Transitioning from Dog Mom

"Clear as mud" is certainly right! But, also helpful because I will go ahead and mail our application so that we can find out about any "special" requirements the homestudy has to fulfill. If we do complete the homestudy and application in order to hopefully attend the November orientation, will we have to fulfill different requirements come January 2007? To add confusion, I might never have found Abrazo unless the homestudy agency hadn't recommended the Abrazo Agency. I think due to my Cuban/German heritage, they thought a hispanic/anglo child would be a great fit for us and they mentioned Abrazo immediately. The "Doggie" Mom

We have our Abrazo application and I've been holding off mailing it back because our homestudy is in progress but not complete. I've been reading the forum and it looks like many of you submitted your application before completing your homestudy. Should we submit our application before completing the homestudy? Thanks to the information on this forum, I will mention to our caseworker that we are considering adoption in Texas (we are not in TX). Any other helpful tips for out of state folks going through the homestudy process? I just sent our fingerprint cards to the FBI today. Our caseworker told us to write on the outside of the envelope - ADOPTION - PLEASE EXPEDITE... I did. Did anyone else do this? Did it help get the prints processed more quickly? Thanks, The "Doggie" Mom

Wow! Thank ALL of you so much for your candor. Now I feel a little more comfortable about a realist figure. I also appreciated the mention of borrowing against a 401K account. I like the idea of paying myself back instead of paying the bank. As all of you know, the adoption process is exciting, exhausting, exhilarating and scary. I feel guilty letting finances influence our adoption experience. But, it is a fact that finances do play a part in adoption... it is one of the reason we waited so long to proceed. I am very happy to hear that Abrazo is judicious of our budgetary constraints. We have already allocated funds towards our homestudy and travel. I don't think I planned adequately for travel because I didn't think of the trip to meet the birthparents. All of this information is very helpful. On a "Baby shopping note" ... I find myself walking down the baby isle in the grocery store and looking at formula. I also stare at the diapers wondering which ones I will need to buy. I've limited myself to one specialty coffee a week and am putting the money I would have spent in my "diaper" jar. I keep looking at baby clothes and no longer am interested in buying any new clothes for me... can't wait to spoil our new baby! (of course, I want to spoil the baby without raising a spoiled child... how do we accomplish this? )

Like so many of you, we are looking into adoption loans. I've been told the adoption costs range from $15-19K, not including maternity bills. Does anyone know if the estimate includes the attorney fees for filing for the adoption decree? I'm worried about not borrowing enough money. If we borrow the amount we can afford and it isn't enough, making an additional payment will be financially tough. We are already allocating $600 a month for daycare... which doesn't include diapers but does include formula. My company does offer a $1500 benefit and I know about the tax credit. I'm more worried about borrowing enough money up front to adequately cover the costs. Any financial advice is welcome. PS. It's kind of funny that my dogs were also "adopted". They were rescues from a no-kill shelter and we had to complete an "adoption application" (only 2 pages)... they skipped the home inspection. It cost $50 for each dog but included initial vaccinations. We only had to submit one follow up report. It is definitely easier being a dog mom... but everytime I think of having a child, my heart just swells. Even with the high costs, I just can't wait. We just want to adequately plan our finances.

Baby number two! You are very ambitious... I'm just hoping for baby number 1.

Thank you for the speedy responses. I'm going to organize a bin for filing and storing this paperwork. We are inches away from our home study. Just waiting on a letter from my sister-in-law. I couldn't believe we had to have everything from physicals and TB tests to our septic system inspected. I expected the criminal history check. I actually work in biometric technology that helps law enforcement keep track of sex offenders. I know how important it is to have a criminal check but I never realized my septic tank would need inspection. To take my mind off the paperwork and nervousness, I've been thinking about nursery decorations!

We are first-timers and are working on our home study packet. How much of this packet can be re-used for the adoption application? The homestudy contains a transracial parenting plan, a cultural worksheet, autobiographies, medical/financial/background investigations... Should I copy all of this for the adoption application? We are "doggie" parents and very excited to become "human" parents! I've read many emotional stories on this forum and this is my first posting. Hi to all and thanks for all the stories and tips so far.