Hi I'm new here and just thought I'd introduce myself to this group. My husband and I have been foster parents for over 2 years now. We currently have 2 beautiful babies (Isaac 6/26/07 & Kayla 11/3/07) that we plan on adopting. I also have two step sons that come over on the weekends, they are 14 and 17. We are somewhat of an odd family but it works for us!
Crystal
courtney_adkins05
06-06-2008, 09:04 AM
welcome!!
z'smomma
06-06-2008, 11:55 AM
That's wonderful!
Kinrice01
06-07-2008, 09:37 PM
We are doing foster to adopt too! We are certified but waiting for our first placement.. it is hard waiting...:banghead:
nitareality
06-09-2008, 10:01 AM
Welcome! Another foster to adopter here.
katiejack
06-09-2008, 11:49 AM
We are also foster to adopt! We waited about 2 months for our first placement - a little boy a little over 1.5 yrs. old. We did respite with him for 3 months and then, a little over a week ago, he moved in full-time with us. We are hoping to adopt him but, as all "seasoned" foster parents know, anything can happen and we can't count on anything happening toward adoption until the papers are signed!
It is hard waiting though. Every time the phone rings you think it's for a placement.
kristy29
06-09-2008, 11:52 AM
Hi, this is my first time posting in here as well. We are foster to adopt as well. We currently have a placement of a baby girl born last July and her brother who is almost 5. It was back and forth about adoption for them but mom got clean and they should be going home before school starts. It will be so hard and I will miss them so much. We've had them since the baby was 6 weeks old.
We did just learn there is an 18 mos old boy who is looking for a home and we are on the list for him.
crystalannski
06-10-2008, 02:31 PM
Wow that’s tough, I hope everything works out for you and your family.
We had our first placement (that we were told we would adopt) leave after 9 months, it’s hard. We got her right out of the hospital and were told we would adopt because there was no family and her mother didn’t want her. Well there was an Aunt that changed her mind and after 9 months she left us. It was heartbreaking and still is but I wouldn’t change that experience for the world. I loved the time I had with her and I know she is in a good place. Everything happens for a reason and I wouldn't trade the kids I have now for anything! I hope that it all works out for you and for the kids.
waitingforgrace
06-11-2008, 11:24 PM
Hi there.. my husband and I are foster to adopt also. We're waiting on our license and first placement.. our paperwork went to the state today!!!
JayCee33
06-15-2008, 10:22 PM
Hello, I can't believe all the Foster to Adopt people! It's great! Technically we did not get officially into foster to adopt. We got a kinship placement, with a little girl who I knew through work and needed a new foster home. Two and a half years later we are in the adoption process with her, and just got her brand new Baby sister from the hospital in early April. Though we of course don't know what is going to happen with the new baby, but the mom has had the rights terminated for four other children, and so it's not looking very good for her. She has been homeless for the majority of the last two and half years, and whenever she gets a place ends up back on drugs.
But, I always find myself worrying that we'll have to give up our precious girls. I don't know what I would do...
It's great to find people who are in a similar place.:goodvibes:
TestifyToLove
06-16-2008, 06:25 PM
We're doing a foster-adopt right now. We are NOT foster parents, we only took a pre-adoptive placement. This is our first time through the foster-care system and will mostly likely be our LAST. I keep saying the Lord would have to clobber me with an anvil for me to consider doing it again. If we adopt again, we'll likely return to international adoptions.
But, we're in contact with our attorney as our little guy's bio-parents appeal to the TPR was just rejected by the Appealate courts in his home state. According to his attorney, he's legally free for us to start the finalization process by mid-July. The sooner the better as far as I'm concerned. I want the state OUT of our lives now!
mandybr
06-23-2008, 05:22 PM
We are just starting the foster adopt process.
It is so nice to see so many others in the same situation!
heythereheather
07-18-2008, 10:19 PM
We're now fost/adopt parents, as our little girl has had TPR, and we're just waiting the 60 days before we can be referred for finalization. :)
We're also "straight" foster parents, and started with this placement thinking it would be short-term as she was going to go to family. It's been a whirlwind. A beautiful experience, nonetheless. We'll be opening our home up for another placement in a few weeks, we think. We're thinking a 2-3 year old this time, but we haven't completely decided.
(Hi, Katie!)
lpsw
07-18-2008, 10:29 PM
Any chance this forum could be open to straight fostering in addition to adoption? I don't fit anywhere :blush:
I do straight foster care, and my placements so far have all been relatively short term. I get asked allll the time if i'm going to adopt. My answer is always the same... I have no "plans" to adopt, but if I had one child for a very long time and they were freed for adoption, I'd really have to pray about it. I'm not married and have no children "of my own" but that is still something that I want very much. I would prefer to have my biological children before looking into adoption.
Fostering for me has been such a great experience. It is heartbreaking at times (there is one little girl I still miss so much I often cry if I start talking about her), but this gives me the chance to be a mom where otherwise it would just be me. I also love newborns, and so far I've had three newborns in the past 9 months!
heythereheather
07-18-2008, 11:20 PM
I definitely agree the forum name should include foster parenting. We actually are surprised to be adopting this early on in our journey, sin e we start out as an emergency placement.
crystalannski
07-20-2008, 07:45 PM
I personally don’t care too much for the current name of this forum. "The Adoption Option", it's got that cute catchy thing but it just seems.... kind of.... tactless, to me. It's kind of stating that the only time adoption is ever considered by anyone is when it is the last/only option left. Which is very often not the case. Some people adopt just to adopt, not because it is the only option but just simply because. To me it also seems kind of insensitive to those who are the ones being adopted :headscratch:. I'm not sure but I don’t really think they would like being called an "option". But that's just my opinion, what do I know?
ColdBabe
07-21-2008, 02:39 PM
We are currently fostering to adopt. We have to wait 6 months before we can file for adoption.
Testify - I'm curious how you're able to do things so quickly. Our FD was TPR'ed in April but we still have to foster for 6 months first.
ColdBabe
07-21-2008, 02:41 PM
I personally don’t care too much for the current name of this forum. "The Adoption Option", it's got that cute catchy thing but it just seems.... kind of.... tactless, to me. It's kind of stating that the only time adoption is ever considered by anyone is when it is the last/only option left. Which is very often not the case. Some people adopt just to adopt, not because it is the only option but just simply because. To me it also seems kind of insensitive to those who are the ones being adopted :headscratch:. I'm not sure but I don’t really think they would like being called an "option". But that's just my opinion, what do I know?
I think they're referring to adoption as a way of growing a family. We have 2 biological sons and had no fertility issues, but we're opting to grow our family even larger through fostering to adopt.
So I guess I'm saying I don't find it offensive because it fits us to a T.
JayCee33
07-21-2008, 04:15 PM
[QUOTE=ColdBabe;4227135]We are currently fostering to adopt. We have to wait 6 months before we can file for adoption.
Testify - I'm curious how you're able to do things so quickly. Our FD was TPR'ed in April but we still have to foster for 6 months first.[/QUOT
I am not sure what TPR stands for, I assume it means termination of parental rights. Anyway I think parents may have a certain amount of time to appeal the ruling. Our older FD was TPR'ed last September, and she still is not adopted. Birth mom appealed and that slowed things down some, but we haven't heard anything since doing our homestudy over a month ago. Here is OK they call it "Swift Adoption":headscratch: Now we have the baby sister of the one we are adopting and are starting all over again... jury trial in Dec. to determine parental rights:banghead: It can be very frustrating, but I wouldn't change any of it.
curlie
07-21-2008, 07:03 PM
I think they're referring to adoption as a way of growing a family. We have 2 biological sons and had no fertility issues, but we're opting to grow our family even larger through fostering to adopt.
So I guess I'm saying I don't find it offensive because it fits us to a T.
Same here. :thumbsup:
ColdBabe
07-22-2008, 09:04 PM
I am not sure what TPR stands for, I assume it means termination of parental rights. Anyway I think parents may have a certain amount of time to appeal the ruling. Our older FD was TPR'ed last September, and she still is not adopted. Birth mom appealed and that slowed things down some, but we haven't heard anything since doing our homestudy over a month ago. Here is OK they call it "Swift Adoption":headscratch: Now we have the baby sister of the one we are adopting and are starting all over again... jury trial in Dec. to determine parental rights:banghead: It can be very frustrating, but I wouldn't change any of it.
In our case, birthmom relinquished voluntarily and birthdad has never been in the picture so his went uncontested. But, you're right, the 6 months might be to protect the state should birthdad suddenly resurface.
Good luck with the siblings! Is it just the two of them from those birthparents?
JayCee33
07-23-2008, 09:37 AM
Good luck with the siblings! Is it just the two of them from those birthparents?
Birth mom actually has three other daughters with two different dads. We keep in contact with them. Then birth dad I think has two other children, but we don't know anything about them.
