How soon should we shop?

butterflyroy78

We are going the Foster-to-adopt route and we are currently in the classes. How soo should we start getting a nursery together? What should we have at this point? The instructor told us to start buying books for baby about adoption, should we buya crib or anyother essentials, or wait until we have a placement and rush out to buy everything?

 

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Dr.Loretta

It's totally up to you.

Most foster parents I know had something set up before placement. They had basics for the age group they were looking at, in gender neutral colors.

Foster1Mom

Honestly, I would start now. Even though we had a ton of stuff and all set up we are still going out to the store all the time for things that we need. Good Luck.

elissaann26

What you actually need varies by state.  In NC, you need to at least have a bed suitable for every age and every child you would be willing to foster.  Therefore, we had a crib and a twin bed.  You might also want to talk to your social worker about rules regarding beds.  Our trundle bed (the one underneath the twin bed) doesn't count since it isn't a "permanent" bed.  Also, I have heard of restricitions on how old a child can be to sleep on the top bunk.

What you actually want to buy depends on your preference.  The thought of running out to the store immediately after placement seemed horrible to me.  And now I'm so thankful for all of the items we had.  We had 2 sets (or more) of clothes and PJ's for every size in the age range we were accepting.  We had toys, food, formula, bibs, dishes, silverware (baby spoons and toddler silverware), books, linens, bath toys, shampoo's (multiple type for different races), towels, diapers (1 pack of each size), wipes, and I could go on and on.  We were fortunate enough to have 2 showers while we were getting licensed, so this helped get us stocked. 

As PP said, we still had to go to the store to get a TON of items.  But it was so nice for those first few days to focus on getting to know one another instead of running out to the store for diapers, food, clothes, etc. 

JellyTwoPointO

I haven't even started the classes yet and I've started buying some things -- some I need, some I "want," and that is not only helping me get a jump on necessities for the HS but helping me psychologically/emotionally feel like I'm making progress in the whole F2A process. 

For example, I bought new carbon monoxide detectors, fire extinguisher, a baby safety kit of things like outlet covers, and I obtained a pack n play in case we get an infant and I'm looking for a used but nice toddler bed (needs).  But I've also bought childrens books, wooden blocks, some stuffed animals, etc. (want) for the age groups I'm open to and know I can use for either gender.