I'm back! And boy have I missed you guys!!! I thought I'd give you a little background in this video on what the inspiration was for starting Lauren Fosters
You'll do great! I promise we are all nervous when we start. My biggest advice is to find local community ASAP, even while getting licensed. Ask local agencies, churches and local FB groups where you may be able to find support groups. You will need a battle buddy that's in the same boat because even the most well meaning friends and family won't really get it.
Hey, I'm new and my husband and I have started the licensing process in California, I was wondering if you knew if its possible to adopt a waiting child from out of state without an agency. Thank you for all the good info on your videos :)
In the state of California, you should be able to go directly through the county to adopt children that are legally free (as in they are up for adoption and their cases are no longer pending), however.... As someone who watched a friend go through that process there, I will say it's a lengthy wait and you have to keep in mind that the foster parents there get first crack at adopting the kids in their homes as soon as parental rights are terminated. In other words, as soon as parental rights are terminated, they will ask the foster parents if they would like to adopt. If so, then the children will never become available to other families. If you are fairly open to different genders and ages, then you might have a shorter wait.
So all that to say they won't let you use a private agency to adopt only in California, from what I remember..unless things have changed in the last few years (which is not the same as other states), and you do have to go through the county. Definitely not an impossible option and something you should definitely look into if adoption is what you are seeking but just start preparing your heart for a potential lengthy wait
