Late yesterday afternoon, we received the final copies of our home study! YAY! Except for our medical forms (which we will take care of in Jan.) and our 171-H, we have all of the documents for our dossier. We are so excited! Monday morning, we'll find out when we can take everything in to be notarized. The human resources director at the University is going to do them for us. We're hoping she'll be able to notarize everything on Wednesday. Then our plan is to take everything to be apostilled right after Christmas, and then hand deliver our dossier to our agency, probably on Jan 3. We won't be able to get the dossier turned in before Christmas, as we originally hoped, but it's ok. It will be a great way to start the new year! We're thrilled to be at this point in the process!
We're still in the nesting phase. R. spent all day working in the basement. We've been in this house for 6 months, and now finally the last of the boxes have been unpacked. He organized all the bikes and bike parts, as well as all the tools. It looks really good. Now we can go to the basement and actually find something if we need it!
I've spent a lot of time thinking about next Christmas, and how much fun it will be when our child is here and we are celebrating our first Christmas as a family.
Showing posts with label home study. Show all posts
Showing posts with label home study. Show all posts
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
home study approval
Talked to C. at our agency late this afternoon, and we finally have approval on our home study! Initially, she had some concerns about some things in our home study and how was written, and I was very worried. After we discussed it more, she thinks it will be ok for the Moscow region! If we end up with a referral from Kemerovo, Tula, or Kaluga, we will need at least one additional visit with our social worker and an addendum to our home study. We will cross that bridge later if we come to it. Unless things change, chances are very good that we will be going to the Moscow region! I am excited about that!
Quite an emotional roller coaster today, from the lows of worrying about the home study being rejected to the highs of home study approval and thinking about going to Moscow. R. and I wore ourselves out thinking about it all. And he definitely has a cold. Some of the people he works with have it too, so it's going around. We're going to spend the rest of the evening just trying to relax and calm down!
Quite an emotional roller coaster today, from the lows of worrying about the home study being rejected to the highs of home study approval and thinking about going to Moscow. R. and I wore ourselves out thinking about it all. And he definitely has a cold. Some of the people he works with have it too, so it's going around. We're going to spend the rest of the evening just trying to relax and calm down!
Monday, December 10, 2007
home study on its way
This morning, our social worker sent our home study to our agency. If they don't find any errors, we should be receiving our copies soon. Another step forward!
I emailed our agency to let them know the home study was on its way, and to find out about our time line. Based on what others have said, I'm thinking we could be traveling in Feb., but I'm not sure. No email from them today, so I'm hoping to get one from them tomorrow.
The weather was so beautiful today. Way too warm to feel like December. R. and I took a walk when he got home from work. I had happy thoughts about pushing a stroller through our neighborhood.
I emailed our agency to let them know the home study was on its way, and to find out about our time line. Based on what others have said, I'm thinking we could be traveling in Feb., but I'm not sure. No email from them today, so I'm hoping to get one from them tomorrow.
The weather was so beautiful today. Way too warm to feel like December. R. and I took a walk when he got home from work. I had happy thoughts about pushing a stroller through our neighborhood.
Friday, December 7, 2007
good day
Huge step forward today! R took a half day off work and got home at noon. He fixed a sandwich and grabbed a banana to eat in the car, and we jumped in the car. We drove an hour and a half to our social worker’s office. We felt rushed, because we knew she was only going to be in her office until 3:00 this afternoon. We got there at 1:45, so we had plenty of time to spare. Our social worker was very nice to us today. We gave her my medical letter and the corrected draft of the home study. She went through our file and double checked her list, and everything was there! Our part of the home study is over! She said that she would send our home study to our agency on Monday morning! She told us that we were an easy family to deal with, and that our home study had gone very smoothly. That was good to hear. She said some of her clients are very disorganized. She said one of her clients even lost their dossier. Who does that?? I can’t even imagine! Anyway, soon we will have the final copies of the home study and then we can get our dossier apostilled. We are excited to be at this point in the process!
After we left the social worker’s office, we went to Burlington Coat Factory. We found some very warm gloves with Thinsulate insulation for $6.99! We each got a pair. I had seen them online for $25, so another super score! I tried on some faux fur winter hats, but nothing I liked. We both tried on coats too. It gave us a good idea of sizes and lengths, but the prices weren’t a bargain, so we’ll just order those, probably from Land’s End. After reading other blogs, I’m worried about the coat not being warm enough!
On the way home, we stopped by the salon and visited my sister A. for a minute. After going to the grocery store, we went to Starbucks and then listened to Christmas music all the way home. The sunset was absolutely amazing. A beautiful end to a nice afternoon.
After we left the social worker’s office, we went to Burlington Coat Factory. We found some very warm gloves with Thinsulate insulation for $6.99! We each got a pair. I had seen them online for $25, so another super score! I tried on some faux fur winter hats, but nothing I liked. We both tried on coats too. It gave us a good idea of sizes and lengths, but the prices weren’t a bargain, so we’ll just order those, probably from Land’s End. After reading other blogs, I’m worried about the coat not being warm enough!
On the way home, we stopped by the salon and visited my sister A. for a minute. After going to the grocery store, we went to Starbucks and then listened to Christmas music all the way home. The sunset was absolutely amazing. A beautiful end to a nice afternoon.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
new blogs
I was so excited to find some blogs of other families with our agency. It helps so much to read about everyone else's progress and to know we are not alone on this difficult and exciting journey.
I spent several hours going over the rough draft of our home study. I got all the corrections done and printed it out, all 15 pages. Tomorrow afternoon, we are driving an hour and a half to deliver it to the social worker's office. I'm so ready for the home study to be completed, so we can get our dossier notarized and apostilled.
I spent several hours going over the rough draft of our home study. I got all the corrections done and printed it out, all 15 pages. Tomorrow afternoon, we are driving an hour and a half to deliver it to the social worker's office. I'm so ready for the home study to be completed, so we can get our dossier notarized and apostilled.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
finally
We finally received my medical letter from the doctor today. R picked it up late this afternoon. I emailed the social worker to see if she will be in her office Friday afternoon, so that we can drop it off, along with the corrected draft of the home study document. Once we do that, our home study will be complete, ready to go to DSS and then on to immigration! I'm so excited!
Friday, November 30, 2007
no news
Ever since Tuesday afternoon, I've been waiting for the doctor's office to call to say that my medical letter for our home study is ready, and I can come pick it up. No phone call. Just me waiting all week for the phone to ring. We'll be calling them Monday morning to find out the status.
Stephanie M. is leaving tomorrow for their 2nd trip. They have court on Dec. 4, and we'll be keeping them in our prayers.
Stephanie M. is leaving tomorrow for their 2nd trip. They have court on Dec. 4, and we'll be keeping them in our prayers.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
moving forward
Well, I survived the physical! This was a new doctor for me. He has been R's general physician for 16 years now, but this was my first time to see him. I liked him, and I think I'll continue to use him in the future. He was supportive of our adoption, and said that he'd write the medical letter for me this week. As soon as I have it, our home study will be finished and ready to go to DSS. Yesterday, I got the draft of the home study from our social worker too. More progress!
We broke down and applied for a credit card today. We got a mastercard with a $3000 limit. We're worried about going over our adoption budget, so that will give us a cushion to cover any emergency expenses or plane ticket troubles. We haven't had a credit card in almost 4 years now, so it felt strange to be applying for one again.
Last night, we told our neighbor across the street that we are adopting. She is so excited for us, and thrilled that we'll have a baby on our street! Turns out she has traveled to Russia. Don't know what the circumstances were, but she said she went during the Communist era. (I'll definitely be getting the story about that from her later!) It's very interesting that on our little street in our small town that not only will we have traveled to Russia, but our neighbor has been as well.
We broke down and applied for a credit card today. We got a mastercard with a $3000 limit. We're worried about going over our adoption budget, so that will give us a cushion to cover any emergency expenses or plane ticket troubles. We haven't had a credit card in almost 4 years now, so it felt strange to be applying for one again.
Last night, we told our neighbor across the street that we are adopting. She is so excited for us, and thrilled that we'll have a baby on our street! Turns out she has traveled to Russia. Don't know what the circumstances were, but she said she went during the Communist era. (I'll definitely be getting the story about that from her later!) It's very interesting that on our little street in our small town that not only will we have traveled to Russia, but our neighbor has been as well.
Monday, November 26, 2007
all things medical
I ordered a travel card today to use in restaurants in Russia. I have a severe allergy to tree nuts. The card explains in Russian that I have an allergy and need to avoid any foods containing nuts. I have been worried about what I am going to eat there, when I don't speak the language and can't read a menu. I'm planning to take food and snacks, and then buy food at a store once we get there. Eating in restaurants is my last choice, but I wanted to have the card just in case.
Tomorrow morning I have my physical. After the physical, I am asking the doctor to provide a letter stating that I am healthy, free of communicable disease, and emotionally capable of parenting a child. This is the last thing needed for our home study. And also, next month, he'll be able to fill out the medical form needed for our dossier as well. I'm so ready to cross this off the list. I hate, I mean hate, going to the doctor. I get tense and feel anxious. It takes a lot of deep breathing, praying, and talking to myself. I will get through it tomorrow by thinking about the baby and focusing on meeting him/her as soon as we can.
Now we're not sure about gender. Our home study will read either gender, as young as possible. Our social worker told us that by saying either gender that our baby would definitely be a boy. But today Lori , who is also with our agency, shared with us that even though their home study specified either gender, their referral was for a little girl, 13 months old. So, who knows? We would be happy with either a boy or a girl. Right now, only God knows until we are surprised with the wonderful news.
Tomorrow morning I have my physical. After the physical, I am asking the doctor to provide a letter stating that I am healthy, free of communicable disease, and emotionally capable of parenting a child. This is the last thing needed for our home study. And also, next month, he'll be able to fill out the medical form needed for our dossier as well. I'm so ready to cross this off the list. I hate, I mean hate, going to the doctor. I get tense and feel anxious. It takes a lot of deep breathing, praying, and talking to myself. I will get through it tomorrow by thinking about the baby and focusing on meeting him/her as soon as we can.
Now we're not sure about gender. Our home study will read either gender, as young as possible. Our social worker told us that by saying either gender that our baby would definitely be a boy. But today Lori , who is also with our agency, shared with us that even though their home study specified either gender, their referral was for a little girl, 13 months old. So, who knows? We would be happy with either a boy or a girl. Right now, only God knows until we are surprised with the wonderful news.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
successful home visit
We survived our home visit, and it went very well! Our social worker arrived 15 minutes early, which wasn't too bad. We sat down at the dining room table. R fixed coffee for her, and she quickly reviewed the biographical profiles that we had written. She didn't ask intrusive or difficult questions at all! (R. and I prayed before she arrived, and it definitely made a difference.)
She ended up being very helpful. She spent the rest of her time with us giving us some great information. She gave us the name of the person who will handle our apostilling. She also told us how to apply for the Title IV Non-recurring Special Needs benefit, as well as the adoption benefit for state employees. She mentioned the federal tax credit, which we already knew about, and she said that there is a state tax credit as well. She recommended that we contact the Health Department to have the baby evaluated for early intervention services (occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech therapy). She also recommended that we enroll the baby in a Mothers Morning Out program for a couple of times a week to help with his language development. She said that if he is just with me, I will understand his grunts and not force him to talk. If he is around other small children, they will not understand him, and he will be motivated to talk better. Makes sense. I have waited a long time for this baby, and right now, I feel like I want to have him with me all the time! I think I can adjust to a few mornings a week though!
She also recommended that we domesticate his adoption, and that is something that we definitely plan to do. I want him to have a birth certificate in English, so his life will be easier later. She said we don't have to do this until after his first post placement report, so that helps. That gives us a little break in the paperwork.
Even though I didn't sleep much last night, I'm too excited right now to be tired. I'm so relieved and happy that it went well, and I'm so happy that we have made a huge step forward! We are closer to meeting our baby!
Thanks for all the positive thoughts and prayers!
She ended up being very helpful. She spent the rest of her time with us giving us some great information. She gave us the name of the person who will handle our apostilling. She also told us how to apply for the Title IV Non-recurring Special Needs benefit, as well as the adoption benefit for state employees. She mentioned the federal tax credit, which we already knew about, and she said that there is a state tax credit as well. She recommended that we contact the Health Department to have the baby evaluated for early intervention services (occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech therapy). She also recommended that we enroll the baby in a Mothers Morning Out program for a couple of times a week to help with his language development. She said that if he is just with me, I will understand his grunts and not force him to talk. If he is around other small children, they will not understand him, and he will be motivated to talk better. Makes sense. I have waited a long time for this baby, and right now, I feel like I want to have him with me all the time! I think I can adjust to a few mornings a week though!
She also recommended that we domesticate his adoption, and that is something that we definitely plan to do. I want him to have a birth certificate in English, so his life will be easier later. She said we don't have to do this until after his first post placement report, so that helps. That gives us a little break in the paperwork.
Even though I didn't sleep much last night, I'm too excited right now to be tired. I'm so relieved and happy that it went well, and I'm so happy that we have made a huge step forward! We are closer to meeting our baby!
Thanks for all the positive thoughts and prayers!
Monday, November 19, 2007
house beautiful
Well, I'm fine after my fall. A few bruises and a little soreness, but I'm fine. I was so thankful that I didn't have a broken bone right before our home visit with the social worker! That would have been hard to explain!
The social worker is coming tomorrow morning, and I think we're ready. This house has never been this clean! At least it will be clean for the Thanksgiving holiday too, so that's an added bonus. I got all the home study paperwork together too. I printed out our biographical profiles, and now all the papers are organized and ready to give to her. I'm sure I won't sleep well tonight, because I'm nervous and excited! I'm nervous that she'll ask some difficult or intrusive question, and I'm excited because this is a huge step forward for us. I'll be so happy to cross this off our list.
Please send prayers for success and positive thoughts our way...
The social worker is coming tomorrow morning, and I think we're ready. This house has never been this clean! At least it will be clean for the Thanksgiving holiday too, so that's an added bonus. I got all the home study paperwork together too. I printed out our biographical profiles, and now all the papers are organized and ready to give to her. I'm sure I won't sleep well tonight, because I'm nervous and excited! I'm nervous that she'll ask some difficult or intrusive question, and I'm excited because this is a huge step forward for us. I'll be so happy to cross this off our list.
Please send prayers for success and positive thoughts our way...
Thursday, November 15, 2007
exciting day
We got the date for our home visit! Our social worker is coming on Tuesday morning, Nov. 20. I'm not dreading it anymore. I'm excited about it, because it will be a HUGE step forward for us, bringing us so much closer to traveling and meeting our baby. So I'll be cleaning and getting the house ready this weekend. You're all more than welcome to come help me!
The snail brought a fantastic package from my aunt and uncle! (Thank you N. and J.! It really made my day!) It felt like Christmas had come early! They sent me a gorgeous baby afghan that she knitted, as well as an adorable blanket and beautiful baby quilt that she made. They also sent a bib that she cross-stitched with "yummy" on it, a super soft stuffed dog, and 5 Little Golden Books ("The Saggy Baggy Elephant", "The Little Red Hen", "Baby Animals", "The Poky Little Puppy", "The Happy Man and his Dump Truck"). I was excited to see those, because I love those stories and didn't have them yet. It was a wonderful surprise, and I loved it!
The snail brought a fantastic package from my aunt and uncle! (Thank you N. and J.! It really made my day!) It felt like Christmas had come early! They sent me a gorgeous baby afghan that she knitted, as well as an adorable blanket and beautiful baby quilt that she made. They also sent a bib that she cross-stitched with "yummy" on it, a super soft stuffed dog, and 5 Little Golden Books ("The Saggy Baggy Elephant", "The Little Red Hen", "Baby Animals", "The Poky Little Puppy", "The Happy Man and his Dump Truck"). I was excited to see those, because I love those stories and didn't have them yet. It was a wonderful surprise, and I loved it!
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