Choosing awfully doting Pa? (8)

I believe the answer is:

adopting

'choosing' is the definition.
(adopting is a kind of choosing)

'awfully doting pa?' is the wordplay.
'awfully' is an anagram indicator.
'doting'+'pa'='dotingpa'
'dotingpa' with letters rearranged gives 'ADOPTING'.

(Another definition for adopting that I've seen is " Taking on (another's child)".)

I've seen this clue in The Times.

Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app