[manderzmcg79]

So, we just finished our foster classes. We have another week til the adoption class and then cpr/first aid, and homestudy. We're in Lake Co (nw indiana) and yeah... as we're racing out the door to get to class on time (which somehow always ends up being ten minutes early) I keep forgetting to bring my list-o-questions. Can some of you help, please?

Does a child come with anything beyond what is on it's body (clothes diaper)?

When do you get finger printed? Will the agency/county tell you where and when?

Should we be taking steps towards preparing for the homestudy? What are they looking for? How many times will they come, and is there specific times between visits?

Once the homestudy is complete (which is after the application packet is submitted) how long is the process to be fully licensed?

I'm so excited I could pee a rainbow--the phrase makes me giggle and totally fits how I feel about where we are right now.

[mommamarci]

I am still in the classes, but I can answer some.

Does a child come with anything beyond what is on it's body (clothes diaper)?
That depends. If the situation is really bad, they scoop the child and run. Our instructor said sometimes she does not even know the child's name.

When do you get finger printed? Will the agency/county tell you where and when?
We had our first home visit today. (We have taken 2 classes. Our last is this Saturday.) We are going this week to get fingerprinted. The CW gave us instructions on how to do it.

Should we be taking steps towards preparing for the homestudy? What are they looking for? How many times will they come, and is there specific times between visits?
From what I understand, there will be 2 visits. She looked at our house, asked about fire arms, fire extinguishers, chemicals, etc. at the first visit. Our packet said the first visit is supposed to be before classes. We scheduled ours last minute so were not able to meet before. The CW said to call after we finish classes and have the rest of the paperwork ready and she will come do the second visit.

Once the homestudy is complete (which is after the application packet is submitted) how long is the process to be fully licensed?
That depends on the county and the worker. Our CW made it seem like once we get everything turned in, we will be licensed pretty quickly. She even said she can issue a temp license if they have a child and no families.

[po]

what do the kids come with, I even got a teen age boy that had no shoes. The last three boys that we had came with plenty of clothes. One night they did not get off the bus. I finally called the cw and he said they were moving the kids and putting them all in separate homes. Then he said he would pick up their things the following week. That was a month ago.I still have everything packed and in the bedroom. I contacted him last week and reminded him. He told me to take it to the sheriff's dept. I informed him that I had just had surgery and could not lift. Some of the bags are very heavy. I also cannot fit it all in my car. It took two vehicles to bring it here. I know those foster parents had to go and buy things for the boys. I got a hernia from handling the one boy. he had to be restrained when I took him to counseling, visits, when driving. Ever try to drive and hold the arm of a 6 yr. old that was wild. he would hurt the other kids, throw things. One night at the visit he was so out of control that they would not even let me leave the visit area until they got him calmed down. Now they are refusing to come and pick up their things.

[kermitdfrog]

We've had about 10 placements in all and not a one of them came with anything. We had to shop for them all after picking them up.

As far as how long the process? It really all depends on how quick you can get your classes done. We were liscensed in about 8 months because of dh's schedule and trying to fit class hours in.

As far as homestudy this is what they look for:


All fire alarms are in working order
All meds are locked and away from kids reach
All house cleaners are locked up
Have at least 50 square feet per child in the bedroom
(so if your bedroom is 100 sq feet you can have 2 kids in there)
Fire extinguisher in kitchen
Animal shots are up to date

Homestudies are truly not bad. I know that I was besides myself trying to get my house in order and thinking they were going to come in with a white glove and wipe every nook and cranny in the house. Never happened .

If you have any other questions I would love to answer them if I can so please feel free to pm me. I too am in Northwest Indiana, not too far from Lake Co. Wishing you the best!

[EandDmom]

It took us 6 months from first class until we had kids in our home. We were licensed the same day we got our placement. They came with just the clothes on their backs which didn't fit to great and baby had no shoes. We only had one visit on our homestudy they checked everything that kermitdfrog said except they didn't ask about medicines being locked up (but we did have them that way) and they also checked that the fridge was clean.
As far as fingerprinting make certain you do the electronic ones as they come back in a matter of days versus the old way that takes weeks to get back. I know I got the directions of where to go online but can't remember anything else about it. Whoever you are getting licensed through should tell you more about it. We had everything done before the homestudy. That was our final thing we waited on.
What county are you in?

[Nicole Elaine]

I'd like to second the comment about clothes which don't fit. A lot of times, we've had foster kids who come with a lot of clothes that just don't fit! We had a 1 and 2 year old who came with a bunch of 6-9 month baby clothes. I think the previous foster parents just stuffed whatever they could into a bag to make it appear that the children had everything they needed.
Sad but true.
A few things that people suggested to me really ended up helping. Definitely make sure you have a first aid kit, extra kids' toothbrushes (even if they are from a dollar store, make sure you have some for the kids to use until you can go buy them a nice one), a few diapers (maybe a few size 3, 4 and 5, the most common sizes..), a bottle or two "just in case", and definitely a vinyl mattress protector in case the child wets the bed. I don't know how many times ours has saved us a mattress.

Good luck!