The Middle - Part 2

So, where did I leave off?

If you're a follower of our blog, then you'll remember that I was telling our story. The story of how we became a family. I have gotten a lot of comments from others on sharing our story. Many people have been glad that we've shared it. So, now, it is time for the 2nd installment.

When Greg told me that he wanted to pursue adoption, I was thrilled. I couldn't believe my ears. My best friend and I had literally been praying for God to move him and open him up to the possibility of loving a child that was not biologically ours. Oh, does God work in such magnificent ways. He knew the timing. He knew what would happen.

So, in the early Fall of 2005, we began asking around about adoption agencies. We had an acquaintance that was "in" the adoption field and we asked him where he would go if he could choose an agency. He suggested The Love Basket. He said they were wonderful people to work with. So, I contacted them and we requested an initial application. We completed the initial paperwork and waited. On Thanksgiving, we found out that our first application (Packet I) had been approved. With that letter, we received Packet II. This packet contained an application that was a lot longer. This required references with letters, physical exams, salary and tax information, our marriage history, etc. This packet was at least an inch and 1/2 thick when we received it.

So, we worked and worked on this packet. We had to tell our life stories, how we met, how we handled conflict, etc... This took quite a while. Also, because Love Basket is based in Missouri, we had to find an Illinois-based agency to conduct our home study. I was a little nervous about the idea of a home study. I was so afraid (which I know now I totally shouldn't have been!) that they'd find something wrong with our house. Should I light candles for a nice smelling house or will she think that's a fire hazard? Should I bake cookies, or is that too June Cleaver? Should I leave vacuum marks in the carpet, or does that look like I'm a clean freak? All of these things pop into your head. You just want to make the best impression.

So, after calling a lot of agencies in Illinois, I found one that we really liked. Our case worker, A., met with us briefly to just do a meet & greet before we set up the home study. We really liked A. She was around our age and didn't make us feel nervous at all. We set up the home study for the end of March, 2006. All the while, we were working diligently on Packet II.

For Packet II and for the home study, we had to be fingerprinted. We also needed copies of our taxes, birth certificates, and marriage licenses. For Packet II, because Love Basket is a Christian-based organization, we had to have a reference from our pastor and we had to attend a panel discussion hosted at Love Basket. We also attended an adoption support group located in a nearby city. Both of these experiences have been invaluable to us as adoptive parents. We learned so much about open adoption and how to treat birth parents. We also learned a lot about the stereotypes of adoption. We were so impacted by the panel discussion and the support group. We just knew that God had pointed us in the right direction. In fact, the panel discussion (held in January of 2006) solidified our decision. We knew we were meant to adopt. In addition to the panel discussion, support group, fingerprinting, and life histories, we had to attend CPR training as well as parenting classes. We sat in the parenting classes with a bunch of pregnant couples. We were the only waiting adoptive parents in the group and everyone wanted to talk to us. They were so interested in our story, the process, and how long things took. We were the first adoptive couple that our teacher had instructed too. That parenting class was fun and invaluable. Every couple should take one of those classes when preparing for a baby.

Our home study went very well in March and we found out shortly after that we had passed. In preparing for the home study, we had to complete a TON of paperwork for our Illinois agency as well! I think had we known that we'd like A and the agency so well, we probably would've just skipped working with Love Basket, but Love Basket was essential in our adoption journey. We learned so much from their requirements. We never would've attended the panel or the support group. We also never would've met some wonderful people. Next, we had to wait for the Illinois agency to get the home study report to Love Basket. A advised us that she would also show our profile as well if we would like so we could have it shown in multiple states. I was all for that! The more agencies that had our profile (a small scrapbook about us that birth parents viewed) the better.

So, now, it's June of 2006, all the paperwork is done... and we wait...