By the Way. . .

When I say that we are adopting from Ethiopia, I am always asked two questions in exactly the same order. The first is "When will the children come home?", and the second one is "How much is the adoption costing you?". Well, the answer to the first question is "Hopefully around October, but we'll see.", and the answer to the second question is the following long and well-itemized answer.

The cost, thus far, to bring home 2 baby girls from Ethiopia is. . .

1. Homestudy fingerprint fee for Tony and I: $212.00

2. Application fee for Dove Adoptions: $100.00

3. First installment of homestudy fee: $1000.00

4. Second installment of homestudy fee: $1,048.00

5. First installment to Dove Adoptions: $3,000.00

6. Second installment to Dove Adoptions: $6,000.00

7. Third installment to Dove Adoptions: $9,100.00

8. I-600A petition to classify foreign orphan as an immediate family member: $650.00

9. Department of Homeland Security fingerprint fee for Tony and I: $160.00

10. State of Colorado background checks for Tony and I: $60.00

11. City of LQ background checks for Tony and I: $68.00

12. Certified copies of birth certificates for all family members: $219.00

13. Passports: $300.00

14. Passport photos: $10.85

15. Adoption physicals (not covered by our medical insurance!): $246.00

16. Adoption education classes as required by our agencies: $400.00

17. Notary fees: $366.00

18. Apostille fees: $40.00

19. Dossier photos: $24.16

20. Photocopies: $5.77

21. Postage: 21.90

And the grand total so far is. . .!!!!!!!!!!!!!!: $23,031.68

All in all, the Ethiopian adoption costs are far below the fees for other countries who have international adoption programs. In Russia, for example, the cost is over $50,000 when you factor in travel and lodging fees. We are anticipating spending around $12,000 for air fare and lodging fees which is not bad in the grand scheme of things, especially now that we need to take two trips to Ethiopia! We will also need to get travel vaccinations for Yellow Fever, Typhoid, and Hepatitis A and B (we are still considering getting the Rabies vaccinations as recommended by our adoption agency and the Center for Disease Control) as well as medications for Malaria and Cipro tablets for extreme traveler's diarrhea which should cost us $2,500 because our insurance will not cover these things. We also need to purchase medical evacuation insurance which should be a few hundred dollars as well as rent an international cell phone. I did not count the $12.00 we paid for the yummy cookies we bought at Panera to feed to our social worker during our home visits, but I will factor in around $1000.00 for spending money when we travel because we want to purchase Ethiopian items to give to our daughters on their birthdays and other special occasions. I find that when I see money flying out of our bank account at an alarmingly fast rate, I shrug my shoulders and say "It's only money!". Really, it is only money! We have good food to eat, a comfortable home, adequate clothing, and a machine that makes great coffee. What more do we really need? Yes it's a bit tight right now financially speaking, but I know deep down that we are doing what we were always meant to do which is open our home and family to two little souls who need us (we need them too, by the way). People are what matter, not new cars, fancy appliances, huge houses, and other material trappings. Tony and I willingly and gladly shell out obscene amounts of money for a cause that is priceless; building our family and welcoming more children into our home!