Online Parenting Class for Adoption Completed

We finally finished our online parenting classes that are required for our adoption. I was dreading it at first, but both of us really enjoyed it. It was a class on international adoption, of which we have already been through one, so I thought it would be boring. We actually had a good time taking it. Although a lot of it was things that we already knew, it was a great refresher course for us on things like attachment, bonding, sleeping and eating habits, adjusting to a new home, and separation from previous caregivers. We also learned some things. It talked about siblings issues which is new to us since Olivia is an only child. We also learned about issues with adopting more than one child at a time, which is something we are considering. We got some new tips on helping our new child deal with attachment issues. I wish we had gone through something like this with our last adoption. We would have been more prepared for issues we faced with Olivia rather than having to learn them the hard way. Anyway, we are glad to have this next step completed so that we can move on.

Next Monday is our final homestudy visit with our social worker. After the visit, she will write up our homestudy and send it to the state for approval. Then it is off to US immigration. I will post again Monday night to let everyone know how the homestudy visit went.

Moving right along

We are moving right along with our homestudy paperwork. The medical checkups and forms are completed and I will be picking those up tomorrow. Our fingerprints have been sent off to the FBI and I hope to have that background check back in a few weeks. We still have to take 10 hours of online parenting classes and we have to have one more home visit, but everything is going along pretty smoothly. I will be filing our immigration paperwork in a few weeks so that we can go ahead and get that in the works. God is so great and I know that even though it seems like things are creaping along, everything is working in His perfect timing. That is easier said that done and He has to remind me of that on a daily basis. I know though that He already knows who our child is and He is preparing both us, our baby, and his or her birthparents for what is to come. Please continue to pray for us.

First Homestudy Visit Went Great!

We had our first homestudy visit for our adoption yesterday. It was a different social worker than the one that did our homestudy for our Chinese adoption, so I was a little nervous. The lady was so nice and she made us feel very comfortable. I am very excited about working with her to help get our baby (or babies) home from Taiwan. She gave us some "homework" to do. We have to get fingerprinted, gather financial information, get a medical checkup, and take 10 hours of online parenting classes. Yesterday's visit was at her office but she will be coming to our house next Friday for our home visit. That visit is to make sure that we have enough room for one or two more children and that it is a safe enviroment for a child. Please keep us in your prayers.