The F-Word (No, not that one!)

The last few weeks have been especially busy--Justin has begun to settle into his new job, I've been in the crux of a project at work with a tight and looming deadline, and Eisley has been working hard on sprouting teeth and singing faintly recognizable songs in a high-pitched gibberish. 
In the meantime, we've just been chipping away at completing our dossier, and we're nearly at the point where it will be submitted to Haiti, which means we will be that much closer to being matched to our child. 

But, you're probably wondering about the slightly salacious title of this post. Forgive me for the mild clickbait. It's honestly not a topic I'm fond of bringing up, and I promise it will not be something we focus on in every post (you may notice I've not mentioned it at all yet). I'm stalling to avoid the word, but, here it is: fundraising. 
I'm not one who likes to ask for things, let alone for money, so this makes me feel more than a little uncomfortable. So, thanks for hanging with me.

We know that this journey we chose can be consuming and challenging, both emotionally and financially.
We also know that it takes a village to raise any child. A village chock full of resources: wisdom, spirituality, humor, monetary... We are already blessed to be part of a pretty awesome village. 

With that being said, many people have asked us about costs of adoption--how much? why?  I'll attempt to answer those questions below, but to be transparent, I also wanted to take a moment to share a couple of avenues that we are opening up to try and raise funds to help us cover some of the immediate costs. 

The main tool we created is a YouCaring crowdfunding page (you'll see a new widget on the right side of the blog that links to this, too). All of the funds donated there go directly to our adoption; the site doesn't withhold any fees.  We also have a few other plans in mind, starting with a pretty cool t-shirt drive via Chrome Buffalo that will run from May 1-10.
We know that not everyone can offer funds, so please know that supportive thoughts, words, and prayers are invaluable to us.

So, what's up with the cost?

I'll admit I still feel frustrated when I look at our list of impending costs, which may sum to upwards of $30,000. My heart says "We just want to bring our child home, and yet we have to jump through so many logistical hoops and pay so much money...why must this be so difficult?" It's not hard to imagine that the financial impact deters many away from adoption who would be amazing parents and families. 

In my previous post on our choice to seek International Adoption, I touched on some of the thoughts Justin and I have around the costs of this process--how we've been planning, the support available through work, the IRS tax credit, etc. We know that we don't have to pay all of the costs up front, or all at once, which allows us to space the impact out a bit, over the course of the process.
I'll also add that since day one I have been praying over the impact of adoption to our finances. In the past two weeks, these prayers have been answered in ways we never could have imagined--great blessings that buoyed my spirits. Then, this week, we received a bill for about 1/3 of the potential overall cost, and I'll admit, my heart sank. We knew that these costs were coming eventually, but this was just a stark moment that shouted, Hey, back to reality, you two! This is some heavy adulting going on right here!

What are the fees?

• Fees to the agency:  In general, our agency doesn't really make much money for the services they provide. Similar to many social service jobs, those working at our agency appear to work very hard for something they are passionate about, but which does not earn them a high salary. Costs here go toward things such as our application, our homestudy, and all the work that goes into working with USCIS and IBESR (in Haiti).
• Fees associated with the homestudy/dossier preparation: This includes fingerprinting, a police clearance, a therapist evaluation, translation of all documents into Haitian Creole, and having all documents authenticated by WA state, the Dept of State, and the Haitian consulate in DC.
• Fees to the US and Haiti: This covers items such as our I-800A application to adopt from a Hague convention country, Haitian government charges, funding given directly to support our child's creche, and obtaining a US Visa and passport.
• Travel fees: We'll take two trips to Haiti. The first is a socialization trip where we will spend time with our daughter for about two weeks. Then, we fly back home without her, and wait for our case to wind its way through the courts and be finalized, which can take time (often months). Once this is complete, we travel again, spend about a week in Haiti, and finally bring her home. 
• Post-placement fees: Lastly, we'll finalize the adoption in the US, and also complete a series of post-placement visits with our social worker, which are required after most adoptions. 
• Other: This is that murky potential of unknowns.What if there is a mistake in one of the process steps, and we have to redo it? What will medical costs look like, when she comes home? Counseling? What else?

All in all, I have to trust that we will make it through this. I don't believe we would have felt the call to do this, if it were not possible, but know that this may mean a couple of extra dose of patience, prayer, and humility as we plan and seek financing support. I recognize that this was probably not the most fun or uplifting read, but I hope that it was informative and shed light on why your support is so greatly needed and appreciated. THANK YOU.