You want to adopt but the money just doesn’t seem to be there. Don’t let that stop the dream of your heart. Many of us have been there and the good news is that there is still hope to bring your precious child home. Praying for help is a great start.
Some adoption agencies will offer an interest free loan and sometimes subsidies and /or grants. There are many other organizations that offer grants if you qualify. Some of them charge a fee to apply so be ready for that. There is also the $10,000 tax credit to look forward to and may help you pay back any loan.
Another thing you can do to cut back some costs is to check with your agency about your home study visits. We worked with an adoption agency out of state and had to use a corresponding agency here to do the home study. That agency was quite a drive from our home but the social worker working with that agency only lived a few miles from us and so we ended up only paying her to drive a few miles to our home from hers instead of from her agency to our home.
You can look for online groups that fundraise specifically for adoption, they give you support and ideas on what is working for others. You can also have online garage sales or join a selling group, some use places like e-bay and Amazon to get rid of unwanted items and to make room for that new child.
Use your talents to earn money for the adoption costs. Sew for others (mending clothes, making new items, making dolls to sell) paint pictures to sell, whatever your talent is, use it. You can sell anywhere from people around you at work, farmers market, and craft sales to people on the internet in groups or on e-bay, and to friends and family that just want to support you.
Remembering every penny adds up, here are a few other ideas that may work for you:
Use your tax returns
Deliver phone books
Any odd jobs, you can even advertise in the paper to do this one
Use any work bonuses
Have an old fashioned garage sale, and ask others for items they are willing to donate
Save your pop can money
Save all your change
Take all your money you saved and set it in an account with interest till needed
Don’t eat out as often
Get a second job for awhile
Baby sit and if you don’t have kids yet it will help you get used to what it will be like when your child comes home
Skip vacations
See if your employer will let you skip your vacation days and just take the money instead.
Check with your employer and see if they give any grants or benefits to families who adopt, if not then see if they will be willing to start doing so, even if not for your family you could be helping other children to get a chance at a home later on.
Seasonal work for others
Cut back on what you can do without for awhile, ex: newspapers (read them online or at the library instead), magazine subscriptions, cable TV, etc.
Skip going to movies or renting them and do something free instead. Take a walk, play tennis, play a game or visit some friends.
Skip the snacks while you are out and about
Grow vegetables and sell them at market
A word of caution though, if you have children already in your home, you may not want to chince too much and have them feel slighted either. Moderation in everything.
You can also ask family, friends, your church and others for help if you are comfortable with that , they may want to help.
It can be exhausting to do all of this (we know as we have done many of these things to help us out), but when that child is placed in your arms you will know that it was all worth it.
I hope you feel encouraged and motivated by some of these ideas and will be holding your child in your arms very soon.
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