Saving for Adoption

Recently, it has come to my attention that interational adoption is expensive. This is obviously not the first time I have considered how much it actually cost. I was completely aware of the cost when I was writing out checks, wearing the same clothes for 2 years, and living like a pauper. There were several things we did to accomplish saving.

My husband and I made the small investment to form an LLC. This allowed him to work on the side, using the skills from his profession to save. This was a sacrifice working nights and weekends but was the bulk of the money. I took on extra writing projects. I have heard of parents waiting tables. Whatever creates the money necessary to pay fees.

As a former collector, I am already a tightwad. 6 years of listening to other people's financial woes will do that to a person. Maybe that is why I save money in a tin can for incidentals, burying nickels like a squirrel. Instead of taking money from our main savings, we waited until the tin can was full. Every time I got change at the store I made a point of dumping it in the tin box.

We cancelled cable for a very long summer. I read a ton of books on international adoption, checked out videos from the library, took walks to public parks, and camped on the weekends. Most of all, we learned not to spend on items which were not necessary. Whenever I felt the urge to spend, I imagined how much more it meant to have our child home.

We kept track of unnecessary spending by tallying the amount we spent on items like a pop or coffee, food purchased for lunch, or anything which did not absolutely need. I was amazed at the amount. This helped us to identify our triggers and unnecessary spending.

We did not do garage sales or any other fundraising requiring money from someone else to come up with travel funds. This was a personal choice, however many families involved in saving for an interational adoption create at least a few hundred dollars. It is a ton of work. However, I think if it is advertised it could be profitable. Sometimes families ask others to bring in items for sale to make it larger. If the shoe were on the other foot, I would be happy to unearth a few items from the basement. Fundraisers like meals and silent auctions with items donated are also worthwhile. Others choose to do home parties.

Last, I drove a used vehicle. We have a short distance to work, and this worked well. I found a reliable Nissan and was able to use this for the past three years, avoiding a monthly car payment. I understand this is not practical for everyone, especially those with a long commute.

When we did shop, we went online for the best deal, shopped for clothes off season, and found good sales. I try to shop a season ahead for my kids and never buy clothing at full price unless it is a special occassion. We we did do something like go out to eat, we went less frequently and chose something good. This sounds rediculous.

Families who cannot save out of pocket for the entire cost of international adoption also look into grants, a low interest home equity loan, or simply a low interest credit card for travel expenses.

So here is a brief version of how we saved. I am certain there are more creative ideas when saving for international adoption however this is what worked for my family.