[princess1224]

Just wondering about everyone elses experience who has adopted and how long their wait was for a baby to be placed with them.

Hubby and me are planning on adopting in a few years and wondered how long from start to finish until we were able to start our family.

Many sites I've researched say 6 mos. to 18 mos.

Any help is appreciated.

[mintshastagrape]

depends on the birthmom. she gets to choose the parents for her baby.

[ellia3]

Hi Princess, my husband and I starting praying about adoption in May 2002. In Aug-02 God called us to adopt. We started the homestudy in Aug-02 and completed homestudy and Mapp classes in Nov-02. We were approved by our state agency in Dec-02 and was chosen by a birthmom in Feb-03 and brought our little angel home March-03. We only waited 2 month from date approved with a state agency. We give God all the glory, honor, and praise. It was truly a miracle. We were told pursing adoption through a state agency could take 6 to 9 months. Remember it is God's timing and let him lead you and your wait could actually be weeks. There were people in my mapp class that adopted weeks after approved. May God bring your precious baby home In Jesus Name.

[GailHB]

How long you wait to adopt a child has quite a bit to do with any parameters you and your husband set on what kind of child you're wanting. If you're race or gender-specific, your wait will be longer. If you will consider a drug-exposed baby of any race and either gender, chances are your wait will be quite short (weeks or a few months). Of course this applies to domestic adoptions. We've been waiting 9 months so far. We want a daughter so we know we'll be on the longer end of the spectrum.

Good luck,
GailHB in CA.

[faith_amom]

For our first adoption, it took almost two years from orientation to baby in my arms. We are going through a different agency this time. We have been waiting since Jan 2002 and still haven't been invited to do our home study yet. (They limit the number of waiting parents.) Estimated wait from start to finish is roughly 3 years.

- Faith

[paperchasingmom]

Hi Faith,

Beautiful name honey! Wow, 3 years that's horrible--especially when you think about the fact that that could be much shorter if expectant moms didn't choose abortion....sad, so sad....all those little lives lost when there's so many loving adoptive parents that would jump at the chance to call them their own....

I just wanted to share that, I don't know if you want an infant daughter, but China just has an explosion of births and available adoptions of little girls....because of their 1 child rule no one wants to keep their little girls...the families hold out for a boy because supposedly he's a symbol of wealth and will be able to care for the family when they get older....

There are so many good christian organizations that go to China...cost is roughly about only $15,000-$16,000 and that includes your 2 week trip over there with you and your husband!!! Wow, a vacation too!!! Praise God!!!

Anyway, the name of this christian organization is called America World. They also have children available in the Ukraine (who are usually older children), Russia, and Vietnam....they told me that if you wanted to adopt siblings, Russia is your best bet...

We had the opportunity to meet the christian couple that started this organization...they were here in Tampa for a seminar on international adoptions....lovely, lovely people...all of them...

They started it after they adopted their first adopted daughter from over there and saw that there were so many more orphaned children there just waiting for mommys and daddys!!!!

God, I feel, is leading us in this direction, for us personally....for several reasons....

The wait time isn't too severe--18 months, bad but manageable, start to finish...gives me time to prepare everything I need to do..

More importantly, I believe these children may be healthier due to the lifestyle over there in China....probably not much drug use, they eat well, fish and green tea...they generally are in good health as a whole, you know, population wise....also, I think that they probably are taking good care of themselves for the fact that they're hoping for a boy too..

Also, a HUGE CONCERN of mine regarding adoption, is the birthmother coming back for her child or basically wanting to be a big part of the childs life.....that won't happen from adoptions over there because these children are true ORPHANS...nobody wants them or is looking for them....

I don't know if I have the strength to be a part of an open adoption...God would definitely have to hold me by the hand and lead me there for me to feel comfortable with that...after reading some of the posts on the birthmother's site...I can't even sleep because of those, much less really being involved in their situations you know as a hopeful adoptive parent. I don't have the strength to help a girl through her pregnancy and pay for everything, wait and pray and hope only to have her change her mind at the last minute, for me, for us, my husband and I, that's not within our comfort level right now.....

It's basically because I almost died from a medical procedure actually caused by my fertility specialist---unbelieveable but true...I'm alive, but unfortunately sterile now...

But God is good and I do feel alot more comfort with this Christian organization, there is definitely a peace...

Their phone number is 888-one-child...

Their fees are subject to change due to different travel times of the year...

They also have a website..I would encourage all of you to take a peek...these little girls are precious!!!

Their website is: www.awaa.org. If you call them, they will send you a nice, free, information book with video I believe if you ask them...

My thought was to adopt a little girl from China, which would probably be about 1 year old and then adopt a newborn son from somewhere else....maybe from a mother here...then I might be ready to help someone else here go through their pregnancy..but not for the first adoption...my husband and I really need it to go as smoothly as possible...

That's kinda my plan...I'm trying to see if I can get on several lists at one time....

Bye for now!!! Best of Blessings to everyone!!!

Melody

Hopeful adoptive mommy to be!!!

[mintshastagrape]

from what i understood is that it depended on the birthmom because she gets to choose the family and what she wants in the family. i am going to be a birthmother and thats what my attorney told me.

Obviously the birth mother gets to choose. For those of us waiting to adopt, the wait varies no matter what choice the biological parents make.

There are many factors for adoptive couples to weigh when choosing which adoption is right for them. Age, gender, health are just a few of our concerns....

[mintshastagrape]

i knew it varies but was wondering if a birthmoms role places a factor in it too.

[kjdaisey]

Princess-
We researched agency and private adoption, domestic or international. We decided that private domestic adoption would be the best choice for us. We paid our first retainer to an attorney in Feb. 2001. Our son was born in July of 2001. Our daughter was born in Aug. 2002. I truly believe that if you are praying for your children long before you start a family, God will help you find one another- it may be the traditional birth/pregnancy, or it may be a different just as miraculous way. The biggest difference in agency vs. private adoptions is the cost. Many attorneys bill for the time put into you whether or not the adoption actually goes through. There is no cap on what they can charge. If you choose to interview an attorney, always ask what their policy is. Agencies usually have a sliding scale or flat fee. However, their wait tends to be considerable longer. My advice- the younger you are when you start the process, the better. Honestly, age makes a difference in your portfolio. I hope that does not offend anyone. Good luck! It is an exciting adventure and quite bonding!!!