My Mom is adopting and we need some help?

Question

my mom wants to adopt a kid, but we don't know how much it costs. And whats the difference from adopting a kid and adopting a foster kid?

Answer 1

I recommend 'The Complete Adoption Book'. It covers all this, and a few more things. Also, look in your phone book or Google adoption agencies. Then call or e-mail them, and they can send you out packets on their process. The Department of Health and Human Services also offers a class on adopting, and what to expect.

Answer 2

If you adopt a foster child you can actually get paid a monthly stipend from the state including day care expenses.  You will have to pay for your lawyer, but minimal after that.  I used to work in foster care.  You have a huge heart to do that!  I don't know enough to answer much more for sure.

Answer 3

Okay, we are a foster to adoptive family...Foster children go into foster homes because their parents have screwed up. They can either be placed until their parent(s) get better or they can be adopted. If the foster family is not interested in adoption, the child(ren) is placed into another foster home until he or she is adopted. In order to adopt or foster, you must complete 30 hours of training. Then, a social worker will come to your house and interveiw you and your mom. He/she will tour the house. Then there is paperwork...once that is sent in, then they will send a letter to schedule a home study to make sure that the houde has room for a child(ren). Then, after all of this is complete, then you will be on your way to having a brother or sister! Hope I helped...also have your mom call the department of social services. They will give you guys information too.

Answer 4

Adopting through foster care is free, and in many cases, the child's medical needs will be paid for by the state until s/he turns 18.  In some cases, your mom will also recieve a subsidy to help cover costs.  The difference between adopting through foster care and adopting through any other program is that you can avoid supporting a corrupt industry that relies on coercion, baby farming, and other shady practices in order to give people healthy newborns.  Foster children are likely to have more emotional and/or mental issues than other adoptees, but there is no guarantee.  Being adopted is really hard on kids, so adoptees tend to have some fairly serious mental/emotional issues anyway, regardless if they are adopted as infants or older kids, and regardless if they've been abused or have been exposed to drugs and alcohol before birth.  Foster kids tend to have MORE issues...but any adoptee will most likely have some hefty stuff to deal with.

Tell your mom to do lots of research on adoption from the adoptee's perspective (read Twenty things adopted kids wish their adoptive parents knew, and Helping children cope with separation and loss).  It's a struggle no matter how you slice it, especially for your future sibling.  Best of luck to you and your mom!

Answer 5

First thing...in either situation, you are adopting a child.

Adopting a child through domestic or international adoption could range from $5,000 to $50,000 or more, depending upon the situation of the child (travel, age, etc).

Adoption through foster care is generally no to very low cost.  

A foster child will usually have rememberances of their biological family and sometimes this makes the transition more difficult, but in my situation, my babies were ready to be adopted and the transition was very smooth (they were 9 and 10 when we adopted them).

But, just because you adopt an infant to 2 year old doesn't mean that in the future things will come up that are the same that would have come up with a foster child who was older...so the best advice I can give is to read and learn as MUCH as you can before making the decision.

Answer 6

Adopting a foster kid might be only for a limited time until a child is ready to go back to his parents or a caretaker. Adopting a kid means you really want him to permanently be a member of the family and accept everything about him. If you adopt a kid don't put your parents name as his parents in the birth certificate and make it a point to tell him when he is matured enough that he is an adopted child. It's better to be like that than to fool him that he is your child when he is not.