It has been a while since we’ve updated our friends on our adoption. That's because up until this point it has been mostly “boring” stuff, lots of paperwork, physicals, training, webinars, financial coaching, homework, fingerprints, etc. etc.
We also survived the reference check. Apparently whatever our references said didn't scare anyone away! *PHEW* 😅
We are thankful to now have all of that stuff behind us, and are now well underway with the thing we have been really looking forward to: the home study!
We had our first home study visit a couple weeks ago. We were able to meet our case worker, Courtney, who will be with us throughout the whole process from here on out!
It is crazy to think there is a good chance there is an expectant mom out there right now who is thinking through her options with her pregnancy and will end up choosing to have our family adopt...
The Home Study
The first home study visit went really well.
To say we were ready to begin this next phase of the process would be an understatement. Remy was bouncing off walls she was so excited. Jade was excited but also confused. When we said Courtney could be here at any minute, Jade said “WAIT. OUR BABY IS COMING RIGHT NOW?!” She either thought Courtney was bringing a baby with her, or she thought Courtney was the baby. We'll never know.
Legend has it she still thinks our baby is Courtney and Courtney has just grown up, lived life, and already moved outta the house.
Carrie had been cleaning like a mad-woman in the days leading up to the first visit, dusting areas of the house I didn’t even know existed.
When Courtney arrived, she asked Remy and Jade to show her around. Remy showed her every nook and cranny of the house, including the "boys cave" (man cave) downstairs. Jade had stage freight and retreated to her favorite spot behind momma’s legs where she could pretend she didn’t exist for a little bit. 😆
This first meeting was a “get to know you” meeting. We spent two hours with Courtney and answered some basic but important questions like "who are you and why are you wanting to adopt?"
This past week we had our 2nd of 4 meetings with Courtney. For this one we drove to the agency to meet and it was more of a deep dive into our lives, our upbringing and family history. They actually separated Carrie and I and we were each interviewed for an hour. I think they want to get each perspective and see if our answers align so you can't sugarcoat anything. 😂 Carrie and I had fun after the interview comparing our answers.
The questions got pretty personal, but it didn’t bother either of us at all. I was thankful they go into that much detail. I’m gaining a whole new appreciation for the adoption process as a whole. This is a big life decision not just for us, but for the expectant mother as well — so the vetting process has to be thorough.
What’s next?
The home study is a 90 day process, and we are well underway. Over the next two months we will be visiting a couple of more times with Courtney, and she will be working on a report.
If we pass the home study, it then clears the way for us to be matched with a child! This could happen at any point after the home study. It could be the next week, it could be a couple of years. We don’t really know. They say to prepare for it to happen soon, but expect it to happen later.
Financially, we have now hit a challenging part of the journey. $10,000 is owed for the home study, and then when we are placed with a child, the final bill comes in which is $14,000. So far we have raised a total of about $3,000. For that we are extremely grateful! That $3,000 has come really without us even asking, just people that wanted to bless us. Amazing. We really do have the most incredible and generous people in our lives.
We have a long ways to go but we have some ideas to make some extra cash with our photography, PLUS we’re crossing our fingers and praying for some grant money to come in as well. We know God will provide if we put in the hard work.
So that’s where we are at! We’ll keep you posted more often now that things are ramping up. Thanks for following along on our journey!!
Here’s our timeline to date:
July, 2020: Random date night turns into a big decision for us to pursue adoption as the next big step for our family
Sept 1, 2020: Initial orientation with Bethany Christian Services
Sept 3, 2020: Formal application sent to Bethany, adoption journey has officially begun!
Oct 1, 2020: Formal application approved!
November, 2020 - March, 2021: Paperwork, physicals, references, training, webinars, financial coaching, small fundraiser, homework, fingerprints
March, 24, 2021: Home study begins! First of three home visits with our social worker
April, 6 2021: Visit to Bethany for individual interviews
Big dates coming up (estimated):
April / May 2021: Second and third (final) home visits with case worker
July, 2021: Report is written, home study is complete
Anytime after July: Potential to be matched with a child!