Adoption Questions

By -
We have been seriously considering adoption lately. I guess lately isn't exactly correct since even before we had Margaret we knew we wanted to adopt (regardless of our ability to have children). The thought has come up more frequently the past week and we have begun looking into adoption agencies, costs and criteria. Our main purpose in all of this was to collect information so if we don't get pregnant in the next 6 months-1 year we can move quickly to begin the long process.

Today I got the mail and was excited to see February's Ensign. Like normal I rushed home and plopped on the couch to read it. My eyes instantly welled up as I read some of the article title's listed on the front cover... one is about adoption. I slowly made my way through the Ensign to the middle of the issue and read the 8 page article. There are articles written by 4 different people (birthmother, birthfather, biological grandparents and child). The whole time I cried. I am so open to adoption, but at the same time, it's hard to think that perhaps we will never have another biological child. Part of me thinks the articles were mere coincidence, but the better part of me knows they probably weren't.

Anyways, I know there are a few women on this blog that have adopted. Where did you start? How did you find an agency? I know two of you went international... what was the experience? Any info you could pass along would be wonderful.

Comments

Mamapierce said…
The easiest way to explain our story is to direct you to my ukrainian adoption blog: http://foreverfamilyadoption.blogspot.com/2008/04/forever-family-adoption.html

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to ask. jilldpierce@yahoo.com
January 21, 2009 3:42 PM
Melisa said…
My brother and SIL used LDS family services. They also tried some foster care. But then her sister's friend ended up giving them her baby and they are thinking about adopting their foster care child. The link to their blog is on my picture blog if you want to check it out.
January 21, 2009 4:35 PM
Paige said…
I am an adoption social worker for LDS Family Services. I work with birth parents and adoptive couples. I would love to answer any questions you may have. Feel free to email me at cavanfam@yahoo.com
January 21, 2009 5:37 PM
Stephanie said…
One thing I am looking into is fostering to adopt. I don't know a lot about it yet, but am hoping to learn more. A woman I work with did it, and basically you foster a child in which case it's a pretty sure thing the parental rights are going to be terminated. The risk of course is bonding with the child, and then having him/her taken away. But the benefit is you don't have to necessarily wait a long time, like you often do with adoption. I know there could be some potential heartache, but I love the idea of giving a child a good home, who has been a in a rough situation.
January 21, 2009 8:05 PM
Katie said…
The fostering option has occurred to me, too. I've often thought that I wouldn't mind taking on another kid with Type 1 -- I can imagine that they're a hard sell for a social worker. At least for us it would be familiar territory.
January 21, 2009 8:38 PM
Rachel said…
I love discussing this topic because I was once a caseworker for Child Protective Services. There are so many great kids of ALL ages looking to be adopted. There is just so much to it... that it is hard to just make a small comment or even a post for that matter. One thing I would like to just mention is to beware of fostering to adopt. It is a great program don't get me wrong. But more times than not, the fostering parents are devastated when the children go back to their parents. So go into that program understanding that!
January 21, 2009 8:56 PM
Rachel said…
If you guys have any specific questions, let me know and I'll make a post about addressing them :) Or we can email some emails or talk on the phone since I know many of you on this site :)
January 21, 2009 8:57 PM
Hope said…
We had paper work and everything ready to do Foster-To-Adopt. We were just waiting until March. Kurt and I discussed it and foster to adopt is our prefered choice, with foriegn adoption as second.
January 22, 2009 6:40 PM
aLLie said…
hi! I'm a brand new reader to your blog but I am just at the beginning stages of considering adoption myself!
January 23, 2009 10:15 PM
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