[justified06]

Hello. I had a situation that I need help with. I was at my doctor's appointment and I met a lady that is due within the next week. She started talking about her other 2 children and then asked if I had children. I told her no and starting talking to her about all the miscarriages I had. We ended up talking for over a hour. Towards the end of the conversation she stated that she was going to give her baby up because she doesn't have the finances to care for him. We talked a little more and the conversation ended with her asking me to adopt her child. I told her that I would love to. She got my phone number and I got hers and she's going to call when she is in labor. My problem is that I don't have a home study and I travel about 60 miles to see my doctor(wonderful doctor) . The doctor problem is the doctor is in another state. I drive 60 miles and that places me in another state. Is there anything I can do so that I can adopt this child? I contacted a social worker and she is going to start the process on Monday (finger printing and references) but by the time that comes back she will have the baby already. I spoke with a law firm here in town and they said the person who deals with adoptions is out of the office until Tuesday. Is there anything I can do because my homestudy will not be completed by the time she has this baby? Is there any kind of temporary waiver I can apply for? Please let me know.

[taramayrn]

Sounds like you should contact a lawyer to make sure you have everything in order so the adoption proceeds legally and ethically.

Also if this expectant mother is considering adoption it might be in her best interests to receive some counselling regarding her options from a non biased counsellor.

[ourdreamcametru]

We adopted Castle through private domestic adoptiong and just used an adoption attorney in our city. She arranged for the homestudy and everything. We met our daughter's bmother three months before she gave birth and it was plenty of time to do a homestudy. They can rush them! Just make sure the attorney you use specializes in adoptions and know/follows all the rules. You MUST locate the father and he must sign first and foremost. You will want to obtain another attorney for the pbirthmother as well, our attorney did this for us by getting another attorney in her practice and it was an exter $100.

[mommy3]

Hi, First, I do have to say Congratulations on being in touch with what sounds like is a very promising situation and a dear expectant mother. Even though she's making a plan now, she'll need to have the space and support to decide her options when her baby is born -- having you in her life may be exactly an answer to her prayers -- and yet b/c she's making her plan so late in her pg, she may still change her mind. I'm not trying to throw negativity into your dream, just supporting this special woman's decision that will come soon.

Regarding the potential placing of her baby with you, in CA with a private adoption, the homestudy can be done after the baby's birth -- reaching an attorney right away is important, and you're right there. Having that guidance will be critical, esp. re issues like traveling to a different state for checkups, etc. May this go well for both you and the baby's mom as her baby moves quickly to delivery -- Best of luck! susan

[StacyM]

Hi, I just wanted to add a couple of things we learned from our experience.

Our adoption was also a private interstate adoption. We had approximately 2 months until baby was due and started our homestudy. We asked for a rush, but it still took 6 weeks. Everything was ready when the baby was born, but there was some interstate paperwork that could not be filed until after baby was born. The attorney in the other state was slow and the paperwork was delayed a week. So, what that meant for us was that we had to stay in that state with the baby until all forms were filed. We could have gone home and left the baby with someone else, but that wasn't an option for me. In your case, you might check and see if that is what you would need to do and if so, you can think about your options.

Good luck!