experience with international adoption?

HappyOtter

This is my first post  

My husband and I are interested in adopting from China or possibly another Asian country, but we are not quite ready yet.  We are in our late 20s and have been married for a little over a year, and we are hoping to begin the process as soon as we are eligible. 

 I would love any advice you ladies may have! 

jillianmb

Welcome!  There are a number of us doing international adoption on this board.  Ask any questions!

BostonLove11

Hi there!

China's "regular" program is not really a viable option any longer because wait times exceed 5 years. However China has a fast moving special needs program where you can find children with very minor to major medical needs. South Korea's program is undergoing a lot of changes right now and wait times have been getting a lot longer but I still think it will be a viable program for a few more years. Most of the Korea program are baby boys. I do believe with both China and Korea you need to be married more than 3 years. Right now I'm on the wait list for Korea while pursuing domestic adoption at the same time. Feel free to ask any questions!

HappyOtter

Thank you!  I am interested in knowing if there is anything that parents who are farther along in the process wish they had known before they started.  I know everyone has different experiences, but we are starting to feel ready to be parents, and it can be a little frustrating doing nothing (other than saving money, of course), if that makes sense.  I know that the whole process will take years, but I would love to get it started! 

We are hoping to adopt a waiting child.  I have been reading your blog this afternoon, and I have laughed and cried.  Your family is beautiful.  Thanks for sharing  

HappyOtter

I apologize if I am not great at replying to specific posts- I hope to get the hang of this soon!  We are hoping to adopt a waiting child, regardless of the country.  I can't really explain why, as there is no reason; it just feels right to us. 

Do you mind if I ask why you chose Korea?  If a domestic adoption occurs while you're on the waitlist, does that delay the international process?  

jillianmb

HappyOtter:

Thank you!  I am interested in knowing if there is anything that parents who are farther along in the process wish they had known before they started.  I know everyone has different experiences, but we are starting to feel ready to be parents, and it can be a little frustrating doing nothing (other than saving money, of course), if that makes sense.  I know that the whole process will take years, but I would love to get it started! 

We are hoping to adopt a waiting child.  I have been reading your blog this afternoon, and I have laughed and cried.  Your family is beautiful.  Thanks for sharing  

Aw thanks for checking my blog out!  Love that.  

Our process has had its ups and downs, but there is only one thing I wish we could have done differently and that is pick a different home study agency.  We are working with two agencies because our placing agency is out of state.  The placing agency is amazing but the agency we choose for our home study is less than stellar.  I wish I would have asked for a profile of our caseworker before we signed with them.  (Experience, personality, interests in adoption, etc.)  I just don't like our HS caseworker and while she gets the job done, this is a really personal experience to go through with someone you don't like.  So if you can, ask to meet the caseworker before you sign.  

BostonLove11

HappyOtter:

I apologize if I am not great at replying to specific posts- I hope to get the hang of this soon!  We are hoping to adopt a waiting child, regardless of the country.  I can't really explain why, as there is no reason; it just feels right to us. 

Do you mind if I ask why you chose Korea?  If a domestic adoption occurs while you're on the waitlist, does that delay the international process?  

The Korea program appealed to us for many reasons.  The babies live in wonderful foster homes, receiving the best medical care, until the day you are able to go get them.  However, it is one of the most expensive programs because of this.  Often times you get some information regarding the birth mother because they are in group homes from what I understand before they place the child for adoption.  At the time we started it was a very stable, predictable program, but unfortunately that has changed since we started the process 18 months ago.  Our agency will make us pull out of the Korea program if we have a successful domestic placement.  And if we accept a Korean referral we will have to stop pursuing domestic. 

If you are looking for a waiting child, I personally would choose the China WC program.  It is a very stable, fast moving program.  In fact, my agency advertises that the entire process typically takes under 12 months.  That is unheard of for most international programs.  You should definitely look into it.