Once you and/or the agency have
identified a child for you, you will have the opportunity to meet with the
child on several occasions to explore your feelings and the child’s feelings
about the match.
Before you make the decision to
adopt a child, learn as much as you can about the child’s background so that
you will have the most complete picture of his or her issues and can make an
informed choice about your ability to parent him or her.
You should also
understand the child’s legal status very well so there are no unpleasant
surprises later in the process.
If all is well, you will be given
temporary custody and you will be able to bring your child home! The agency
will monitor your family’s progress and once they are satisfied that the adoption
is going well, will recommend finalization to the court.
You may choose to become foster
parents in order to help children and hopefully find the right child for you.
As we discussed earlier, you will
need to contact your state or county agency and apply to be a foster parent.
Most foster parents undergo a rigorous review and must attend training before
being allowed to accept children into their home.
If you make your interest in
adopting known to the agency, they will help you find children who may become
available for adoption. Once you find a child that you would like to adopt, you
will need to undergo a home study, as in any adoption situation.
As we mentioned earlier, most
infants who enter the public system in the United
States are adopted by their foster parents.
This makes foster parenting an inexpensive way to adopt an infant. However,
just a note of caution there can be heart wrenching situations in foster
parenting if you become very attached to a child who is ultimately not
available for adoption. Also, the goal of foster parenting is to reunite the
family if at all possible. If you don’t think you can honestly work toward that
goal, foster parenting may not be right for you.
In the next chapter, we’ll look at
the process of international adoption.
