When did you start the adoption process?

Our first visit to the local OSPOD (Child Protective Services) was September 5, 2022. We submitted the official application on October 5, 2022.

What were your first steps and how did the first meeting and the subsequent home visit go?

The first step was a visit to OSPOD in our city where we made an appointment in advance. Here we were given information about how the whole process goes, what kinds of children are placed in adoption, and we were also given all the documents that needed to be filled out. During the second meeting, the social worker from OSPOD put together our “resume”.

The home visit took place on October 17, 2022. It was such a relaxing time over coffee. We had a nice chat with the social worker, then she took a peak in the room, which will be a children’s room in the future.

How did the training and psychological assessment go?

The training took place from February to April. We met in Hradec Králové, mostly in the afternoons during the week, twice on Saturday for the whole day, the lecturers visited us once at home and 3 sessions took place “online”. There were 8 couples in our group, half of us were applying for adoption and the other half for foster care. The entire preparations were organized by the NGO Dobrá rodina. The instructors were very nice and friendly people and made everyone feel comfortable in their presence and we had no problem opening up fully and saying even the less pleasant things without being afraid. Right people at the right place. Maybe also thanks to them, we have become quite friendly with the others, and even after finishing the training,  we stay in touch.

About halfway through the course, we received an invitation for psychological assessment. The test was evaluated during individual meetings with the psychologist. We had only one meeting, on 14.6.2023. (From what we know from the others in our group, only one couple went on 2 meetings.)

How long did the process of assessing your application take and when were you  registered in the list of future adoptive parents?

The process lasted from October 5, 2022 to August 3, 2023, which makes it 10 months.

How do you reflect back on this process? What did you gain and in what way was it difficult for you?

We went into the whole process with the intention of enjoying it, which I think we did. We really enjoyed the whole thing and felt a bit sad when the training ended. We are very happy that we went through it and we are also grateful for the training from the NGO Dobrá rodina. We learned a lot about adoption and foster care and also made a lot of new friends who were on the “same boat” with us.

The only thing that we found difficult, was being stressed the whole time as we did not know what to expext. We also agreed that the whole process was not complicated, but the problem was that you had to constantly wait for the next step. We think that if the individual organizations and regional authorities cooperated better, it wouldn’t take so long and everything would follow smoothly. But we really have nothing to complain about, our journey through the process was actually quite fast.

What were your ideas about the adopted child at the beginning, and how (if) did they change after having your application approved?

At the beginning of the process, we didn’t really know how to define our ideas about the child. Our main idea was a “healthy” child, of the majority ethnic group and under 1 year old.

After completing the training, we clarified and firmly established these ideas. The “traffic light” from the NGO Dobrá rodina also helped us with this. We want a healthy child but we don’t mind minor health conditions and health problems that can be solved by surgery. As for ethnicity, we are asking for a child without obvious differences. With the possibility of a baby from the maternity hospital. Baby up to 6 months old. We don’t mind twins or siblings. As for drugs used during pregnancy, we don’t mind, except for alcohol abuse.

How do you spend the waiting period and what is this period like for you?

So far, the waiting period has been “short”. We have been approved since 8/3/2023. But we’ve made a list of what we’d like to do before there are more of us, so we’ll be gradually filling that list. We also make a list of what we need to buy “when it comes”. I gradually collect the essentials for a baby. I like to crochet and now I’m learning to sew. Otherwise, we live as we used to live – quite actively 😀

Do you have any recommendations/advice for others who are thinking about adoption or foster care or are currently in the “waiting” period?

Just that they don’t wait for the “right time” and definitely go for it. Our only regret is that we did not start the process earlier.