Looking for forever

A few weeks ago, we drove out to meet up with Lindsey’s little brother for a short visit. He was getting ready for a baseball game and Lindsey tossed the ball with him for a while and watched him practice batting, but we had to leave before the game started. He didn’t realize Lindsey wouldn’t be able to stay for his game, and he was really disappointed. It does Lindsey good to see for herself that he is doing well, but it’s also hard for them not to see each other as much as they’d like.

(Isn’t he CUTE?)

Then we drove another 1/2 hour to a great park with an old covered bridge, so that we could photograph several kids who have recently been released for adoption. I was hoping to link to their My Turn Now profiles, so I was waiting to post this, but that was weeks ago and the profiles are still not updated so I’m just going to go ahead and post this!! If you’d like additional info on any of these kids, please contact me and I will connect you with their caseworker!

One of the kids is Lindsey’s longtime friend Deanna; they have grown up together and consider each other family. I love Deanna’s new haircut, and Lindsey’s new ‘do was inspired by Deanna’s.

Beautiful 16-year-old Deanna:

Adorable 10-year-old boy named John:

Brothers Bobby (age 14) and John (age 12):

Worldwide, there are estimated to be more than 150 million orphans. Staggering, isn’t it? Included in that number above are the approximately 123,000 children currently available for adoption in the U.S. foster care system. I’ve added a link on my sidebar to a site called Adopt US Kids, which provides photolistings for many of those children in all fifty states. These are kids who have had parental rights terminated and are currently in foster care, either in an individual home or in a group home. I mistakenly thought that most kids in group homes were there because their behavior had been too difficult for a foster family to deal with, but this weekend I learned that many of them — especially pre-teen and teen boys — are in group homes because there are simply not enough foster homes. This means we need more foster homes, and more adoptive homes, and there is no time to waste.

I’ve heard many people say how hard it is to qualify to adopt, how expensive it is, and how long it takes. And often, that’s true. But not always! To adopt through foster care, the requirements are much less stringent than international adoptions or domestic infant adoptions: it doesn’t matter if you are single, if you are older, or if you are wealthy. The fees are very low, or in many cases free — as with Lindsey and all of these kids above; they are considered “special needs” simply based on their age which theoretically makes them less adoptable. Sometimes the process can be slow, but because there are so many kids in need of forever homes, it often goes very quickly once you are approved.

As always, I would be MORE than happy to answer any questions about the adoption process or anything else related to adoption, so feel free to email me, or just leave a blog comment. 🙂

Jamie

Wife, mama, homeschooler, dog-wrangler. Introvert who finds joy in good books, sunshine, and authentic conversation. Fitness enthusiast and strength coach. Often seen with a steaming mug of tea in hand.