New to this whole international adoption process

The younger the child you request, the more significant the special needs you are likely to find. The reason is that Ukrainians adopt domestically, but tend -- like their American counterparts -- to prefer young, healthy children.Do remember that Ukraine treats all adoptions as independent. Agencies have no real place in the adoption process. You won't get a referral before travel, and when you visit the adoption center in Kiev, you won't be allowed to bring an agency staffer or translator of your own. (You can, however, bring your own translator when you visit the children in orphanages.When you travel to look at profiles of adoptable children, the staff are likely to show you the hardest-to-place children first. They have a true commitment to finding homes for these children, but often don't think about the fact that the families may not be equipped to parent a child who has serious special needs or significant life experiences from being over age 10. And if you don't see any children you can parent in the first group of books you are given, you may or may not get any others; you may be sent home to await a new appointment. Frankly, many parents give up at that point. Likewise, if you see some children in the books that you feel you "might" be able to parent, but realize, when you go to meet them, that their needs are too great, you probably won't be taken back to Kiev to look at more children; instead, you may be told to go home and wait for a new appointment. The travel gets expensive, and there is no guarantee that there will be a child at the end of your second or third trip. (You are allowed only three trips.)Personally, I don't like the idea of traveling without a referral. People should be in a familiar and comfortable place when they are preparing to make the most important decision of their lives. They should be able to talk with family members and friends, research the availability of specialized medical and educational services in their communities, etc.Make sure that you understand the Ukrainian adoption process and what your agency can really do for you, if you decide to go to Ukraine. Don't worry as much about the timetable; what matters is how comfortable you are with traveling "blind" and being unable to have your agency assist you every step of the way.While many families have adopted very successfully from Ukraine, others have come home without a child, having spent thousands of dollars. It's not the program for everyone, and works best for families open to fairly significant special needs, much older children, and sibling groups including at least one school age child.Sharon

The younger the child you request, the more significant the special needs you are likely to find. The reason is that Ukrainians adopt domestically, but tend -- like their American counterparts -- to prefer young, healthy children. The older children are the ones who show up on international adoption lists. Do remember that Ukraine treats all adoptions as independent. Agencies have no real place in the adoption process. You won't get a referral before travel, and when you visit the adoption center in Kiev, you won't be allowed to bring an agency staffer or translator of your own. (You can, however, bring your own translator when you visit the children in orphanages. When you travel to look at profiles of adoptable children, the staff are likely to show you the hardest-to-place children first. They have a true commitment to finding homes for these children, but often don't think about the fact that the families may not be equipped to parent a child who has serious special needs or significant life experiences from being over age 10. And if you don't see any children you can parent in the first group of books you are given, you may or may not get any others; you may be sent home to await a new appointment. Frankly, many parents give up at that point. Likewise, if you see some children in the books that you feel you "might" be able to parent, but realize, when you go to meet them, that their needs are too great, you probably won't be taken back to Kiev to look at more children; instead, you may be told to go home and wait for a new appointment. The travel gets expensive, and there is no guarantee that there will be a child at the end of your second or third trip. (You are allowed only three trips.) Personally, I don't like the idea of traveling without a referral. People should be in a familiar and comfortable place when they are preparing to make the most important decision of their lives. They should be able to talk with family members and friends, research the availability of specialized medical and educational services in their communities, etc. Make sure that you understand the Ukrainian adoption process and what your agency can really do for you, if you decide to go to Ukraine. Don't worry as much about the timetable; what matters is how comfortable you are with traveling "blind" and being unable to have your agency assist you every step of the way. While many families have adopted very successfully from Ukraine, others have come home without a child, having spent thousands of dollars. It's not the program for everyone, and works best for families open to fairly significant special needs, much older children, and sibling groups including at least one school age child. Sharon

Basically anywhere in International Adoption nowadays or currently is only Special Needs!! Also or as well as if you do decide to pursue International Adoption?? I would start with or definitely inquire? What or how your School District's or School Systems'. Second Language or Special Education programs are Advocated? International Adoption becomes more challenging at home than In-Country. Without or with no understanding of languages. As well as very low attention spans due to being Institutionalized!!