[NewWorld1]

I would like to put this qusetion out to the whole community...my husband and I are considering adoption. It is something I have always wanted to do and he is agreeable to researching to learn more. That being said, what country did you choose to adopt from and why? What other countries did you consider and what led you away from them? Speed of the process will not really be an issue for us (although I would hate to hear 5 years or so!!). As we may have a newborn during the process, I also would not want to look in a country that requires the youngest to be 2 yrs old before placement (i.e. the Phillipines). I feel drawn to China, as many do, I suppose partly for the reason that they have always had a strong need for adoptive families and partly for the feeling that I have for the children of friends who adopted from China. I understand that that need is starting to decrease. Are there other countries that just do not get as much "adoption attention" that are in severe of it? What factored into your decisions?

[NashvilleGirl]

My husband and I did a lot of research before finally deciding to adopt from Colombia, and for us, it was the perfect decision! We didn't want to do a domestic adoption because we felt we wouldn't be able to handle it if the birth mom changed her mind. Other countries we looked at were Guatemala, Kazakhstan, Vietnam, and Taiwan (I was too young for China). The reason we chose Colombia is that we wanted a young infant, and if you adopt from a private orphanage, most of the babies are 6 months old or less at placement. Most of the orphanages also hire foster parents to care for the babies, so our daughter was in a home environment and never actually spent any time in an orphanage (which obviously is preferable when it comes to bonding/attachment issues). We received a referral 11 months after submitting our dossier. Anna was 4 months old when we received her referral and was 5 months old at placement. We got to meet her foster parents who were SO sweet, and we got 6 typed pages of medical/social history on Anna, her birth mom, birth siblings, and birth grandparents. We definitely plan to adopt from Colombia again. The only down side to this program for us has been the very long in country stay (4-8 weeks). Also, just FYI, Colombia does have age requirements for adopting infants, and the orphanages prefer that you are either childless or have only one other child at home. You can also adopt from Colombia's government run foster care system, but the wait is longer and the babies are usually older (12-24 months). Other than that, we have had a wonderful experience. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions about Colombia.

[Jessi_76]

We are adopting from Russia. We have no other children so I'm not certain of the rules regarding your newborn, however I am quite certain any biological child just needs to be six months when you apply.

Russia is the IDEAL situation for us. I'm not sure I can explain why, as there is really no real reason...we just felt drawn there from the word go. Having just come back from meeting our two children on our first trip, it was without a doubt the right decision. Until we traveled to rural Siberia, we just had NO idea how poverty-stricken and third-world Russia is. It's very sad. If we could afford it (Russia is VERY expensive - it will cost us between $80k - $90k for two children), we'd adopt more!!

We also looked into Guatemala (Hague issues), China (wait too long - 3-4 years), Vietnam/Taiwan/Korea (too tough to get a girl), Poland (too tough to get young children - most seem 6 years and up and in groups of 3 or more), Kazakhstan (very long travel - 45 days), Kyrgyzstan (too new of a program). Domestic was NOT an option for us because of the birthmother rights issues that PPs have mentioned. Russia is also very tough to get a girl, but if you find the right agency, they will help you!!

Good luck!!!

[mlb]

We decided on Russia for our first adoption. We felt drawn to it and have friends who had a wonderful experience adopting from there as well. We were three months from leaving and Russia shut down so we switched to the agencies other program (Kazakhstan). Two months later we left for Kaz and 45 days later )in country) we had a son. For our second adoption we went back to Kaz because our son's adoption experience was so great. There were bumps this time but we wouldn't rade our son for anything in the world. We also brought our oldest son back with us and he got to spend a lot of time seeing his birthcountry and the orphanage that he spent the first year of his life in. Best of luck in whatever you decide.

[karla-k]

We chose Kyrgyzstan because we knew we wanted a former Soviet block country (just a heart for those orphans.) And the wait in China and financial requirements put it out of reach for us.

We also want a boy, and China didn't seem like an option at the time. We also wanted an Asian child and Kyrg has mostly Asian people.

We chose Kyrg because of the short process. We'll likely have a baby home in less than a year of our start. Also, the age of the babies. They are available for adoption at 3 months and most parents meet their baby when he/she is only weeks old on trip one.

It is an expensive program, but the two trips are relatively short with our agency and we have 3 other kids at home that we cannot leave for weeks at a time. We also have 1 special needs child and getting our baby at such a young age will help lessen the effects of life in an orphanage.

The more we have researched our country the more convinced we are that we are making the right choice. I know the same will be true for you.

Karla
3 bios and waiting for #4 from Kyrgyzstan

[karla-k]

One more thing: the paperwork process for Kyrg is so simple compared to some other countries. My friend adopted from Russian 3 years ago and when she saw the dossier requirements for Kyrg she was stunned. She plans to adopt from Kyrg next year rather than going back to Russia.

Karla

[oceanica]

approximately how expensive?
(domestic adoption for aa babies is what we are doing now but the frequency of bmoms choosing to parent is so high that it's getting discouraging. Not to knock the bmoms... it's just that failed match after failed match becomes expensive and time consuming. I've only had one fail so far but take a look at some of the people on this forum and how many times they've had them!)

[karla-k]

Our adoption from Kyrgyzstan will be between $35-40,000 by the time it is all said and done. But hey, it's only money, right???