Making Some Progress!

Last night I sat down and did a TON of research; called about ten agencies, looked into social services, looked into adoption agencies, and state programs. I think that Will and I have a few options that we are going to do.



The first thing that we are going to do is the Lutheran Social Service (http://www.lsss.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=198&srcid=-2). We've filled out and sent in an application and now we wait until their intake period (which will be sometime late summer, early fall). They take 10 couples a year during the intake period and their costs are on a sliding scale from $14,000-$23,000 dependent upon income. This is a private adoption service, so the birthmother relinquishes the rights. We will still have to pay lawyer fees which will be $600-$1500.



The other option that we are looking into is a straight adoption of a toddler through Pathways (http://www.pathway.org/). This is a state run program so we will be adopting a 1 1/2 to 3 year old toddler that has been taken from their family and relinquished to the state. Why we are looking into adopting an older child is because until the child is about 1 1/2 there is still a chance that the family will be able to take the child back (which is called legal risk). This is a very cost efficient program with the out of pocket expenses total about $200 for background checks and $600-$1500 for lawyer fees. Also, with this we will more than likely receive daily compensation of about $20 to help raise the child, a $10,390 tax credit, Medicaid health insurance for the child, and reimbursement for college tuition. Since these children are usually physically or emotionally abused we will need to take classes (which, in my opinion, would be beneficial to any parent to be). The entire training/application/background check process will take about 6 months and after that is the waiting period. Since Will and I are rather selective about the child willing to adopt (1 1/2-3 years; Caucasian, mixed race, or Hispanic) its hard to tell how long it will take for or 'forever family', but it can be anywhere from a few months to one year.



The last option that we are keeping in mind is Caring Adoptions (http://www.caringadoptions.org/). This is a adoption agency that deals solely with direct adoptions with birthmothers relinquishing their rights. This agency charges $18,900 and this is collected in three different payments; an initial deposit to begin the process, a middle payment, and a final payment due at the time of taking the child home (sounds like my price structure). We would pay the lawyer fees, but comparatively this agency is one of the more reasonable ones out there. Most of the ones I've looked into are closer to $30,000. In order for us to start the process, we will have to committ, so we're saving this for a last option.
Well, even though I feel like we have some pretty good matches, I'm still going to dig up all the info I can on these three agencies, but I will definitely update any changes. Right now, I'm feeling pretty good about these options and I like the fact that I'm not putting all my eggs in one basket. =)

Is the Beginning Always This Frustrating

I'm not sure why I'm starting this blog or if anyone will look at it other than myself, but I guess there is no reason not to. I plan to keep this as an update, a journal, and a resource for the adoption process that I'm going through.
Its now been about month, maybe even longer, since Will and I decided to adopted and I'm already frustrated with the process. It seems like we've gotten absolutely nowhere and doesn't seem like progress is going to speed up anytime soon. Our first step was to talk to Kacie Brooks, a childhood friend of mine, who works with Children's Connection. She had the adoption counselor, Jeriva contact us and after a long game of phone tag, we finally touched base and were given names of possible agencies that we should look at. After considering the list of about 8 different agencies, we decided that Abby's One True Gift would be a wonderful choice for us. We swung into full gear...The first thing they wanted us to do was to have a homestudy completed. Will and I started thinking of fundraisers and getting those together while also looking into getting a homestudy done by Children's Connection. Then we hit a big, huge brick wall...After a bit of digging, I found out that Abby's One True Gift isn't as amazing as they first appeared.
Everything was completely put on hold and Will and I decided to look into a foster-to -adopt program. After researching that option, we've now decided it just might not be the best for us. We really don't know if we would be able to relinquish a child that we have been raising as our own to their rightful family if that were to ever comeup.
Now we're completely back at square one....Researching adoption agencies and trying to think of how we can possibly come up with the $30,000 that it will take to complete our 'forever family'.
The main agency we're looking at right now is the Lutheran Social Services. After reading about all the horrors that the prospective parents went through with Abby's One True Gift, I'm still a bit timid about agencies that are not some type of 'social service'.
Now, back to more research and hopefully my next post will be a little more positive. =)