Adoption Tax Credit NEWS!!!!

Found this exciting news on another blog who in turn had found it on the following blog listed here...I had to share the exciting news as well...


From the Christian Alliance for Orphans Blog:

Amidst the intense controversy of the health care bill signed into law by President Obama yesterday, there’s at least one provision every orphan advocate can cheer. The adoption tax credit was preserved for another year...and increased in value!

To encourage and support adoption, the adoption tax credit was expanded by President Bush and Congress in 2001. This increased the value of the credit from $5,000 to $10,000, and indexed it for inflation (meaning the credit would increase each year to keep up with inflation.) For 2010, its value had risen to $12,170. However, the 2001 increase was scheduled to “sunset” at the end of 2010. This would mean that any adoptions finalized after December 31, 2010 would be eligible for—at most—a credit of only $5,000.

This sunset has now been extended one year. That means that it will need to be extended again before the end of 2011. For the present, however, this extension comes as very welcome news for families considering adoption or in the adoption process.

Specifically, the provisions contained in the health care bill include:

The current adoption tax credit has been extended until the end of 2011;
The value of the adoption tax credit has been increased from $12,170 to $13,170.
The increase is “retroactive,” meaning that any adoption occurring after January 1, 2010 is eligible for this higher credit.
The credit is now refundable. This means that even families that owe zero taxes can receive the full tax credit in the form of a tax refund to help with their adoption-related expenses.

UPDATE on TAX CREDIT for ADOPTIONS

Found this exciting news on another adoption blog and decided to share it too!


From the Christian Alliance for Orphans Blog:

Amidst the intense controversy of the health care bill signed into law by President Obama yesterday, there’s at least one provision every orphan advocate can cheer. The adoption tax credit was preserved for another year...and increased in value!

To encourage and support adoption, the adoption tax credit was expanded by President Bush and Congress in 2001. This increased the value of the credit from $5,000 to $10,000, and indexed it for inflation (meaning the credit would increase each year to keep up with inflation.) For 2010, its value had risen to $12,170. However, the 2001 increase was scheduled to “sunset” at the end of 2010. This would mean that any adoptions finalized after December 31, 2010 would be eligible for—at most—a credit of only $5,000.

This sunset has now been extended one year. That means that it will need to be extended again before the end of 2011. For the present, however, this extension comes as very welcome news for families considering adoption or in the adoption process.

Specifically, the provisions contained in the health care bill include:

The current adoption tax credit has been extended until the end of 2011;
The value of the adoption tax credit has been increased from $12,170 to $13,170.
The increase is “retroactive,” meaning that any adoption occurring after January 1, 2010 is eligible for this higher credit.
The credit is now refundable. This means that even families that owe zero taxes can receive the full tax credit in the form of a tax refund to help with their adoption-related expenses.

....the road to adoption...

I've had a heart for adoption for a while... I've always wanted to host the russian orphans when they come over in summer and december, but I have 3 healthy kids so I thought nothing more about it really. Also, having more "step" relations than real ones, the idea of "adopting as family" a non related person just comes natural.


Two years ago at age 40 we found out SURPRISE we're pregnant...we had just gotten used to that idea and then  had a miscarriage. This was the 2nd miscarriage I have had in my life, one at 28 the other at 40...miscarriages don't get any easier... same old heart breaking raw emotion... I told Karl I either wanted an English Bulldog or to adopt a child from China...he said he'd think about it...I said I'd rather adopt the child!


I've just always felt like someone was missing in our family...

His hold back has always been the financial part of adoption...so I would just read adoption blogs, watch youtube gotcha videos and (cry)...I even sent off for various adoption packets for more info.

Around Christmas time, it just seemed that adoption was heavy on my heart and mind..and I was praying if God wanted us to do this thing to work it all out. I talked to several friends who had adopted internationally as well as emailed people in the blog world with questions about it...I talked to Karl about it yet again...he said I am open to it...and told you that 2 years ago, it's just the money...so he looked into it at work...his company gives employees adoption help  and also, when i told him about the tax credit he was starting to be ok with the idea...then we found out the tax credit goes back down after this year....but  according to my representative they are working on having it stay at 10 for adoptive families...

Anyway...I kept praying and trying to keep my mouth shut so as not to nag him into it...I was praying for some kind of confirmation and on a Sunday morning after the Haitii earthquake Pastor Rick mentioned the orphans and who was going to take care of the orphans...I turned around in choir and looked at Karl...then that night he went to winter jam with Zach and some of Zach's friends...I knew Tony Nolan would be there and that he had just adopted from China and that he too had been adopted as a child...I thought the subject might come up at the concert...so when he got home...he said Tony Nolan brought his little girl out on stage and she said "help the orphans"...So he said I think maybe we are supposed to do this thing...even driving down the road he would see signs about adoption...where these signs have been before...I don't know...He said everywhere I turn it's adoption adoption adoption and china china china...( even while getting my nails done...the new spring colors were colors of China).

One time while writing in my prayer journal I said, God if you want us to do this then you are going to have to do some miracle working work on Karl ...this was before his winter jam concert....So the verse God led me to that day was...something like...I will show you miracles as the days when I brought you out of egypt. (I thought WHOA)

So we are working on our homestudy and all that paper work...hoping to adopt from the waiting list with minor special needs...And so far no one has said we are Crazy or anything!  

NO MO' VSD! YIPEE!

Today was the big day for the kids' physicals needed for our homestudy! Zach had to have the "works" since he is almost 18, but  Karlie and Shek only had to have the basic well-kid checkup! SO, when Shek found out that he had to encounter bathrooming in "the cup" for NO REASON...he was a little upset!

We were there for 2 hours bright and early this morning at 730. Our PA, Mark, was great...he even worked out a refund for me since Karlie's and Shek's physical was not the "big deal" like everyone else's has to be.... THE AWESOME GREAT NEWS IS....Zach no longer has a heart murmur! He has had a VSD since birth...at his one week old baby checkup I was whisked away to the hospital for a heart check...needless to say I was a pretty upset young first time momma  back then...it's something we have had to watch over the years....meds before dentist checkups...etc etc...We were told it would probably grow up by age 3...it did not...so we kept a watch on it! In fact 2 years ago, we went for a routine check up at the heart doctor ( a new one we had never seen before)...he wanted Zach to consider open heart surgery!!!.I thought he was a QUACK...because his reasoning for surgery was so that when Zach was older he would not have a "pre-existing" condition and would have a better chance at getting life insurance!!! I thought the life insurance folks won't wonder why that big zipper is down the front of his chest?!?! He did not have the surgery...and we planned to never go back to that quack of a doctor...we knew he was a quack because he (a doctor) was for the govt. med plan!

Long story short...Zach had a major problem with warts on his thumbs over the summer...they had been burned off 2 times by the PA then 2 times by the derm. doctor...they kept coming back until a friend of mine, Carrie Ann prayed over them and also, a friend of Zach's, Spenser and his Dad prayed over them...they never came back...so Zach asked Spenser to get his dad, Pastor Boice, to pray about his murmur.

Well today...the PA listened...he said...I don't hear a murmur...He said I am no cardiologist, but I can't hear one...I said it's not going swosh swosh?  He said no...He checked Shek as well....who had what is called an innocent murmur...couldn't hear that one either....Zach told the PA...he said...well, I have been prayed over so it must be gone! PRAISE THE LORD! When we got home, I said let me listen to your chest. In the past his murmur was so loud that I could hear it with my ear next to his chest  with out a stethoscope...so I listened...I said, "IT BEATS!"...his heart has never sounded like that...he's never had a thump de thump only a swosh swosh...NOW, folks...believe me....MY GOD is GOOD...HE is SOMETHING ELSE!!!And if you don't KNOW HIM... YOU ARE A FOOL!

Daylight Savings Time

Daylight Savings Time just makes me want to sleep late and take naps till I get used to the whole thing...Then once I get used to it, I like it being light longer.

The public schools are out today for a furlough day. Shek says, we don't have school tomorrow because it's a holiday. I said, they are having a day off because there's not enough money to pay the teachers, but since your teacher doesn't get paid anyway, we are having school! He was not so thrilled with that...

The school room nook looks great...I still have lots to go through and sell for the used book sale this spring. We are actually going to "do-school" in the school room today...go figure!

I have a new template added on my blog...but it covers up some of my words...got to get Karl to help me with that...

Back to Blogging!!!

A lot is going on around here. It's Saturday morning and I am drinking Karl's coffee. I have never really liked coffee till I reached my 40's! I always loved Kim's Sunday morning coffee in the preschool area at church...I wondered what made her coffee taste so good...I watched her make it one day and found out her SECRET! Of course she uses Dunkin' Donuts coffee...we do too...but ours never tasted like hers...but her secret was a dash of salt and cinnamon in with the coffee grounds...I gasped as I saw her do this...She said it takes the bitterness away..So now we do this and add some good ole creamer and it's mighty fine...I actually like a 'little' coffee with my creamer~~and of course the REAL CREAMER with all the calories and fat is the best...but the fake stuff will do in a pinch!

We are getting ready for a HOME study to adopt! The things we have to do for our homestudy is 2 pages in length...This week I have to take my children to the doctor to prove that my current children are healthy...so bright and early Wednesday we are heading to the doctor at 730 am for a well-checkup! NONE of them are excited about the prospect...Then later Karl and I have to go for the same thing! UGH...the doctor part is my dread too...I have to take the animals to the vet they have to be up to date on their shots...Emily is but Elvis is not...he always hides when I am rounding them up for the vet...I guess he can sense that if I am taking "him" for a car-ride that I am up to NO good! Well, we'll just take this homestudy adoption process one step at a time!