Puzzle Update and Intake Meeting!

Hello again!

It's Becky writing this time and just wanted to give you an update on our progress with the puzzle and adoption!  

The Puzzle

As you can see below in the two weeks since we've had our puzzle fundraiser go live we've had a great amount of support!  THANK YOU to everyone who has donated!  It has been amazing!  Justin and I are so grateful and your generosity will always be remembered!  So THANK YOU!

The Intake Meeting
Last night Justin and I met with an adoptive parent counselor.  Her name was Liz and she was very sweet, very informative and very receptive to my incessant story telling (I can't help it...have you ever met my Dad? It's in MY DNA) and question asking.

I guess going into the meeting  Justin and I thought "Well here we go...we sent in a registration fee and now we'll get the paperwork for the home study (aka adoption study) and away we go!"

We were partly right...we did leave with the home study paperwork (which by the way is no small undertaking!) but the meeting was a more in depth and personal informational session.  Don't get us wrong we found it very helpful and it answered  our questions we had but we thought we were "in" or clients.  Turns out there is a bit more paperwork and an agreement to sign off on before we are legit!  As we are going through this process, and not having a lot of friends or family that have pursued adoption,  we are finding out you "don't know what you don't know" until you are in it.

So the next step would be to send in the agreement and set up dates for the home study meetings.  The home study will consist of three meetings: two at the adoption agency and one at our home.  Also during this time, before we go into what is known infamously as "The Book" we need to attend two workshops.  They are only offered every 2-3 months and the next meetings of course fall during dates that I am: out of state at camp, the night before camp starts, or the day in between my two sessions of camp.  Nothing every comes easy, does it? :)

Background checks are in the mix as well as physical.

After the workshops there is also a series of trainings we have to attend: Adoption Plan, Working With Birth Parents, Creating Your Letter.  I would tell you more but that is all the detail we got.  

At some point we also come up with a photo album to put with our Birth Parent Letter and bring it to the office.

After that is completed, we go into drum roll please..THE BOOK! 

And then!  

we wait 

Liz told us after the completion of the above steps, it usually takes about 3 months, the average wait is about 20 months or 3 years.  Liz did tell us she had one couple that was matched after one day but on the other hand she had a couple matched after 5 1/2 years.  We would like to sign up for the "one day" option! :)

All joking aside we know it will be a long process but in the end will be worth every day we have to wait.

I will close with a poem sent to Justin and I from one of our puzzle sponsors, Piper Sagan.  I met Piper at camp when she was 8 years old and was able to see her grow up over the years.  Thank you again Piper for your donation and for your sweet words!

For Dreams come true

For Happy years to come

To the struggle

To the beginning 

For you both

Forever