Home Study - COMPLETE!!!

Whew! What a whirlwind few weeks! Three home study visits, a trip to Asheville, sick kids, sick Mommy and Daddy, etc. But...the actual visit to the house was today. I know she wasn't checking to see when the last time I dusted was, but I've spent the last few weeks finally unpacking the rest of the house, organizing things - getting rid of things, etc. - remember we moved a week after the girls were born, so yes - we've been here almost a year - but unpacking has not been my first priority :). And Leah and Mary Kathryn came in to help me do the final cleaning. Can I just say, that my house has never looked as good as it does now? I dust - Mary Kathryn DUSTS :). She's amazing - oh, to have her eye for order and cleanliness :). But, I digress - you guys aren't reading this to hear about my lack of innate sense of order.

The last two meetings were great. The second meeting consisted of going over our biographies (these are the BOOKS that Matt and I had to write about ourselves where we answered every question under the sun). I can see where these would be difficult for some people, but Matt and I don't really have any skeletons in the closet, and those parts of our lives that aren't as great we've moved past and resolved, so that meeting was a bit anti-climatic. Our case worker met with each of us separately for that one. But again, Matt and I are pretty much on the same page about everything and we've never had secrets from each other - so, no big deal.

Then, this final meeting consisted of a personal meeting between her and our pastor (we weren't there). And this is just basically to make sure we actually are involved like we said we were, and to make sure we don't go to some wacko church that's just really out there. And then, she comes out to see our house. This portion is basically to make sure that the baby has a place to sleep and to give a few more details to the birth parents about where their child will be living. For example, what the neighborhood is like, do the prospective adoptive parents actually know their neighbors, are their fire arms in the house and are they locked up, are there smoke detectors, how many beds, how many baths, how big is the house, etc. - again, just to let the birth parents know as much about the environment the child will be raised in as possible. So, that was good. And actually, there was a mix-up in the times for the church meeting, so she ended up just staying here and chatting for about 30 minutes. And it was such a blessing. She got to really get to know our kids and we were able to just talk through some more of our process. And it was just a really sweet time. We are just so thankful that God gave us that time. It was just helpful at least for me because she was able to step out of her role as case worker and just talk to us. She also told us that it was really refreshing to be working with us since our parameters for adoption were broader than what a lot of people are open to. So, again, just a great, great meeting.

And then...Matt had a comp day because he traveled over the weekend, so we took the kids and went down to the Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh. We had a blast. We have had a lot of stress on us over the last few weeks, and we needed a BREAK! So, we hightailed it out of our house and just relaxed with our precious three children. It was so much fun.

Just keep praying for us! Next up...we can apply for grants. So, as soon as we get our home study paperwork back, that's the next step. We'll keep you posted! And keep praying for our finances. We're still about $900 short for the money we need for the home study - and obviously - the bill will be coming in the mail soon. Thanks to everyone whose contributed to our precious child. You're the greatest!