[makarios79]

I was wondering if someone could tell me the foster care/adoption requirements for children sleeping the same room with parent, but having their own crib/bed if they are under a certain age in Florida.

Someone told me that if the child was 2 years or younger, they could sleep in the same room with the foster/adoptive parent, but they had to have their own bed. But it seems like I remembered reading that the child had to be 12 months or younger...which is correct 2 years or younger OR 12 months or younger?

Fostering to adopt has been on my heart for several years and I am seriously considering signing up for the next round of MAPP classes and starting the whole foster to adopt process, but I am debating whether or not to do so, until I move until a larger place around September 2007.

I currently live alone in a large one bedroom apartment, with ample room for a crib or toddler bed in my bedroom, what are the chances that I could get approved living in a one bedroom? Or should I just wait until I move next year ?

All input in graciously welcome

[twinflana]

the rule is younger than 12 months, you could get licensed if the room is large enough and you plan on moving soon. But realize when you move you will have to have the health inspection and safety check done again.

[makarios79]

Thanks for your input...Well I won't exactly be moving anytime soon...it will be around sept 2007....

but I guess it will take several months to go through the process, so I will be moving soon after that...

The next Saturday MAPP class I know of starts in Dec., but I am checking to see if there is another agency that starts in November

It's no big deal about going through the health and safety inspections

I have a few other questions

How long was the certification process be a Foster Parent (such as MAPP classes, Homestudy etc...) before you get licensed?

When you foster a child do you also get financial assistance with daycare in Florida? I know the child gets medicaid and a monthly subsidy. Just curious

[brl]

The mapp classes lasted 10 weeks. All the other things rely on how fast the state works.

As far as daycare, They will pay for the daycare if you work. Sometimes the daycare charged me 10.00 a week I had to pay.

[MiMi25]

I live in Florida and believe it's under 12 months old. I do have a question though. Living in a one bedroom if a child is placed in your home under a year old what happens when that child turns 1? What if that happens before the time you plan on moving? That childs placement will have to be disrupted. Also my "homefinder" told me that infant placement is very rare here in Florida.

Just a thought.

[twinflana]

It would depend on what part of FL you are in about infant placements. I live in Duval county and 5 out of 8 of my placements were infants. They might not want to place an older infant with you if they are close to turning 1. If you are starting your classes in December and should be finished by January it could take a couple of months after that for the process to be finished, it all depends on how quickly your agency works. I started my classes in Jan 05 and in June of 06 we moved to the next county over so had to do alot of the paperwork over again and it took until March of 06 before they finished and I was licensed so for me it took 14 months but that is very unusual.
Yes we get childcare paid for by the city.

[bjhv5]

I agree with twin,
It all depneds on where you live.I got S right from ther hopsital several of my other foster friends have gotten babies even newborns and called for mor including twin!
My MAPP class was only 3 Staurdays in a row but were 8 hours a day.We started in January 05 finsihed with classes 3 weeks later.home study was in Febuary,inspection everything ,we were liscened by April had our first placement that same day!
We have our Baby( S) in our room even though she is 14 months,we sleep in the living room until we can move. They know this since she is an adoptive placement now they are not saying anything becasue they know we are going to move when we finalize.

[makarios79]

By the time I go through the MAPP Classes , My homestudy etc.......it will probably be April or later before I get licensed from what I have been told. My lease ends in September 2007.

If I have to move away from here, there is not a big penalty to break my lease and my apt complex will probably allow me to move to a larger apt for the duration of my lease, as long as I pay the higher rent and they have one available, which they seem to always cause they are constantly advertising.

I know I would have to go through the health inspection again, but my goal is really to adopt..so if a child is placed with me and it looks like the child is not going to be reunified and I'll be able to adopt...I will just move somewhere else and take the penalty or move to a larger apt here at my apt complex. It would be more than worth all the trouble of moving early.

I also live in Duval County and I have also been told there are many infants.. some straight from the hospital.......

Just a couple months ago, I was told of 2 twin AA girls who needed a family, they were having a hard time finding a family for. At that time I wish I had of been licensed. I lived in a 3 bedroom house then and would had more than enough space.

Anyway, thanks for all the input.

[makarios79]

Well finally after calling a million times, I finally got a hold of someone to get signed up for my MAPP Classes, so providing my boss agrees to let me off 1 hr early for 3days, I will be starting my classes on November 27 and Finishing up on December 2.

I'm so excited!

So pray that my boss lets me off cause the next class isn't until January and I don't want to wait until then.. There are no December classes and no more Saturday classes this year

[hkolln]

We are in Duval county Florida and took our Mapp classes for 3 Saturdays in a row and were done end of September. Then a week later they setup our homestudy visit and now we are just waiting on our daughter juvenile background check which should come in anyday now. We have everything else done (health inspection, lead inspection, our background checks, etc...) so it's a wait and see game now. Hoping by end of November we get it all finished.

Our case is alittle different cause we are doing our licensing to foster to adopt our 6 yr old niece in foster care currently in the state of Idaho. We had the ICPC done to get the home study ordered already. Since she's in another state we have to go thru all this stuff....but it's all worth it if we can get her eventually. In the meantime she's sitting in foster care and not with us and I hope they send her here. If they decide to leave her there (I'm wondering why since we are doing everything we can possibly do to get her) we will still be licensed foster parents so we can take in a couple kids here in Florida.

I just wish the process worked faster! Our nieces mom (my sil) is in prison for 4 yrs and her father is nowhere to be found with warrants out against him. They have already done a permancy hearing to TPR her mother (aggravated abuse and it was a bad case which we had no knowledge of or we would have done something for her)...but in the meantime we will foster her if she does come here. I would hope they would push for relatives over anybody but I don't know. We actually were not contacted by DCF in Idaho. My husband spoke to his other sister end of August and she told us about the situation. My husband took 2 days but tracked down the social worker on our nieces case and initiated the process. I would hope that would make a difference too. Seems no other relatives wish to take her but us. His other relatives are so dysfunctional it's really a terrible situation.

[AmahMama]

There is a thread for Florida State on one of the links. I post on both and find good info and insite on both. Sometimes it's hard to remember which threads that I've visited on my "blogline" but thought you might be interested in checking it out too.

[makarios79]

Well for anyone who is interested in knowing. I have finished my MAPP classes and have been fingerprinted, I just have to finish all my paperwork and wait on them to call me and tell me when my first homestudy visit will be.

I decided to move into a 2 bedroom apartment though, so I will have no hold up just incase they do place me with an infant older.

My apt complex is going to let me move in Jan and I have been informed that is when it will be homestudy will most likely take place.

I am however going back and forth on the age range and # of children I want to have placed though....

Debating between 1-3 children maximum at one time and these Age ranges under 2 only, 0-3, 0-6 or 0-8, 1-3, 3-6, 4-8 ??? I don't know. Each age range has it's share of strengths and weaknesses pertaining to how it will affect my current lifestyle and my ability to handle it as a single parent. My ultimate hope is to adopt, so I have to take that into consideration to.

Also, the age range and max # of children I plan to have placed will greatly determine the items I will have to purchase to prepare for their arrival....such as a crib, 2 cribs, a twin bed, bunkbeds, etc....

My apt. will allow for up to 4 people in a 2 bedroom, so there is no problem there...but can I handle 3 kids at once , especially when I have 0 now....

Anyway..I'll keep you informed

[makarios79]

Well my FBI background checks FINALLY came back....

And I am now schedule for my first homestudy visit- January 17, 2007. I could have it before then, but I wanted to give myself a week to get settled in my new apt, which I move into on the 10th.....

I go to get my radon test tomorrow from my cw, of course can't do it until the 10th, but at least I'll have it....and I turn in my application, so they can get my references and child abuse screening and everything else..

My cw thinks I could be licensed by Mid to late Feb...and many foster parents here say they have gotten placements the same day....so I am preparing myself for that......

WOW..I can't believe it was October when I first posted.. and in a little over a month, I will be a mom...The process is taking less than 6 months....My....How time flies!

[marthavmommy]

Hi I am also in Duval County. We took our MAPP classes last August and had our Visits and Home/Safety Inspection done by Feb 2006. For some reason my paperwork sat on someone's desk for a couple of months so we weren't officially licensed until May 26th. The only reason it happened that day was that I contacted a supervisor over at the Boys Home (who is in charge of licensing) who made a call to find that the paperwork was sitting somewhere at DCF. So the first advice I offer is to be the squeaky wheel if it takes too long!

My other advice to you is to go to the Foster & Adoptive parents meetings that they have at the Boys Home every month. I was so lucky to have met a wonderful foster mom who became my 'foster mom mentor' (Deb!) and who knew of our baby girl's situation. We were so blessed to have found out about Baby J as we wanted to adopt as well, and it was apparent from Baby J's situaion that there was a good chance her case was heading in that direction. As it turns out they wouldn't have moved her until that date because of the situation with the prior foster mother.

I also know of another foster mom who has had many different placements in one year (Is it eight Twin?) but she is strictly foster (or is she? ) so that works out for her and her family. As for us, I am afraid if we hadn't been able to keep baby J that my DH wouldn't have wanted to try again. I am SOOOO grateful that I met Ms Deb and I know that God led us to her and to baby J.

We still don't know for sure about adopting her, but the Permanency Hearing is Tuesday and they are planning to change the goal to adoption. She is for sure the apple of our eyes and she is truly our baby in every other sense of the word. We love her so much.

Hopefully I will be able to come on and post some good news next Tuesday, I feel good about it - I just feel that she is meant to be our forever daughter.

[hkolln]

We want to go to these meetings too. Can you send me the info on what day and time they are held. I did my MAPP class at the Boys Home and it's about 5 mins from my house! Thanks!