When first starting your adoption journey you might feel a bit overwhelmed at all the options there are to adopt a child, or you might not be familiar with all the options that exist.  In this article we are going to dive deeper into how to adopt an older child from foster care and how to adopt a baby from foster care.

Before you dive deep into the options I really encourage you to ensure you have completed the vision exercise so that you can quickly sift through these options to find the one that matches the vision you/your partner have for the journey ahead.  If you have not done this refer to the link below to grab your free guide or if you are feeling stuck here schedule a free call so I can help you remove this roadblock.  

Just a refresher on how we look at the adoption options.  The Options to Adopt break into three main categories, we will discuss each one in detail in various articles on this site but here is a quick overview:

1. Adopt a baby that you carry

2. Adopt an infant

3. Adopt an Older Child
   

Adopting through Foster Care, Infants and/or Older Children

First let’s talk about what is foster care, this form of adoption means that the rights of the biological parents of the child have been terminated by the court and thus making the child eligible for adoption.  Foster children may be adopted by foster or adoptive parents, unless your state requires you to be a foster parent in order to adopt. 

There are 3 forms for Foster Care:

1. Foster Parenting: these parents do not have the objective of adopting a child

2. Foster to Adopt: these parents wish to adopt a child that they have been caring for

3. Foster Care Adoption: these parents have not fostered this child but wish to adopt this child

Adopting an Infant Through Foster Care can be challenging to achieve depending on the individual situation with the biological family's legal rights to the child.  For example, in the state of Arkansas you are warned that even if the child is placed in your home at the time of birth that it could take up to 5 years for the child to be legally adoptable. At that time you would be allowed to apply to adopt the child.  The costs to adopt a child from the foster care system tends to be free or around $5K depending on your attorney’s costs.  

Adopting an Older Child from Foster Care: this path can be the fastest and most affordable adoption option that exists.  There are children that you can apply to adopt today that are waiting for loving homes. The costs for adopting an older child from foster care can be $0 depending on the state you live in and the children available for adoption.  The wait time to adopt an older child from foster care will be much shorter than adopting a baby from foster care as typically the parental rights have been terminated which will move the process along faster. To accomplish adopting an older child from foster care you will need to pass the background checks, work with the foster care agency to find a good match for both you and the child and potentially even do a few trial visits before determining if this is going to be a good forever match for you and the child.

The process to adopt a Child from Foster Care

• Agency interview: during this step you would have a conference call or in person meeting with the agency to get a better understanding of the overall process and requirements

• Paperwork phase: each state will have a mountain of paperwork for you to complete which typically includes previous years taxes, medical statements from doctors, reference letters from friends and family, questionnaires on what type of adoption opportunities you are open to, pre-adoption contact preferences and post finalization contact preferences.  The list varies dramatically depending on the agency but they should be able to give you a step by step checklist of what you are to complete.

• Home study phase: during this phase you will be paired with a social worker in your area that will physically come to your home to inspect and ensure that it is safe enough for a child.  While it may sound absurd you will need to ensure that your home is child proof at this stage. Typically, you do not need to have a nursery/bedroom setup but need to have plans of where you will place a nursery.  Again, the agency will have a detailed checklist that you must adhere to, so it is important that you complete that list perfectly in order to be approved. Typically, this home study visit will include an interview where they will ask you questions about how you will parent the child.  The questions typically include what life will be like with you on a daily basis, your family history growing up, etc. These background questions will feel unnecessary but it is important so that they can create an overview of what life will be like in your home.  

• Pre-Adoption Counseling: often times this is considered part of the home study phase and you will not be approved by the home study professional until these classes are met. Each state will require a certain number of classes or hours be completed in order to become an approved family.

• Matching phase: Once you pass the home study the state will begin the matching phase.  Typically, the agency will call you and go over each adoption opportunity with you.  You will get a review of the medical situation, the child’s history and any specific requirements that need to be met for each adoption opportunity.  Once you agree to these requirements you will typically start some sort of visitation or get to meet the child.

• Ensuring you are a good fit: ensuring that your family is the right fit for the child is of utmost importance for the child, each state will have its own process here but they all typically involve a few informal “play dates” to overnight visits to longer visits to ultimate placement.

• Finalization phase: typically, during this phase there are 1-2 more visits from your social worker to ensure everyone is adjusting to their new environment and routine.  These visits will also conclude the final home inspections. Often times the social worker will require to see where the child is sleeping and that they have a bed of their own.  It is important to ask the social worker what their expectations are as you often times won’t have the nursery completed at this stage. Most of the time as long as they have a bassinet and a room that they will be living in full time that will allow you to pass this stage, though it is important to verify their expectations so you don’t have any hiccups in the final report. Once the final reports are submitted from the social worker you can proceed to the legal finalization.

• Court Day: this is the day that everything becomes legal!  Depending on the situation this could be done in person or over the phone.  Most of the time if you are finalizing in the birth state this will be done via a conference call with the judge attorneys.  Don’t be surprised if this takes around 30 minutes max, which seems so strange given how long the rest of the process has taken and the importance of this step.  If you get the opportunity to do this in person it is always fun to have a photographs taken to remember this moment with your child as they grow.  

To recap there are 7 Ways to Adopt A Child to choose from and in this article we focused on Foster Care Adoption: 

• Embryo Adoption

• Adopting an Infant Internationally

• Adopting an Infant Through Foster Care

• Adopting an Infant with a Private Agency

• Adopting an Infant with a Private Attorney

• Adopting an Older Child Internationally 

• Adopting an Older Child from Foster Care

Now that you are more familiar with how from foster care the next step is to review the other 6 options and pick a path that matches your vision for your life.  And if you haven’t done my vision casting exercise make sure to head back to sign up to receive the Steps to Adoption free download to work through the vision casting exercise. 

I know that picking a path from these options can be confusing and overwhelming but it doesn’t have to be.  Let’s work together through your adoption process. You need someone that will be in your corner each step of the way.  If you are interested in learning more, you can schedule a free call at the link below. We can put together your specific step by step journey through your adoption process, so you can reach your goal of motherhood. 

Remember you can do this and I have your back, because after all, anything is achievable with a plan and support.

Hi, I Am Amanda

I help women build their families through adoption by giving them the step by step guide to adopt a child and support them on their journey