It's Coming Along...

Not a lot to report lately. Still doing some unpacking and decorating of the house. Steve's been working a ton of hours, and I've been busy with work myself, as well as wading through lots of homestudy paperwork. I'm happy to report it IS coming along!

FBI clearances have been received. All eleven state clearances were requested and are now coming back (slowly). My four personal references were submitted (thanks friends!) Our doctors have completed and submitted our medical releases. We've written our 18-page bio Q&A (that's single-spaced, typed) and have sent it off. Next? We schedule the actual home visit with our social worker. I'm not too stressed about this, as I've been through it before and also I realize it is more to determine that our house is a safe and appropriate environment in which to raise a child more than anything else. Mainly I just want the house to look somewhat organized. We've been in this house almost two months now and there are still a lot of bare walls and unpacked boxes, but each weekend we get a little bit more done.

Our social worker will be on vacation for a week in October, so I'm hoping we can get this appointment scheduled sooner than later. After that, we will be waiting on her written report so we can go get our immigration fingerprints done and then wait for our immigration approval. Again, I've done this all before - it's just been three years. I know everything will get done in it's own time, and when the timing is right. It's just hard for someone like me to not want to control the entire process from beginning to end. But so far I have been able to maintain a respectable level of restraint during the frustration and seemingly endless red tape of the process. I'm learning patience. I know these are the Universe's lessons for me: giving up control and practicing patience. Good lessons for a mom-to-be I suppose.

29 Months!

I'm currently knee deep in paperwork getting my adoption homestudy updated. Since we moved to Washington state in March 2008, I've needed to get a homestudy update. And my I600A (U.S. immigration approval) expired in September '08. With the move into our new house last month, we'd finally saved up enough money (close to $3k) and I was able to get the "paperchase" started again. I won't even get into how complicated all this paperwork is, but just know - it could be a fulltime job by itself! But nose to the grindstone...I WILL get it done. Hopefully a couple of years from now I will be able to look back on all this and laugh...OK, maybe not laugh, but at least look back at these years of waiting with relief and a smile?

In the meantime, for the next two weeks I will read Kris and Laurie and Kim's blogs and remind myself that there IS someone amazing and worth waiting for at the end of all this!

Labor-less Weekend

Steve and I had a great Labor Day Weekend. For me, it was "labor-less". Steve had to work a couple of remote broadcasts from furniture and mattress stores in the area. Doesn't it seem like mattress and furniture stores are ALWAYS having sales? And the number of mattress stores always blows my mind. Now clearly, everyone needs a mattress, but how do all these mattress stores stay in business? Do THAT many people buy new mattresses that often?

Anyway - we headed down to Spokane's "Pig Out in the Park" food festival on Sunday. Had myself some banana nutella crepes - yummy. Also did some shopping for some artwork to hang in a couple of strategic places in our new house. Good times!

This coming week is exciting because THREE of my adoption world friends are reaching milestones this week. Kris and Laurie both leave tomorrow for China - whoo hoo! They will be meeting their girls next Monday. I can hardly believe it. All three of us submitted our applications and dossiers to CCAI during the same time period three years ago. Their girls are so cute, and I can only hope to be following in their footsteps soon! My friend Kim, who has been in Kazakhstan since July has finally had her adoption approved and has gotten permission to take her daughter out of the orphanage on Wednesday, so they will be coming home to Memphis in just a short couple of weeks!