Has anyone adopted from another country or know anyone who has. My husband I would like to adopt from possibly Kyrgyzstan, Ethiopia or the Philippines but we dont really know where to begin. We would like to do some fundraising and apply for an adoption grant before and then start the process a year from now. Does anyone have any advice?
Also, I know some people are against adopting from other countries but this is a decision my husband and I have already made so I would appreciate that all comments regarding our decision only be advice about international adoption and not anything against it.
My husband and I adopted our youngest son through Holt International. We also have a SIL that was adopted through Holt and know several other families who went through Holt as well. Holt is a Christian organization that has been around for decades. Our son was 15 mths old when he home and is about to celebrate his 25th birthday. For us and other families we have met, Holt was a wonderful experience!
Wow - I have been searching the internet all night trying to find the same answer. My husband and I are seriously thinking about international adoption as well. We're looking at Russia/Hungary/Ukraine for a baby or toddler girl.
There are so many sites on the internet - not sure which are legit. I am very interested in what answers you get.
Best wishes for you and your husband!! Good luck! :)
You could try going to an adoption place and asking them but you may get mean comments about abandoning American children. Have you checked to see if there are international adoption places set up for people like y'all?
Kyrgyzstan isn't open right now. We began with that country 4yrs ago and they closed right as we submitted our paperwork. They have signed an adoption bill but right now its up in the air as to when anything will happen.
Ethiopia is slowing adoptions by 90% or some crazy number like that. And Phillipines only adopts older children. I don't now what age you are thinking.
We adopted our daugther from Ukraine last year. She has cerebral palsy and we found her on a waiting child list through Reece's Rainbow. She was 3 when we committed to her and she came home last October at 3.5. She's been such a blessing! I would encourage you to look into special needs adoption. our blog is www.waitingforthegirl.blogspot.com if you want to see how amazing she is doing after only 6 months home. :)
You likely cannot apply for a grant until you have a homestudy and are involved in a program. Most grants will deny you unless you have these things. And fundraising is a double edged sword... you will get everything from people who all out support you no matter what to people who scoff at you for fundraising when you 'brought this upon yourself'. We didn't have time to fund raise, we found our daughter end of May and traveled in September to get her. BUT Ukraine can be done reasonably, we spent under $18k including travel, our facilitation team, in country expenses, etc. And I spent a month there.
My advice would be to start researching countries and their status. The JCICS website has countries listed individually and their status, cost, what to expect, etc. Then find a homestudy agency that is Hague approved and begin the process. One thing is for sure in international adoption, you can't count on anything. Countries close, fees go up, children become unavailable, your age range is not available, you can't choose gender in some countries, etc. Educate yourself now, join adoption groups, learn the ropes, research countries to find what you qualify for, some countries have super strict restrictions like age, income, house size, family size, etc.
Once you choose where you would like to adopt from and start your homestudy, you will put together a packet of information called a dossier. This is literally your life on paper, from your house information, marriage/life information, jobs, history, family ,etc. It can be quite tedious but if you take it one paper at a time it goes together ok. The dossier for Kyrgyzstan was overwhelming. THe dossier for Ukraine was pretty straightforward. Countries like Serbia require minimal paperwork, but they only adopt older special needs kids.
Lastly, please do consider special needs. Especially in Eastern European countries, kids with special needs go to mental institutions at age 4/5, where they spend their lives bedridden. Go to my blog and look at my daughter, and then consider that when she turned 5 next year she would be in an institution, cast away, left in a bed in a dark room for th rest of her life! China, Ukraine, Russia, and tons of other countries have special needs children waiting, you can look online for some waiting child lists (like www.reecesrainbow.org) and you can see their pictures, read their medicals. Some are as simple as missing fingers or toes, mild CP like our daughter, etc.
You are welcome to message me too if you'd like more information or just to chat. :)
