We met with Cameron again Friday. This meeting was our third of four. Our fourth meeting will be held after our adoption classes are completed in June. We start the first of the 5 classes this Saturday. I am excited to get started but not at all looking forward to sitting through 7 hours of speakers for the next several weekends. Anna says it will all be worth it, and it will be!
Each time we meet with Cameron we learn a little more about the process. In our last meeting we gave her our preference form which is maybe a list of 100 or so 'issues' children can have and we had to rank them 1-3. A 1 means we can parent a child with that issue, a 2 means we can discuss that issue, and a 3 means absolutely no way can we parent a child with that issue. This was a tricky task to accomplish. For the most part we put 2s. I mean 'soils pants' . . . if the child is 4 I can parent that. If the child is 12, well, that's different. We put a 2. The issues ranged from wears glasses to wishes to be the opposite sex or cuts or is severely handicapped. The spectrum is wide.
We learned that if we have all of our paperwork completed by the end of our classes Cameron will then be working to match us with a child or sibling group. But, before this can happen all of our paperwork (our PPA - cannot remember for the life of me what that stands for, some sort of assessment - maybe pre-placement??) has to be approved by the state. She said that usually takes less than a month. So, we're looking at hopefully being in a position to receive referrals by mid-July!! That makes me shiver.
This month Josh has to work on making some changes in the house like switching the deadbolts, adding a couple of smoke detectors, and getting a new fire extinguisher. We have to lock all of our meds up and our cleaning supplies. I'm thinking if the cleaning supplies are locked up somewhere I will be cleaning less. No problem. We have to find another bed in order to meet the requirements to add two more kids to the house. We are looking to get Ava a bunk bed. I have to work on making a fire evacuation route and posting it somewhere in the house. All of this is because once a child is placed in our home we are considered foster parents until they are officially declared adopted by the courts. While we are fostering, the child(ren) will be the state's responsibility. They have to make sure our home is safe. There are some other things we have to work on but I can't recall them. Of course, I have a checklist . . . somewhere.
All the while we are praying for the little one or ones that will be a part of our family soon enough. We pray that God is bringing them a peace even now, that they will understand that God is working in their favor because they have called out to Him. It's just incredibly humbling, His faithfulness and His love.
On a lighter note, it was quite humorous listening to Cameron quiz Josh on the 8 charges he had on his record. They dated all the way back to like his 3rd week with a license. She did comment on how they are now fewer and further between. Somehow, my 3 charges were non-existent. Hee Hee
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Friday, April 5, 2013
A Plethora of Paperwork
And so it begins . . . the paperwork plunge. Josh and I each had a 32-page questionnaire to fill out with questions such as how did we grow up, where, with whom, what was life like growing up, how do we raise our kids, how did we meet, where did we meet, what do we like and dislike about each other . . . so many questions. I've decided I'm quite the narcissist. I enjoyed answering them!
Today we met with Cameron, our adoption agency's representative (aka, our worker). This was our 2nd of 4 meetings with her. So far we have given her a copy of our marriage license, fingerprints, background check sheets, references, etc. She also met with each of the kids individually. Isaac asked if she was going to be bringing the kids with her. He's so lost so I'm trying to do better at keeping him in the loop. "No, babe. The kids don't come with her for a while yet." Anna threatened to tell Cameron about all the times she's been in the car when daddy got pulled over for speeding. It must seem like a lot to her. I'm sure my comments while on the road have not at all lead her to believe he's been stopped more than his share of times. Haha Just sitting here counting I can come up with . . . I'd better shut up : ) I can't wait to hear how these interviews went.
Cameron gave us more paperwork to fill out and we signed several documents while she was here like privacy docs, fees, foster parent agreement, capacity info, rules on how many kids to a room, how many kids to a house, and some more. Between now and meeting #3 (in 3 weeks) we have to acquire family photos for her, DMV checks on each of our licenses, verification of our education, auto insurance declarations, drivers license copies, vehicle registration, pet vaccinations, fill out our family profile form (kids and agencies can go online and view profiles of the parents looking to adopt), fill out a preference form where we choose and rate what children we would consider (including disabilities, race, ages, genders, etc.), financials, get TB tested, and fill out medical evaluations. Whew!!!
Josh and I will be attending adoption classes each Saturday in May and one in June. After this and after all of our paperwork is processed we will start receiving referrals. It could be this Fall or next year that we add to our quiver. God knows and time will tell. We've decided to expand our search from our initial thoughts of a boy 5-8 yrs. old to a boy and/or girl or even a sibling group between 5 & 10, any race. I pray often for this kid or these kids. I can't wait to hear from them what their thoughts were about this time.
Stacie, you said you wanted to know every detail. There ya go! The paperwork seems endless and my administrative background will come to full use. One step closer!
Today we met with Cameron, our adoption agency's representative (aka, our worker). This was our 2nd of 4 meetings with her. So far we have given her a copy of our marriage license, fingerprints, background check sheets, references, etc. She also met with each of the kids individually. Isaac asked if she was going to be bringing the kids with her. He's so lost so I'm trying to do better at keeping him in the loop. "No, babe. The kids don't come with her for a while yet." Anna threatened to tell Cameron about all the times she's been in the car when daddy got pulled over for speeding. It must seem like a lot to her. I'm sure my comments while on the road have not at all lead her to believe he's been stopped more than his share of times. Haha Just sitting here counting I can come up with . . . I'd better shut up : ) I can't wait to hear how these interviews went.
Cameron gave us more paperwork to fill out and we signed several documents while she was here like privacy docs, fees, foster parent agreement, capacity info, rules on how many kids to a room, how many kids to a house, and some more. Between now and meeting #3 (in 3 weeks) we have to acquire family photos for her, DMV checks on each of our licenses, verification of our education, auto insurance declarations, drivers license copies, vehicle registration, pet vaccinations, fill out our family profile form (kids and agencies can go online and view profiles of the parents looking to adopt), fill out a preference form where we choose and rate what children we would consider (including disabilities, race, ages, genders, etc.), financials, get TB tested, and fill out medical evaluations. Whew!!!
Josh and I will be attending adoption classes each Saturday in May and one in June. After this and after all of our paperwork is processed we will start receiving referrals. It could be this Fall or next year that we add to our quiver. God knows and time will tell. We've decided to expand our search from our initial thoughts of a boy 5-8 yrs. old to a boy and/or girl or even a sibling group between 5 & 10, any race. I pray often for this kid or these kids. I can't wait to hear from them what their thoughts were about this time.
Stacie, you said you wanted to know every detail. There ya go! The paperwork seems endless and my administrative background will come to full use. One step closer!
Thursday, March 28, 2013
A Revelation
The most exciting adventure we have endeavored as a family is underway! God has opened our eyes to the myriad of hurting children right outside our door. Very quickly it became apparent that we are able to put a tiny dent in the staggering number of foster children in North Carolina. We simply could not say no. We couldn't even think about it long enough to change our minds. It became a must do, no questions asked undertaking of faith.
James 1:22-27 reads:
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive
yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do
what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after
looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and
continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will
be blessed in what they do. Those who consider themselves religious and yet do
not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their
religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and
faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to
keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Isaiah 1:17 reads:
Learn to do right; seek justice.
Defend the oppressed.
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
plead the case of the widow.
Psalm 68:5,6 reads:
A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy
dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the
prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.
Proverbs 31: 8,9
Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
Psalm 82: 3,4 Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor
and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand
of the wicked.
To record our journey Anna and I opened this blog. It will be simple but informative as we desire to keep our family and friends in the loop the simplest way we know how. We are so excited to share this with you!
No doubt this will be a challenge. We are interested in adopting a little boy Isaac's age or a little younger or even a sibling group of two kiddos. We are prayerful and open to whomever God sends our way. He loves us fiercely. Looking beyond our comfort and into the eyes of kids waiting for a forever family, I can see His love. Somewhere, right now, a child is praying for a committed daddy and mommy to rescue them from a painful past, a scary present, and an uncertain future. I feel inadequate. I am somewhat scared or, maybe nervous is the word. We can read and read about a child and feel like we can handle them then get them into our home and find out he or she is nothing like we expected. But God says, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? ...Matthew 6:24-34 I for one am honored that God sees us fit to raise this child. Praise God!!
James 1:22-27 reads:
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive
yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do
what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after
looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and
continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will
be blessed in what they do. Those who consider themselves religious and yet do
not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their
religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and
faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to
keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Isaiah 1:17 reads:
Learn to do right; seek justice.
Defend the oppressed.
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
plead the case of the widow.
Psalm 68:5,6 reads:
A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy
dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the
prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.
Proverbs 31: 8,9
Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
Psalm 82: 3,4 Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor
and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand
of the wicked.
To record our journey Anna and I opened this blog. It will be simple but informative as we desire to keep our family and friends in the loop the simplest way we know how. We are so excited to share this with you!
No doubt this will be a challenge. We are interested in adopting a little boy Isaac's age or a little younger or even a sibling group of two kiddos. We are prayerful and open to whomever God sends our way. He loves us fiercely. Looking beyond our comfort and into the eyes of kids waiting for a forever family, I can see His love. Somewhere, right now, a child is praying for a committed daddy and mommy to rescue them from a painful past, a scary present, and an uncertain future. I feel inadequate. I am somewhat scared or, maybe nervous is the word. We can read and read about a child and feel like we can handle them then get them into our home and find out he or she is nothing like we expected. But God says, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? ...Matthew 6:24-34 I for one am honored that God sees us fit to raise this child. Praise God!!
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