Dealing with the Department of Family and Children Services certainly
is not any fun. You have to jump
through a lot of hoops and there is always red tape but in the end you are
helping a child and bringing laughter and love into your home!
The first step in our process of adopting or becoming a foster parent was to go to an informational
session. There you’re given basic
information. If you decide to move
forward there is a class you need to take to prepare you to parent children
who come out of broken homes and bad and sometimes abusive situations. It’s very
informative. After that comes the part
that I believe scares most people… the home study.
A home study just confirms that you are able to care for a
child.
Financial: You don’t have to be a wealthy or even well
off. You just have to have a steady
income and employment history, be able to provide for yourself and have a bit of money to spare each
month.
Physical House: You
can expect a home safety evaluations checking for bed space, appropriate living
quarters, and that the home is clean, childproof, and safe. We also had to have the health department OK
our home. They make sure the water temperature
isn’t too high, that you have fire extinguishers, and smoke detectors.
Personal: Before you get too far into the process most
likely you will have to complete a criminal background check as well as a drug
test. Then you will have to schedule a
medical exam and get a physician’s letter that states you can physically care for the
children. Most likely you will be
given a set of forms for your doctor to fill out.
There are interview’s that include questions
about your childhood, parents, parenting views, other children you might have,
outside support systems, and your general background. If you have children in the home it is
important to note that they may be interviewed as well. Your other children are asked how they feel
about the idea of a new member or members of the family.
**** Note all adults living in the home must
be obtain a background check and drug test.
After these steps were finished we started welcoming
children into our home right away. We
were looking for children that could be adopted but children still rotated in and out. More about this in another blog.
These are the steps it took for us to become foster /
adoptive parents. It might be a little
different in your state. These are some of the basics and will give you a
general idea of what you can expect.
This process might seem very long but it’s so worth it in
the end. These are my boys! The little guy came into our home right out
of the hospital and my older son was 18 months old when he was placed with
us. We have adopted both boys and they are now ages 3 and 5J
****Photo by Dan Metts Photography www.danmetts.com
Please ask any questions you might have in the
comments. I’d love to answer them!
