidman, Oprah Winfrey and Jonathan Lockwood Huie. Here are some of the most famous quotes about adoption.

The result of the adoption process will make you smile.

1. "Being a parent wasn't just about bearing a child. It was about bearing witness to its life."

- Jodi Picoult.

2. “Whether your children are yours through biology or adoption, they are yours through love.”

- Sadia Rebecca Rodriguez.

3. “He who can reach a child's heart can reach the worlds heart."

- Rudyard Kipling.

4. "Somehow destiny comes into play. These children end up with you and you end up with them. It’s something quite magical.”

- Nicole Kidman.

5. “You’re off to great place, today is your day. Your mountain is waiting so get on your way.”

- Dr. Seuss .

6. “We should not be asking who this child belongs to, but who belongs to this child.”

-James L, Twitter.

7. “Making the decision to have a child – it is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body. ”

- Elizabeth Stone.

8. “Families don’t have to match. You don’t have to look like someone else to love them.

- Leigh Anne Tuohy.

9. “If the standard route for creating a family had worked for me, I wouldn’t have met this child. I needed to know her. I needed to be her mother. She is, in every way my daughter.”

- Nia Vardalos.

10. “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”

- Chinese Proverb.

12. “The pain you’ve been feeling can’t compare to the joy that’s coming.”

- Romans 8:18.

13. "My manner of thinking, so you say, cannot be approved. Do you suppose I care? A poor fool indeed is he who adopts a manner of thinking for others!"

- Marquis de Sade.

14. "Too many children in foster care are falling through cracks. Be a hero, take the time learn about adoption today."

- Bruce Willis.

15. "My biological mother later found out that my mother never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college."

- Steve Jobs.

16. "There are young people having babies every day that can't take care of them, and, as people who believe that every life is beautiful, we need to make them aware of another choice - to give that beautiful life up for adoption."

- John Schneider.

17. "I don't have children, but I have 17 nieces and nephews, and they more than make up for anything that I can do. I have a stepdaughter, and I adore her to pieces, and I think about adoption. There are so many kids at different ages and stages that need families."

- Lauren Velez.

18. "Mum and Dad had waited 16 years for adoption laws to change in their home state, Tasmania, so that they could apply to the authorities to create the family of their dreams.

I am so thankful for their endurance and patience. Who knows what would have happened to me if they hadn't miraculously appeared when I needed them most?"

- Saroo Brierley.

19. "There's a clock ticking on the pregnancy thing, but not a clock ticking on adoption."

- Aisha Tyler.

20. "With all the chaos, pain and suffering in the world, the fact that my adoption of a child from who was living in an orphanage, you know, was the number one story for a week in the world. To me, that says more about our inability to focus on the real problems."

- Madonna.

21. "There are times when the adoption process is exhausting and painful and makes you want to scream. But, I am told, so does childbirth."

- Scott Simon.

22. “There are advantages. If they turn out badly, we can blame their natural parents. We can also choose our own assortment of ages and genders. We can even get them ready-grown, if we wish."

- Loretta Chase.

23. "Not flesh of my flesh, nor bone of my bone, but still miraculously my own. Never forget for a single minute, you didn’t grow under my heart but in it."

- Fleur Conkling Heyliger.

24. "Adoption – because family isn’t made from blood, it’s made from love."

- Unknown*.

25. "A full accounting of adoption as an option would not underestimate its emotional challenges – the grief and loss for birth mothers, the uncertainties for adoptive parents operating under a patchwork of state laws."

- Nina Easton.

26. "To be a mother is a beautiful thing, but to be able to assume the role for a child in need is nothing less than amazing. I believe that any woman who takes on the role of a mother, whether it be naturally or through foster care or adoption, should be held in the highest regard."

- Raheem DeVaughn.

27. "Anyone who ever wondered how much they could love a child who did not spring from their own loins, know this: it is the same. The feeling of love is so profound, it’s incredible and surprising."

- Nia Vardalos.

28. "Little souls find their way to you, whether they’re from your womb or someone else’s."

- Sheryl Crow.

29. "Because now I know what I have been waiting for. I know exactly why the other processes didn’t work. I know I was supposed to wait for this little girl."

- Nia Vardalos.

30. "Women who give up their children for adoption are years and years later talking about how painful it was..."

- Katha Pollitt.

31. "A son or daughter in any human family is either born to or adopted by the parents. By definition, a child can’t be both. But with God we’re both born of him and adopted by him."

- Jerry Bridges.

32. "'There', she said. She rocked him back and forth. 'there, you foolish, beautiful boy who wants to change the world. There, there. And who could keep from loving you? Who could keep from loving a boy so brave and true?'."

- Kate DiCamillo.

33. "Adoption comes from the heart, but the adoption process comes from the Law. You should follow your heart, but be sure you also follow the law."

- Irina ORear.

34. "My mother found a letter I wrote. It said, ‘Would you please take me to the orphanage, so that  I can go and adopt a baby?' I always knew I would adopt. Always."

- Charlize Theron.

35. "Sometimes being friends is not enough. You need family."

- Emma Thompson.

36. "I am convinced, completely convinced, that there was nothing random about [the adoption], she is the daughter I should have."

- Meg Ryan.

Positive Quotes About Adoption For Parents

Quotes on adoption, foster parents quotes, or quotes about foster parents are what you need for encouragement. You need positive adoption quotes to keep you going through the process and to help you cherish your beautiful adopted child.

These parent quotes and adoptive family quotes are inspirational quotes for adoption, they are some of the most positive sayings about adoption for parents that will inspire any adoptive parents or future adoptive parents.

Although exhausting sometimes, adoption is beautiful.

37. “When she looks in the mirror, we want our daughter to know herself. It’s hard to face the world when you don’t know where your face came from.”

- Unknown*.

38. “What makes you a man is not the ability to make a child, it’s the courage to raise one”

- Barack Obama.

39. “Time and experience have taught me a priceless lesson: Any child you take for your own becomes your own if you give of yourself to that child. I have born two children and had seven others by adoption, and they are all my children, equally beloved and precious.”

- Dale Evans.

40. “People ask me. ‘What about gay adoptions? Interracial? Single Parent?’ I say. 'Hey fine, as long as it works for the child and the family is responsible.'”

- Dave Thomas.

41. “Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother.”

- Oprah Winfrey.

42. “By choice, we have become a family, first in our hearts, and finally in breath and being. Great expectations are good; great experiences are better.”

- Richard Fischer.

43. “Adoption isn’t a birthmother’s rejection but an unconditional love that inspires her to put herself last and do all she can for her baby”

- Mary Hines.

44. “Adoption has the dimension of connection — not only to your own tribe, but beyond, widening the scope of what constitutes love, ties and family. It is a larger embrace. By adopting, we stretch past our immediate circles and, by reaching out, find an unexpected sense of belonging with others.”

- Isabella Rossellini.

45. “You were not born under my heart.

You were born in my heart.”

- Unknown*.

46. “Motherhood is about celebrating the child you have not the child you thought you’d have.”

- Joan Ryan.

47. “I have four children. Two are adopted. I forget which two.”

- Bob Constantine.

48. “Adoptive Mom? I am a Mom. I need no other label or prefix.”

- Joanne Greco.

49. “Adoption is a journey of faith, from beginning to end.”

- Johnny Carr.

50. “You are not just waiting in vain. There is a purpose behind every delay.”

- Mandy Hale.

51. “All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.”

- Walt Disney.

52. “The adoption was challenging – the love arrived instantly”

– Unknown*.

53. “Do you want to do something beautiful for God? There is a person who needs you. This is your chance.”

- Mother Teresa.

54. "My big stand is this: Every child deserves a home and love. Period."

- Dave Thomas.

55. "Adoption is when a child grew in its mommy’s heart instead of her tummy."

– Unknown*.

56. "However motherhood comes to you, it’s a miracle."

– Valerie Harper.

57. “If you have the heart for adoption, don’t let fear stand in the way”

- Doug Chapman.

58. “You don’t have to give birth to someone to be family. We’re all family – extended family”

- Sandra Bullock.

59. “Adoption is the most intentional process on Earth.”

- Jody Cantrell Dyer.

60. “Will it be easy? Nope. Will it be worth it? Absolutely.”

- Unknown*.

61. “There are no unwanted children, just unfound families”

- Unknown*.

62. “Family is not defined by our genes, it is built and maintained through love”

- Amalia G.

63. “Adoption is not about finding children for families, it’s about finding families for children”

- Joyce Maguire Pavao

64. “Adopting any child is a walk into the unknown. It takes Faith”

- Unknown*.

65. “Adopting one child won’t change the world: but for that child, the world will change”

- Unknown*.

66. “Parenthood requires love, not DNA”

- Unknown*.

67. “Adopted. Big deal; so was Superman”

- Chris Crutcher

68. “Adoption was a bumpy ride, very bumpy. But, God, was it worth the fight”

- Mariska Hargitay.

Positive Quotes About Adoption For Kids

These positive adoption quotes for kids will help them through the process. Why not share one of these adoption quotes with some new adoptive parents in your life?

69. "My birth mother brought me into this world, but it was my adoptive parents who gave me life.”

- Christina Romo.

70. “The circumstances surrounding your birth are not as important as the opportunity to live life”

- Lailah Gifty Akita.

71. “We know a mother and father can love more than one child, so why is it so hard to understand that a child can love more than one mother and father?”

- Unknown*.

72. “I am a living testament you can be adopted and successful”

- Daunte Culpepper.

73. “I was chosen, I was wanted, I was cherished, I grew in their hearts, I was the missing piece, I was loved, I was adopted”

- Unknown*.

74. “My adoption was treated as a celebration”

- Michael Reagan.

75. "I have a lot of respect for my birth mother. I know she must have had a lot of love for me to want to give what she felt was a better chance"

- Sharon Stone.

76. “...so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation. Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky.”

- Philippians 2:15.

77. “My life has been shaped by the decision two people made over 24 years ago. They decided to adopt a child. They got me, and I got a chance at the kind of life all children deserve.”

- Karen Fowler.

78. “In other words, it is not the children by physical descent who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham’s offspring.”

- Romans 9:8.

79. “And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.”

- Matthew 18:5.

80. “Foster care is risky. Adoption is risky. Love itself is always risky.”

- Orphan Justice.

81. “You don’t choose your family. They are God’s gift to you, as you are to them.”

- Desmond Tutu

82. “God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.”

- Ephesians 1:5

83. "The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life." - Richard Bach

84. "It's important to realize that we adopt not because we are rescuers. No. We adopt because we are rescued."

- David Platt

85. "Adoption has been a part of my life and a part of my family, so it was how I wanted to start. It felt natural and right to me."

- Katherine Heigl

86. "I learned that you need not be born into a family to be loved by one."

- Lisa Wingate

87. "Oh, no, getting adopted doesn't hurt. It's just another way people have of saying I love you."

- Bob Walsh

88. "The Hunters adopted me when I was a kid. They brought me over from the U.K. It's the best thing that ever happened to me. I'm just paying it forward."

- Melle Runderkamp

89. "The best relationships in life start with this in abundance and adopting a child is no different."

- Satwinder Sandhu

90. "I firmly believe that adoption gives children in need a lifeline."

- Satwinder Sandhu

91. "Adoption is a wonderful thing. Christians have rightly considered themselves as a people adopted by God, and adoption has been a central Christian practice for many branches of Christianity."

- William B Eerdmans

92. "Through all the trials of the foster and adoptive journey, I want you to know that the calling you've received to care for vulnerable children is valid. And it is beautiful."

- Mike Berry

93. "While adoption does not undo the past, adopting a child, and more specifically an older child, gives an adoptive family the privilege of writing the parts of the child’s story that have not yet been written.”

- Caitlin Snyder

94. “Adoption is the visible gospel.”

- John Piper

95. "A baby is born with a need to be loved – and never outgrows it.”

- Frank A. Clark

96. "Adoption is complicated, but it is also rich with narratives of strength."

- Jillian Lauren.

97. “While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.”

- Angela Schwindt.

98. "We look at adoption as a very sacred exchange. It was not done lightly on either side. I would dedicate my life to this child."

- Jamie Lee Curtis.

99. "Every sing minute matters, every single child matters, every single childhood matters."

- Kailash Satyarthi.

100. "A child born to another woman calls me mommy. The magnitude of that tragedy and the depth of that privilege are not lost on me."

- Jody Landers.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly quotes for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for adoption quotes, then why not take a look at these funny family quotes or pquotes about childhood] for more?

*Do you know where this quote originated? Please email us to let us know at hello@kidadl.com

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Written by Georgia Stone

Bachelor of Arts specializing in French with Film Studies, Bachelor of Arts (Year Abroad) specializing in Literature, History, Language, Media, and Art

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Georgia StoneBachelor of Arts specializing in French with Film Studies, Bachelor of Arts (Year Abroad) specializing in Literature, History, Language, Media, and Art

Georgia is an experienced Content Manager with a degree in French and Film Studies from King's College London and Bachelors degree from Université Paris-Sorbonne. Her passion for exploring the world and experiencing different cultures was sparked during her childhood in Switzerland and her year abroad in Paris. In her spare time, Georgia enjoys using London's excellent travel connections to explore further afield.

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