'DWTS' pro Louis Van Amstel talks 'blessing' of adopting older kids
Van Amstel adopted sons Daniel and Jonathan through foster care.
"Dancing with the Stars" pro Louis Van Amstel is opening up about the "blessing" of adopting older children.
Van Amstel, 50, took to Instagram on Wednesday to share a post for National Foster Care Month about the adoption journey he and husband Joshua Lancaster went on to welcome sons Daniel and Jonny into their family.
"I can't share enough the fact that #adoption of older kids is such a blessing, not just for the kids, but for the parents as well," he wrote. "No diapers, sleepless nights, difficulty communicating in the early years."
He added, "The pics of my boys, Jonny and Daniel, were their thumbnail pictures on the heart gallery websites that each state has to promote adoption from the foster care system. They're now 13 and 14 and yes, taller than me!"
The professional dancer shared a photo of him with his boys in March, showing how much they've grown since he and Lancaster became their dads.
Van Amstel, a veteran "DWTS" pro who has competed on 11 seasons, previously opened up about the pair adopting their sons through foster care in a February appearance on "Tamron Hall."
He said he and Lancaster, whom he met in 2010 and married in 2017, adopted Daniel in 2019 and Jonny in 2020 through foster care. Each of the boys was 10 at the time of their adoption.
"Everyone wants the baby," Van Amstel said at the time. "I guess when you either can't produce your own biological children then [you say], 'Oh, let's adopt a baby so it feels as close to biological as possible,' and that is the [mindset] we wanted to change."
