Despite being naturally blessed with your own kids you might still want to mother or father more kids and adoption gives you that opportunity. Also, if you cannot have children for one reason or another, then you want to seriously consider adoption as a viable option. This is why adoption in the US is a very popular option for many people.
Now a happy family because of Adoption
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However, the whole process of adoption is riddled with myths and misconceptions. That is why it is a good idea to get accurate information about adoption before you pass it off as a waste.
- You need to conduct your own research about adoption so you can decide if it would be the best option for you. Luckily, there are many different places you can get the information you are looking for including websites, books and magazines.
- Once you have read up on adoption, you will figure out that there are two main ways in which you can conduct adoption in the US. You can do so independently or you can use the services of an adoption agency.
- There are two types of agencies to help you adopt a child: private and public agencies. The private agencies are mostly concerned with finding homes for infants while the public agencies cater for waiting children and those in foster homes. Depending on the child you want to adopt, you can choose any of the two agencies to assist you.
- The biggest concern for many parents who want to adopt is the financial aspect of the whole process. There are many blown-out-of-proportion numbers on how much it costs to get the adoption process done.
- To begin with, you are not “buying” the child. Any money that you might part with is to assist in legal consultation and social work. This number can range anywhere between $4,000-$20,000.
- Once you have settled on your agency of choice, you will be required to complete a home study. This is basically a couple of meetings between you and the social worker assigned to you to ensure that you are indeed capable of taking good care of the child you are to adopt.
- You will need to provide certain documents to assist with the process e.g. birth certificates and child abuse clearances. This is again to confirm that you are indeed fit to be adopting a child.
When that is complete and your home study has been approved, the search for a child begins. There are a couple of websites that feature some of the kids that are up for adoption. That is a great place to start looking. In addition, when your social worker finds information of children who would be a great match for you, they should be able to contact you with that information.
Once you have found a child you feel would be a match. Your social worker and the child’s social worker can exchange information. If all parties agree then you can visit the child, and with time, you can bring the new addition to your family home.
So those are the various facts you need to know about adoption in the US. If you are looking for a social worker to help you look for a child to adopt or someone who can help you process your adoption, find different adoption services or agencies at http://www.nationalsocialservices.org.
If you have some facts to add about US adoption, any facts you encountered from your experience in your journey of adopting a child, please feel free to share it on the comments section below.
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