Profile Book Drama

So I was so proud of the work I did on my profile book.  I sent it to the first editor and we went through two rounds of changes.  Then I sent it to the second editor. Yes this is a big process since the birthmother chooses the family she wants based upon these books.  They sent back two pages of suggestions for revisions!  Well the revisions they want me to do, I can't do, because the program I made the book in won't let me do half their suggestions. So now, I have to start all over in a different program.  This is so frustrating because I thought we would be a "waiting family" over the holidays. We could be months away from that now. I guess I better get to work!

WAITING.................................

Amazing Video: Seeing Adopted Son for 1st Time

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLOgtobOWHQ


This is amazing as the couple meets their newborn son for the first time. Had Frankie and I in tears. We can't wait for that moment.

Profile Book- NOT Finished

So after I sent our profile book in for editing, looks like I have a lot of changes to make!  They said it usually takes 2-4 times to edit it before it is finalized.

Third and Final Home Visit

Today was our last home visit with Kate.  We discussed finances and ways to fund our adoption.  We also had our last home safety check and finalized all of our millions of options for the adoption. Now it takes about a month to type up and put together the home study.  After that we will be a waiting family!  Waiting for a birthmother to pick us as her child's parents!

Family Profile Book Finished!

I finished our Family Profile Book this weekend!  This is the photo book that the birth moms will look at to pick out which family they would like to adopt their child to. It is a very important part of the selection process.

Frank and Kendra

Second Home Visit

Wow, talk about intense! Our second home visit included separate, 2 hour interviews, each. When they say they will get to know you well, they weren't kidding! We were asked every personal question under the sun! It's nice to know how thorough Bethany is.  They definitely do things the right way. Now I know what they mean when they say they (the case managers) become good friends with their families. They get to know everything about us! Our third and final home visit is Nov. 6th.  Need to get the smoke detectors up in each room and the locks on all the cabinets before then!

First Home Visit

Today we had our first home visit!  Kate came out and met with me and Frank in our living room.  We discussed our lives openly with her, talking about our relationship, jobs, schedules, faith, community involvement, family and friends.  We also did a home safety check. Everything checked out good, but we need to get those plug protectors on, baby proof those cabinets, and install some more fire alarms! We love Kate our case manager!  She is sweet, caring, and compassionate. We are so lucky to be working with her! Next visit is scheduled for October 29th and the third on Nov. 6th. Then we become a waiting family!!!!!

First Home Visit Scheduled

Our first home visit is scheduled for October 17th! We are so excited to have another round of paperwork done and moving on to the "good" stuff!

Two Day Domestic Class

Yea!  We got our homework done in just a few days (we busted it!) and we got into the September Class in Orlando!  The class was amazing!  We got to meet birthmothers and hear their stories of their unconditional love for their unborn babies. Adoptive parents and their adorable babies came to talk to us about the process and to keep our heads up.  As the process may seem long and overwhelming, but will be rewarding in the end. We also got to meet with a lawyer to go over the legal side of adoption. The two days were packed with lots of information and emotions. Wow, what a roller coaster of a ride!

Homework Packet

We received our "Homework Packet" in the mail this Friday! Wow, it was a thick one full of papers to be filled out and signed! It took us all weekend to collect a lot of the information and fill out the paperwork.  We still need to get a lot of papers notarized, signed by doctors, insurance agents, etc.... We hope to get into the September 14 & 15th classes, so we have our fingers crossed that we can get it all done in time for them to review our paperwork and put us into the class.

Official Application

Today we finally got confirmation that our Pre-application was received, reviewed, and accepted.  We finished up the Official Application tonight and submitted it.  Our goal is to get into the September class, which we were told was pretty much impossible with all the work that has to be done before you are accepted into the class.  We will see.  If we don't get into to the September class, we will have to wait until January for the next class.

Our Journey Begins

August 4th was our first adoption meeting at Bethany Christian Services. It was an informational meeting where we got all our questions and concerns addressed. After leaving the meeting we felt really good about going forth with the process.