Thank you for this! This was very informative and helpful, especially the part about being concise with no emotions. It is very hard not to be emotional when talking about the future of foster kids. I talk with my hands as well.

This is extremely informative and makes a lot of sense. Thanks!

What is GAL? She keeps mentioning it

I love to hear the view of foster to adopt children. Very insightful ❤

Excellet.Angecy need this when we finish our class. Having this infomation Pricless

So glad I found your video we are about to start classes and looking to adopt a child around 7-9. This info is great

My daughter has a big family and many friends. But her biggest support she gets is from her mother and myself. We did have to take all the classes necessary to be mentors so we can help take kids to doctors dance or baseball basketball. We are retired and have plenty of time to help run her and there and getting things. Also financially we make sure every child has everything they need. My daughter gives the money from the state to the children when they leave. The state made her take the money. Otherwise she would not have taken the money.

My daughters rule for the Bio Parents. The first time you make her daughter cry. That is it. Until when she is much much older. Daughter makes that rule extremely clear with the child and Bio parents. The Bio parent no longer has a right to make her daughter sad. Of course the bio parents had to try daughter to see if the communication would be cut off. They found out quickly it would. Her daughter has said she never wants to talk with them again. My daughter told her never is a long time. But it will will be a long time until it is tried again.

All foster families abuse the foster children they claim they care about. Foster families only be foster parents with the intent to adopt or there just in it for the money

Thank you

Thank you for the excellent context about why visits affect kids.

Katie is awesome!

Love the advice on the tour. Your daughter sounds great!

Thank you . These tips were so helpful and practical.

Amen - never cut off communication. Sure, use mail, email, or monitored phone calls if needed, but keep a window open, always.

In many states you can have a baby in your room. In my state they can share my room until 1 year of age. Ive heard other states can share up to 2 years of age

Great video! Very informative. Thank you

I cannot get the GAL to return my call or respond to an email. What do you suggest.

Very good information

In the state of florida you can have a baby under 1 in your room with a crib.

Great information! Thanks for sharing and caring.

Thank you for the level of detail you go into on your channel. I am considering becoming a licensed foster care provider in Ohio and I do so much better when I know what to expect and how to prepare. Your videos are very helpful.

There seem to be so many requirements so why do so many foster children report having been abused in their foster homes?

I want to be a foster parent. My husband and I bought a house and we close soon. It says 3 bedrooms but it doesn’t seem it. When u walk upstairs there is a bed, and no door. Down the hall another bed, no door but a place where u can put a door on. Downstairs one bed room with door. I have to put walls up and doors. I plan to have smoke alarms, fire extinguishers, numbers for poison control etc. Thanks for the video.

Also, I was just thinking in terms of the foster kids with fire arms.....if they come from trauma where fire arms/weapons were used, that can be a HUGE trigger, and possibly create a huge form of mistrust.

Thank you !

Are there restrictions on relatives of the foster parents seeing the foster children?

umm your dad didn't make you do visits like that BLAME CPS! SO MAD HOW THEY MANIPULATE THESE KIDS!

👏👏 this is such a good information

This information is so valuable, thanks so much ❤

great info. I'm going to be taking in teens so this info will help me help them adjust

We are in a state that the stipend is less than $25/day. We got a sibling group of 4 with only the clothing on their backs and spent $1500 in the first week....just to get them set up with basic clothing and school supplies, as it was the first week of school. So I think it's important for potential foster parents to understand that it could be important to have a bit of savings to be able to pull from in the beginning, before per diem starts being received. We also, ultimately, had to upgrade one of our vehicles to be able to accommodate the extra family members. Also, while we always have the bedrooms set up cute and gender neutral, we take them to pick out their own room decor once they've been here for a week or so. Our kids always are involved in sports and scouting, which get to be expensive. Add in summer day camp fees (which can exceed our stipend amount), and it definitely can be a financial commitment if you're doing right on behalf of the kids. Thanks for your videos!

We are starting our adoption journey. We want to adopt older children from foster care. This video was so informative. Thank you

WOW!!! So much great information. I was scribbling notes through the whole video. THANK YOU!!!!!!

What a great story! And a great example to follow! Thank you!

Thank you! I'm just now finished with everything and waiting. I am with an agency that places kids that are already in the system (maybe in a group home or in the 30 days of a disruption) so I may not have to wait long. But it's in God's hands, so we will see! Your videos are so helpful!

Thank you for your videos. My home study is complete and under review!

What is considered a 'subsidy' for a foster parent? For instance I am on permanent disability and do receive food stamps does that disqualify me?

Thank you!

These are the best foster care videos, thank you!

thas for sharing this video!

Learning so much with your information. Thanks

Great young ladies! Wonderful advice given in such a mature and thoughtful way. Thank you!

I had a couple of questions... My girlfriend, of over four years, and I recently had her little brothers move in with us. They are 15 and 17. The boys' mother is currently unable to house them. Their father kicked the 17 year old out and the 15 year old followed with. They have been living with us the past two months and they both would like to remain living with us as it seems we are the best suited to currently take care of them. We have been conversing with one of the boy's school therapist about gaining full custody but have not yet started the process. We would need to seek some form of child support, as we have been digging into our savings to support them for the time being. However, I know this can be a long process in the courts and we are not sure if either parent could offer the financial assistance needed. I was recommended by a coworker to look into becoming their foster parents. My coworker claimed we could get assistance from the state and they would help us get a better suited living situation to accommodate the boys. Is it still possible for my girlfriend to become the foster parent of her little brothers? If it is possible for her, would it also be possible for me even though my girlfriend and I arent married? How long does the process take to become a foster parent if she is able to go that route? Is it true that the state, CA specifically, would assist us in acquiring a better living situation? Thanks in advance!

I really appreciate the time, effort, and energy you and your family have put forth in this channel. You're making this process much easier for us newbies! Thank you so much!

Thank you to the Woodruff Sisters for sharing their experience. This was extremely insightful.

Wow! This is eye opening! Thank you for sharing such valuable insight. I'm hooked on this channel.

What if you rent?

Thank you for your openness! We have also had questions like that from our bio kids ("When are they going home?") and it is SO nice to hear that is a normal response! We are in a short-term foster program, so the kids are only with us from weeks to months, and then they are reunified with family. I am amazed at how by the end of a placement, both our kids and my husband and I all seem to feel both completely ready for them to leave, and a huge sadness when they actually go. We've been calling the feeling HappySad. We're also trying to take a little bit more time off before accepting a new placement to help everyone here settle back and recharge.

So if you have foster kids, you cannot let them out in your shop for example if you are a wood worker, and have all sorts of wood working tools, they're not allowed out there, you aren't allowed to teach them how to properly use those tools to build stuff? If you are a foster parent, how is it you are supposed to work if they're too young to be in school? Are the kids allowed to go to day care like your own kids would for example? All the home safety stuff seems to be a DUH type thing, but I guess in today's world many people don't know, don't care, etc....What recommendations if any do they give if you live in a house with a wood stove? I heat primarily with a wood stove...I do have gas heat but way too expensive to run all the time as its propane don't have access to natural gas unfortunately. What about carbon monoxide detectors? You mentioned smoke alarms, but nothing about carbon monoxide detectors, I guess even if they weren't required, having them would be a good idea anyways. Most of the stuff you mention here I'm used to. My grandparents did all that stuff anyhow, but they were also foster parents for many years, so I guess it just stayed that way even after they stopped being foster parents due to moving to another state. I thought about becoming a foster parent, but quickly ended that thought due to my felony :(. So many kids out there living in horrible conditions but someone that owns their own home, and had a non-violent, non-child related felony gets barred from being able to help those kids. So far I haven't found anything I can do to help as I'd love to do so, but the felony stopped pretty much everything child care & foster parent and adoption related. Something that should really be put out there for public knowledge I think, might make some people think twice about doing something illegal....MAYBE? What if your home was built long before GFI receptacles & breakers existed....I'd assume a call to an electrician could get the required GFI outlets and breakers installed/retrofitted? Have a great weekend. William Idaho