A THOUGHT ABOUT MONEY

This adoption process/journey has been a real education and I want my blog to not only highlight our adventure but to educate those that care to read it about the issues, setbacks, and the overall process of adoption. There are a lot of misconceptions concerning adoption. Just like there are a lot of misconceptions about fertility, and I think that people deserve to know what it is really like. Some families wish to make the process a very private situation. Others have a higher calling and want to let others know about the plight of all orphans and not just their own cause.

One very real part of the process is the financial aspect. For some reason no one wants to talk about it--probably because it is not so pleasant to talk about exchanging money for a child. Truth is, I never had rose colored glasses about the situation. I have always known that the true bottom line of adoption for many agencies is the profit. There is really no way around it, the cost is quite high, even for special situations such as special needs children, minority babies, and sibling groups--there will be costs involved. THat is just the world that we live in today.

I have read many blogs from adoptive parents in which they share the many different ways in which they raised money in order to fund their adoptions. I think it just humanizes the process, and makes the story even more special. Because honestly, few of us have 20 to 30 thousand socked away to pay the up front costs of an adoption. Finances are the number one reason why people hesitate to adopt. That is why I wish to share and educate. There are so many programs and so many unique ways to raise funds, and that is not including the tax and employer grants and benefits.

Daniel and I have about 19 thousand in cash that we can access. But that is all of our liquid savings, and I don't know if we will want to use it all. We may ask for an increase on our line of credit at our bank, or refinance the house if Daniel wants to. THere are also a ton of fundraisers that we could do by going through agencies that specialize strictly in adoption related fundraising. These are all an option if we don't want to borrow money from a lender. There are even such things as adoption loans. We also have A visa and a master card with low interest and high credit limits that we can use to cover expenses such as travel and things like that. I am even gonna do a booth a the nashville flea market, and a few festivals to sell some of my jewelry.

I intend to share these things on the blog because they are just a part of our journey. I want others to know that average folks like Daniel and I can afford and achieve adoption. We don't have to be executives, or celebrities or doctors, or public figures. In fact the typical adoptive family is just like us--imperfectly perfect.