Full-house parents ecstatic

Couple drains savings and sells van, husband takes second job, wife stays home -- and they wouldn't change a thing

Web posted January 25, 1998

 Children needing homes
 State adoptions office using new means to find homes

Associated Press

RIVERDALE, Ga. -- It's a wonder Charlie and Jackie Hood are still standing, much less smiling and laughing.

Since adopting four children at once last year -- ages 4, 5, 6, and 7 -- they have drained their savings, racked up debt on credit cards, and returned a new van that added too much to the monthly bills.

Mr. Hood, 36, who works the graveyard shift at the Ford plant nearby, has taken a second job with a cable company during the day.

Mrs. Hood, 30, quit her job as a school cashier last year to stay at home to help the children adjust, then tried to go back to work last fall. She quit again after the children came down with chicken pox, strep throat, a sinus infection, and poison ivy -- all in a two-week period. Besides, the daycare and after-school care costs were eating up her paychecks.

``We're making it by the grace of God, but there is no breathing room,'' Mr. Hood said.

The state helps out with a stipend of $375 per child per month. But that doesn't go far when the Hoods are re-stocking the refrigerator every day and buying an outfit a week for each of their fast-growing kids.

They estimate they shelled out about $5,000 before the children even stepped foot in the house, buying such necessities as beds, mattresses, sheets, towels and a second freezer.

Shortly after the kids arrived, the Hoods had to replace two dinette chairs and a coffee table that couldn't survive the wear-and-tear of four energetic children.

After a year with their new brood, the Hoods have some advice for other couples considering adoption: Do it.

``I want everyone who can to do this. These children have to be reached,'' Mr. Hood said.

``Just try it. It's the greatest thing you'll ever do,'' echoed his wife.

Children needing homes

A glance at the state adoption system:

As many as 1,200 children in state custody are available for adoption at any given time.Most have been removed from their birth homes by the courts because of abuse, neglect or abandonment. A small number were given up voluntarily by parents who could no longer care for them.The children are mostly black and older than 1. Most have physical, emotional or mental disabilities. In some cases, there are three or more brothers and

sisters who need to be adopted together.Children typically wait 18 to 24 months to be adopted.For adoptive parents, the wait for children with special needs is six to 10 months. The wait for white children under 8 with no special needs can be as long as 10 years.In about 2 percent of adoptions, adoptive parents decide they cannot handle the children and return them to the state.