Getting Ready to Adopt a Child

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Have you ever thought of adopting a child? Has the thought of the process paralyzed you? There are so many emotions involved in adoption. There’s fear, happiness, sadness, and excitement. And most people have no idea where to start. 

That lack of knowledge stops you dead in your tracks. It’s not as difficult as it seems. While it is an emotional roller coaster, it’s possible to adopt in the U.S. and there are many children who need homes.

Private Adoption

Getting Ready to Adopt a Child Janeris Marte Contributor Miami Mom Collective

First you must decide if you can afford between $30,000 and $50,000 to finalize an adoption. If you’re doing a private adoption you’ll have to pay fees to go through the process. A private adoption is where you contact an agency to help you find birth parents. The agency is the middle man between a biological mother who can’t keep her baby and the family looking to adopt a child.

Adoption from Foster Care

Getting Ready to Adopt a Child Janeris Marte Contributor Miami Mom Collective

There are options to adopt without spending thousands. If you adopt a child from foster care, the costs are minimal. They’re mostly older children, sibling groups, or medically needy children. But if cost is an issue or if you have a heart for children who have been waiting for a loving family, adopting a child who has been waiting for a while is a great option.

Becoming a Foster Parent

Another option is to become a foster parent. Becoming a foster parent has its own challenges. Your main goal when you become a foster parent is to care for kids that could eventually go back home. You may have kids coming and going before you get to adopt a child but in the meantime, you get to give love to a child who needs affection desperately. While it could be scary and heartbreaking when a child leaves, it gets easier to let them go as it means that their mom is succeeding in her rehabilitation.

If you’ve considered foster care and can get past the possibility of some of the children going back to their home, foster care is an amazing option. The children have a lot of help from the state and their health insurance, college education, and some cost of living are taken care of by the state even after you adopt. While money should never be the reason you adopt a child, it is very helpful when you add a child with not much notice.

I chose to foster children and have had 13 children come into my home. I was able to adopt two of them and they have been the biggest blessings in my life. The two I adopted came when they were 3 months old and 8 days old. It has been great to see parents do what they had to do to get their children back. We were so sad every time a child went home. But the joy we felt from being parents to all these little personalities has been incredible.

Whatever option you choose, remember that it is permanent. Children are not puppies and should not be returned. They’re as yours as any biological child.

Have you thought of adoption?