Have you and your spouse tried over and over again to try to have a baby? Perhaps you have been to so many doctor's appointments that you have lost count of how many times you've been. Maybe you've looked into adopting a baby, but the process is too expensive for you. In that case, you might be considering adopting a child through the foster care program in your area. From meeting with your representative to making a child feel at home, here are some ideas that might help you.

Your First Meeting - Be prepared to spend quite a bit of time with the person from the foster care agency that will be working with you. You'll have to fill out so many papers that you''ll feel like  might as well be going into the CIA or becoming a spy for the government. In addition, you'll have face-to-face interviews where you will be asked some of the same questions that were on the papers you filled out. In addition, you will probably be asked questions like, Why do you want to be part of the foster care program? Are you prepared to have a baby or a child taken from you, even after you have fallen in love with him or her? Will your extended family members welcome the baby or the child as a real part of the family? 

Even your residence will be scrutinized. You'll probably get more than one home visit. The foster care representative will be making sure that your home is a safe place where a baby or a child will feel loved and cherished. And, even friends or family members that you have put down as references will more than likely also be interviewed by the foster care representatives. Be sure to tell them that you have used them as references.

Introducing The Child To Your Home - Of course, if you are fostering a baby, all you need to do is to care for him or her and to give plenty of love and affection to the baby. There's more to fostering an older child. Of course, giving him or her care and plenty of love and affection is still important. However, be prepared not to receive those feelings returned to you at the beginning. After all, an older child might have gone through a very difficult process in losing his or her parent or parents. Give your foster care child time and space to get used to new surroundings. Always be ready to answer questions honestly. Even if that particular child is taken from you and returned to his or her original home, be patient. The time will more than likely come that you will be blessed with a foster baby or a foster child that you can adopt as your very own.

Contact a service, like Kids Count Too, for more help.