|
lizpappas, you're remembering correctly.
We're still waiting on one annoying document that my husband's employer's home office has to turn in before we can start the homestudy... been waiting for what feels like ages. They HAVE the doc, just don't feel like filling it out, I guess.
We will be looking for a straight-adoption situation, but are aware that judges here don't like to complete TPR until there is an adoptive family already waiting.
So we know to expect to have to foster-adopt, and that's what we'll officially be doing. Don't know how long we'd wait and look only for a situation really close to TPR before giving in and doing standard foster-to-maybe-adopt ... probably not long. I want children in my house *yesterday*.
But since we're interested in sibling groups of older children (age 2 to 8 or so), our chances are higher than most. We're not hoping for young children, so we could conceivably come in at the end of a child's journey rather than at the very beginning.
We've gotten statistics on the success of adopting one's foster children in our area. I don't have them in front of me but I'm remembering that those who are seeking a newborn have, on average, 5-6 placements before the child they are eventually able to adopt. The older or more difficult to place children give the foster-adopting parents better odds, going as low as 0-1 placements of teenager before the teen they're eventually able to adopt.
When you consider that we want elementary-aged children, that we're wanting a sibling group of 2-3 children, that we're primarially interested in boys, and that my personal foster care and adoption issues library is bigger than that section in most public libraries (ie we'd consider quite a range of "issues"), then I personally expect we'll have around 2 placements before the ones we'd be able to adopt. But that's my own assumption, and may or may not be correct!
I guess I feel safer assuming that we won't get to adopt the first group or two - it gives me a measure of control over my emotions. I'd love it if I were wrong and we got to keep the first group we had, but I'm expecting to have to live through having to send a group or two home, first. It's better to assume that.
The person who will be our caseworker as soon as we're at the point of actually being assigned one is pretty quiet on this issue.
All the research I have I've found through other avenues.
Does that make sense to you?
|