Foster to adopt

PrincessShay80

We are just starting the process- how does it work? My biggest concern is that we will get a call and will have to pick up a child that day and we will have nothing ready to care for it. I know its stupid- but I worry that I will not have a car seat and other stuff that are necessary.

Thanks!

jacksjerseygirl

There are a lot of knowledgable ladies here who are fostering and FA - so stick around as the weekends get slow.

I know that it is a process - so it isn't like you sign up today and tomorrow you get a call. KWIM? You have a home study, you have classes to take to prepare you for all aspects of fostering which might not always lead to adoption and so forth. I think it is expected that you would have what ever items that are necessary for the age groups that you will be open to fostering and potentially adopting. Also, I know that sometimes SWers/state/other organizations will donate items that might be needed such as a car seat.

Seek out Fredalina - she has a lot of knowledge and experience.

Good luck!

ctbride08

congrats on starting the FA process!

the situation you mention won't happen in 99.9% of cases because you have ample time during the process to get ready.  In our case, we needed to be 100% ready for placement at the time of our homestudy.  I'm sure there will be some things we'll scramble for last minute (this is inevitable), but we already have a crib, bed, car seat, diapers, formula, ect - all the necessities for the age range we are interested in.

But, it generally is the case that once you get the call, you get the child right away (usually same or next day), so be sure to use the time during your training and home study wisely.

best of luck

ETA: we had about 8 weeks between learning our application was accepted to the home study so we had that amount of time to get everything.  it was overwhelming at first, but in hindsight totally doable.

Timeg

I'm not fostering (yet - DH and I are considering it in the future), but my parents have/do and they have ran into that situation. In our state, you can get free car seats through the police department and the public health clinic.

For clothing, every kid that is placed in a home receives a clothing voucher for a local store.  I would check policies and ask about these kinds of things.

Nonetheless, what others said about buying the bigger things up front is very true. You should just start stockpiling things. My parents had a crib on hand, bunk beds (they ended up going from small children to teens), toys, books, strollers, etc.

BTW - Thank you all for doing what you are doing! I just have to say that I admire what you are willing to do! It means a lot to these kids, even if they aren't all old enough to know it

lilmufish

First off, welcome to the FA process!   I know (as you can already see by previous posters) that there are several very knowledgeable women on this board. I am learning so much from them!   We are about 3/4 of the way through the process AH!  It's crazy to think we're almost there! 

As you might know, each state, each COUNTY, each agency does their FA process a little differently. In our county, our Children's Division and Private agencies do it so completly different that it can get confusing at times   We had a bad experience (consistantly canceling our appointments not working with us to reschedule them) with our County children's division so we switched over to a private agency, and have had nothing but good experiences there.

To be a foster parent you'll need to be licensed. The order of this may vary...but the typical overall check list is that - you'll need your house approved for safety checks,  you'll need background checks (Finger prints go through the FBI, etc), employment checks, health physicals, and you'll need to be CPR trained.  Either before, after, or while you're doing all of this you'll also be attending a training called PRIDE/STARS/MAPP (different in each state), where you'll learn about the different things in regards to foster parenting (discipline, loss, permamency plans, etc).  I am NOT a fan of OUR classes, because they don't do a good job with them. I know some ladies have had a good classes, others have recieved sub-par classes...unfortunatly it's still a requirement. Some folks on this board took all their PRIDE classes in two days, others (like me) are in a 9 week class!  It varies from county to county. Check with your SW to find out what is available in your area. Again, either before, after or while you're doing your training and all the other things on your check list your home study is being created. In your home study it discusses everything mentioned above, and gives an overall description of who you are as a family. - It's about 15 pages!

For us, we will need to go to another class called SPAULDING that will allow us to become foster to ADOPTIVE parenting, which means we would be allowed to potentially adopt a child. Again, another required class for my state.

Your big question: My biggest concern is that we will get a call and will have to pick up a child that day and we will have nothing ready to care for it. I know its stupid- but I worry that I will not have a car seat and other stuff that are necessary.

Ha! That was one of my biggest concerns...

During our licening process, we have been preparing for children in our home.  Slowly preparing the bedrooms and such. Luckily for us, DH and I are super duper big planners!  We plan on fostering / potentially adopting ages infant to 6 yrs old.  So we have "lists" of baby items / kid items that we would possibly need, and each week we go out and buy a few items off that list. Additionally, we are attending baby mania sales like mother of twin sales, or just between friend sales (you can google both), that are held in our area, that we can buy kid items for 1/3 the price it is in stores. Lastly, we are regulars at garage sales, good will, once upon a child, salvation army, etc in order to find discounted stuff as well.  

Giving ourselves plenty of time, it has given us the freedom to shop sales, use coupons, etc. We already have alot, we're about 1/2 way through our "want" list   We're 3/4 of our way through our "need" list.  We just have a few items left.   I know a previous poster mentioned something about getting free car seats, etc.  That is not available to us...but knowing way in advance, we can put away some $$ in a bank account so when we do recieve a placement, we can run out and get that car seat. We already know which one we want!

Some ladies have a year between starting the process and recieving children, some have 2-3 months. I would find out the time frame you're looking at, and just do a few things each week so it's not as overwhelming!

One thing to also consider...

* You will recieve a monthly stipend if you have a child placed in your home...but it won't be much. I know Fred's is 2x as much as my state, and I know hers isnt that much.
* You will recieve a yearly clothing allowance...but it's about the cost of a winter jacket and a pair of jeans... so you'll have to get creative in finding / buying clothes. 
* State / Agencies will not pay for baby/child gear/toys/etc So keep that in mind!

Good luck! Welcome to the board!

 

 

MM Anonymous

IMO buying things is/was always at the bottom of my list...assuming you have the money saved to buy it all. 

I had zero warning with my current placement.  I got a call for a newborn and was told I had 15 minutes to make a decision and 30 minutes to go pick her up at the hospital.  We had nothing.  The hospital provided us with a carseat (it looked super cheap and we replaced it the next day).  They also provided us with formula and a few other necessities to cover the first couple of days.  I had a family member on call to run out and buy things in an emergency...so I called her and she left work and went and bought a bassinet and some clothing while we drove home from the hospital.  Honestly, there is a million things to buy but you can survive without most of them the first few days.  I am glad I didn't purchase things in advance because the second I sent out an email that I had a newborn placement, I had many offers of hand me downs which were excellent condition items that saved me a fortune!  Plus we can't buy things for all age groups...so it was easier to just wait and see (we said ages 0-5).

best of luck to you!

come*on*baby

we're current foster parents have been been for 2 1/2 years. Welcome to the craziness!

 

Once you've figured out your age range is when you should start a list of what you'd need/want. We started out only doing 0-18 months, with emphasis on wanting a newborn. We had a PNP, crib, stroller, infant seat and gender neutral clothing in a range of sizes that we got at a consignment store. 

 

**there would be a lot more to the answer, but i have a screaming 18 month old that needs rocking!