Full Financial Disclosure

I have gotten some well-meaning and good-intentioned questions about the financial ins and outs of international adoption. In the interest of full disclosure, I want to list out some of the costs and explain how this all works. I want people to understand what they are donating to and what I am contributing personally.


Costs and Fees:
1. On Reece's Rainbow, the entire cost of adoptions in this area of Latin America is listed as $21,000-$24,5000.

2. I did a lot of research before committing to a home study agency. The one that I found was by far the cheapest--$2,500. This has been paid out of my previous savings.

3. Immigration Fees - $795

4. Adoption Agency Fees - $16,350 - This includes Program Fee, Paper Work Fees, Foreign Service Fees, lots of legal work.

5. Country Fees - $4,800 - This includes Attorney Fees, Translation Fees, Document Fees.

6. Travel Fees are separate from this. This includes my round-trip ticket, Sara's one-way ticket, lodging and meals for both of us for 4-6 weeks. Estimates are around $7,000.


My Plan:
1. I have some savings that I am using for the upfront costs and will apply as much as I can towards the travel costs.

2. I am applying for every grant I can find. I can't complete these applications until my home study is complete and approved. This should happen around April 1.

3. I am planning a few fundraisers. I will promote these on my facebook, blog, and within the Reeces Rainbow community.

4. When I get a travel date, I will take out a loan for whatever funds I still need.


What you can do to help:
1. Pray! This is, by far, the most important contribution.

2. I am available for babysitting, tutoring, odd jobs, whatever I can do to earn a little extra money.

3. The coffee fundraiser will continue until August 1. These funds come directly to me to help cover the travel costs. You can purchase coffee here.

4. I am hosting a Give Away in the month of April. If you have any items you would like to donate, send me an email or leave a comment here. Check back April 1st for the first Give Away item.

5. Consider making a tax-deductible donation to Sara's Reeces Rainbow Fund. This money goes directly to pay the Immigration Fees, Adoption Agency Fees and Country Fees. You can do that here.

6. Please feel free to repost this blog, these links, Sara's RR page, anything that will get her story out there.


I have been truly amazed and blessed by all the support I've received from my friends and family, as well as strangers in the Reece's Rainbow community. I appreciate all the well wishes, contributions, advice, gifts, and love that Sara and I have received. I am brought to tears almost daily by this process and the response of the amazing people in my life.

And, just in case you are wondering, I am going on vacation to Mexico in June. Anna and I purchased this trip as a groupon back in October--long before I started this process. I wish now that I had that money back but the entire trip has already been paid for. So, I will go and thoroughly enjoy my last trip as a single, childless woman.

August 13, 2008

As I was cleaning the house this weekend to get ready for the home visit tomorrow, I started to think about the day that Sara was born--August 13, 2008.

Now, if you asked me where I was on August 13, 2009 or 2010, I wouldn't have any idea. Ironically, I do know where I was on August 13, 2008. I was in the middle of my road trip to Mexico. I had quit my job, put most of my stuff in Laura's basement and was moving to Mexico. I left "for a year" but had absolutely no intention of returning to the US or to Chicago. I was on a journey to "the rest of my life." Little did I know, "the rest of my life" was being born in a country far, far away.

My hope and prayer is that on August 13, 2012, I will be celebrating Sara's fourth birthday with her. I know it will be the best August 13th of my life so far.

Please consider helping make this prayer a reality. You can donate here to help cover the $8,000 agency fee that is due soon or purchase coffee here to help cover the upfront costs I encounter regularly.
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Time flies....when you're doing paperwork.

I talked to my adoption agency yesterday. They said that I was their "guinea pig" for this orphanage in Latin America. The director of the orphanage is willing to move this adoption through as quickly as possible. Originally, the adoption agency thought 6 months wasn't really a realistic expectation. They were thinking closer to 8. The orphanage director says it will be done in 4 months! That's crazy! That means I could be traveling in late June/early July to pick up Sara. It's amazing to me how fast this entire process is going. When I first started researching international adoption, I found that most take about 18 months. So, I was thinking I would have a child NEXT summer, not early THIS summer. I'm very excited and really hope to have Sara back in the states for her 4th birthday in August.

There is a downside to the speed, though. I had hoped to teach summer school this year to earn some extra money to help cover the crazy expenses associated with the adoption. My boss has said I can work until I'm ready to leave but it probably won't be the whole summer session. So, I now have less time to raise money and more money to raise. I know that God will provide, one way or another. BUT, I'm a planner and a numbers person. I want to be able to see it all on paper now. After all these years, you'd think I'd know by now that God doesn't always work that way.

I have a few ways you can help!

1. Pray. God is going to provide this money. The most important thing any of us can do is pray.

2. I have set up an on-line coffee sale as a fundraiser. I'm not a coffee drinker but so many of my friends and families are. I got a large percentage of each sale. This money comes directly to me and can help off-set travel expenses and things like the home study. That link is here:

Coffee Sale!

3. You can make a donation to Reece's Rainbow in Sara's name. This money will be given directly to the adoption agency to cover those expenses. 100% of the money donated there goes to bring Sara home. You can do that here:

Adoption Costs

4. You can share either or both of these links on your blog, facebook, or email list.

Thank you to all of you for your overwhelming support and excitement. I can't wait to introduce Sara to each of you.