Adoption through DHS (long)

i totally agree with you!! i'm a single mom of 2 adopted children through oakland family services. i wouldn't trade them in for the world!!! god has been very good to me and i just want to share my life with children who need me!! i was in foster care for 13 years and never adopted, i bounced around all that time with no place to call home. if i can protect any child from going through that i will. all children need a chance, even the older ones!! god bless

I am new to this group and I just want to say I am so happy for all of you who have been able to experiance the joy of adopting. My name is Sophia, I am a foster parent living in NYC {Bronx}, I have 3 sibilings (1 girl and 2 boys} living in my home now 2 of which came into my home when they were 13mths and 3mths old the other came into my home newborn right from the hospital. They are now 3 1/2 going on 4, 2 1/2 going on 3, and just made 2 in july. They came right into my home 5 weeks after I become certified foster parent and I can say it has been a long journey and well worth it. Although I have 3 children of my own 13,12,11 they have been a wonderful addition to my life and family. At this time the agency and attorneys are request a Termination of the Parents right so they will be free for adotion real soon and when it is all complete that will be a day of celebration for my family. They have also been my modivation and inspiration to move forward with my surgery in order to live a better, happier and healtier life. so I can enjoy them as much as possible I loook forward to chatting with everyone and any advice that anyone can give in order to speed this adoption process up would be great. Thanking you all in advance for listening, feel free to drop in and say hello anytime Sophia

Hi Julia! I just wanted to let you know that I also adopted a child from DHS. I hope other people consider them also.

Hi I wanted to say right ON! I am a mom to 7 and we adopted 2 of our 4 adopted children from the foster system while fostering 18 others. (not all at the same time) and adopted a little girl with special needs (cp, shunt, MR) from a private agency and then a little boy AA from that same agency. I LOVED being a foster mom and although we are currently too full (6 under the age of 13) I may go back to it someday. If you are interested in adoption Foster to adopt is a great way to get there! God Bless.

I definately agree. There are so many children in the U.S. that need parents. Me and My husband also adopted our first and only child through the welfare system. She is considered special needs because of her ethnicity and she was exposed to drugs while her birth mother was pregnant but she is healthy and normal. She was 2 months old premie when we got her and looked like an alert newborn. She is beautiful and a blessing from God. It only took us about 9 months from start of the process until we got her and then about 14 months later the adoption became final. A word of advise...do not hesitate to state exactly what you want, for example: race, ethnicity, age, special needs...drug exposed or fetal alcohol..Do your research..you know what you want and don't want. Be specific. And then just pray....God gives us the desires of our hearts. We are currently waiting on our 2nd child. This time around is a little longer...but I know it will be worth the wait. Oh and our adoption was basically free. The money we spent was reimbursed to us, and we received Aid for Adoptive families and medical for our daughter until she is 18. And....don't forget the tax benefit as well, over 10,000 credit for special needs whether you had the expenses or not. How can you go wrong. It is truely a blessing all the way around.. My daughter...not born under my heart but IN it!!!

I adopted 3 siblings in 1997. They were 3, 4 and 5. They are african american. There were many hard times, but well worth it. I adopted them through New Jersey, and because they were hard to place children I get a subsidy until they are 18 or out of high school. Wendy Fowler