[djkyosti]

My wife and I wish to adopt the youngest possible child, and surprisingly we have been advised to indicate in our home study that we want a child "under 3 years old." I would like to put that we want a child "under 2 years old" and was told that we can do so but that the wait might be slightly longer and not as many regions would be open to us.

Does anybody have any advice on this subject?

[MamaChinch]

I was told to put it as, "an infant as young as possible up to __________" My adoption was three years ago, and it was up to 18 months, as I was advised. But it doesn't surprise me that they are saying under 3 years. Ask if you word it to prepace it with "an infant as young as possible" if that is your wish. You will probably have to wait longer.

[djkyosti]

The social worker originally wrote "infant as young as possible" in the home study and the agency told her to put "an infant up to age ___" or "a child less than age ___." According to the agency, Russia requires a specific age range now and they recommend using the age of 3 although it is possible to use a different age as we are qualified for a younger child. I just wanted to know if this sounds consistent with other people's experiences.

[Kasey]

ours was infant up to 18 months of age.

[MichiAmy]

My home study stated male under 18 months. My agency didn't think this was a problem...

[CarolinaWife]

I just talked to my agency today and they said that to get a child as young as possible, it would be necessary to say 'up to 18 months', knowing we would most likely be in the 12-14 range.

JMO - but if you aren't wanting a 24, 30, 36-month old child, then don't put it down! You know what's right for your family, and if you have to wait for it, it will be worth the wait! If you are ambivalent and a 2.5 year old would be fine, then go with the 'under three'.

[TweetyMom04]

The only country that counts 1/2's (2 yrs old, 2.5 yrs old, 3 yrs old, etc) is America. In RU you are 2, now you are 3, etc.

If you want an Infant than list as such in months of age you want not in years.

[Jpride]

I agree with above posts. We adopted 2 children and our homestudy said 2 under the age of 36 months. Our son was 7 days away from being 3 when we met him.

[aspi66]

we were advised by our agency to put 0-16 months of age, hopes this helps!

[Jessi_76]

We are currently preparing for our second trip. We put "two children, one boy and one girl both under the ages of 18 mos. with one as young as possible." We received a referral for an 8 month old and a 17 month old (at the time of referral). AND, our referral came just two months after dossier submission.

Honestly, it ALL depends on who your agency is, the pull they have, and where you are "in line" in respect to other families. We were told "under three" by MANY agencies and we searched until we found one who was willing to do it OUR way, and in our kind of timeframe.

BEST OF LUCK TO YOU!!! My advice, go with your heart...if you want under 18mos. they ARE out there...put it in your home study and pray that your agency is one of the ones who can put you on the fast track to a referral.

Have a great Fourth of July!

[momofMikhail]

we put under 18 months. We got our refferal when he was 12 months, but didn't go to court till he was 17 months old. We were told if he turned 18 months before court we would have to get an addendum done on our homesteady. Our wait time wasn't long, we were on the waiting list for about 4 1/2 months. hope this helps!

[DET62]

Do not be too specific. You might meet a 3 year old that melts your heart. You never know. I think it's better to have a broad age range, so you have many options. Your agency can know your preferences, and they should earn their fees by trying to match you with the right child.

Good luck!
Dee