Adoption: Alaska-style - A 5-Part Serial

SHIRLEY KURTH SCHNEIDER and her husband moved to Alaska in 1962. In 1965 they broke ground on a rustic two-story cabin, located off the grid just outside Fairbanks; this was the same year that they decided to adopt a baby. Adoption: Alaska-style is Shirley's story about becoming a mother in rural 1960's Alaska, excerpted from her memoir-in-progress and presented here in five parts.

• Part 1: Placing the Order - "My only request was that the infant be healthy. Sex, race, and family characteristics were a non-issue."
• Part 2: Building & Baby - "The only time I spent away from Christopher was the time I spent with my husband, building our log home."
• Part 3: Moving In & the Dreaded Letter - "There was no doubt in my mind our living conditions could have a negative effect on the adoption. I could not face the possibility of losing Christopher. I would die if they took this child away from me, my son, whom I had mothered for nearly eight months."
• Part 4: The Interview - "Unable to bear the suspense any longer, Larry asked: 'Well, what do you think? Are you going to recommend granting permanent adoption?'”
• Part 5: The Decision - "This afternoon had proven that although Alaska may not regulate the home-building process in the borough, they were pretty serious about adoptions."