Things have certainly been interesting around here! On Monday, I found out I was going to Kennedy Space Center for a fantastic children's librarian workshop! And I was one of 40 applicants selected. I was told they received over 100 applications, so that's pretty awesome.
On Tuesday, several things happened. Russell went to start his truck, moved about 1/4 mile, and discovered the alternator is out. Ughh. So now we are down to sharing one car until the alternator can come in (which will be Monday).
But the best thing happened on Tuesday! I was at lunch and I received a call to set up our home study!! Our home study is scheduled for this coming Tuesday, November 1, at 10 a.m. This is the call we have definitely been waiting on. I am told this home study should last at least 2-3 hours. This is the second home study (out of 3) that we will need to have. The third and final home study is supposed to be completed within a month from Tuesday. But, we know how these things go so we are not getting our hopes up too high about that.
We still have alot to do to get ready for this home study. We have been cleaning like crazy and putting the child locks back on our cabinets. We took them off after the first home study because there was no use keeping them on when it is just the two of us living at our house.
So what happens next? This home study is conducted by an outside vendor. They have 30 days to complete both home studies and write up their reports in order to get paid by DFCS. Next, we go for local, regional, and state approval (which could take at least 1-2 months) and then it gets really exciting!! That's when we will eventually find out details about our child!! And of course, that's the best part. :)
I'll be sure to post next week to update you all on our visit!!
-Taryn
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Donate to our adoption fund!
So, adoption can be costly. Very. The cost of adopting a child through the foster care system is lower than "traditional" adoption processes, but there are still many costs including court costs, attorney fees, fees for different tests, and many other costs associated with bringing a child into our home. If you want to help us bring our child into our home and help us create a "Forever Family", donate to our adoption fund. 100% of the funds received will go towards adoption process costs and for the care of our child. You can donate through PayPal on the top of our blog, and it will be there until our adoption is finalized. Every little bit you give helps give our child the support and love he or she needs.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Hoping and waiting...
...And waiting some more. This morning, Russell called the case worker to find out what's going on since we hadn't heard from them lately. We mailed the remaining paperwork 2 weeks ago. Supposedly, we are going to get a call from the agency that does the home study this week. If it happens, we will be so excited!! I do hope this is going to happen this week. Our case worker told us to call her next Tuesday if we don't hear from the agency by then. Until then, we are just hoping and waiting....
Friday, September 9, 2011
What's going on?
Yeah...you're all asking me what's going on with the process. Until a week ago, it was absolutely nothing. Last week, I was beginning to get worried because I hadn't heard anything from our case worker in over a month. So Russell called our case worker last Wednesday and found out that our paperwork had been sitting on a person's desk in Thomasville for A MONTH!!! COLLECTING DUST!!! (As you can see, I'm pretty upset about it.)
We then found out that our paperwork was FINALLY transferred to this woman in Thomasville's boss in Albany for her staff to review. She told us that her aides were reviewing the paperwork, and that they would get back with us in 1-2 weeks.
Well, we received a letter last night from the DFCS office in Albany. It was pretty thick so we were excited. In it was a letter stating they need another copy of our driver's licenses and auto insurance cards. OK-no big deal. Also, they wanted us to fill out the enclosed paperwork. When we started looking through it, it just didn't seem right. There were sheets on physicals that needed to be done on our own children. Considering we don't have children, we were concerned. As we were looking at the paperwork they sent, we received someone else's paperwork!! Of course, it wasn't everything, but there were 6 pages of someone else's paperwork!! And none of the forms we needed to fill out were in the envelope.
This morning, Russell called our case worker to find out what was going on. The person from Thomasville drove up to Albany to find out personally what had happened. The person who was responsible for sending us the paperwork blamed it on her assistants. That's ridiculous, because she should have made sure the correct paperwork was going out to the right people. They called Russell around 11 a.m. and explained that we did not need to fill out any of the paperwork that they sent us (Duh!) and that they sent us the correct paperwork on Wednesday. We are seriously doubting that statement. We are giving them until Saturday to receive the paperwork, and if we still do not receive anything, we are taking action on Monday.
If they send us the correct paperwork, we are planning to fill it out and send it back to them on Monday. The case workers have told us that we should hear from the company that does the home study within 1-2 weeks of their receiving our paperwork. If I do not hear from that company, we will be calling in exactly 2 weeks.
We are so upset over everything that has happened lately, but are still optimistic and anxious to meet our child. This will all be worth it in the end.
We then found out that our paperwork was FINALLY transferred to this woman in Thomasville's boss in Albany for her staff to review. She told us that her aides were reviewing the paperwork, and that they would get back with us in 1-2 weeks.
Well, we received a letter last night from the DFCS office in Albany. It was pretty thick so we were excited. In it was a letter stating they need another copy of our driver's licenses and auto insurance cards. OK-no big deal. Also, they wanted us to fill out the enclosed paperwork. When we started looking through it, it just didn't seem right. There were sheets on physicals that needed to be done on our own children. Considering we don't have children, we were concerned. As we were looking at the paperwork they sent, we received someone else's paperwork!! Of course, it wasn't everything, but there were 6 pages of someone else's paperwork!! And none of the forms we needed to fill out were in the envelope.
This morning, Russell called our case worker to find out what was going on. The person from Thomasville drove up to Albany to find out personally what had happened. The person who was responsible for sending us the paperwork blamed it on her assistants. That's ridiculous, because she should have made sure the correct paperwork was going out to the right people. They called Russell around 11 a.m. and explained that we did not need to fill out any of the paperwork that they sent us (Duh!) and that they sent us the correct paperwork on Wednesday. We are seriously doubting that statement. We are giving them until Saturday to receive the paperwork, and if we still do not receive anything, we are taking action on Monday.
If they send us the correct paperwork, we are planning to fill it out and send it back to them on Monday. The case workers have told us that we should hear from the company that does the home study within 1-2 weeks of their receiving our paperwork. If I do not hear from that company, we will be calling in exactly 2 weeks.
We are so upset over everything that has happened lately, but are still optimistic and anxious to meet our child. This will all be worth it in the end.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Our paperwork is done!
Hello everyone! We finally turned our paperwork in, so we are one step closer to getting our child. We have referred to it as our 133 page Bible, lol. On Thursday, our case worker called and said she would be in her office whenever we wanted to turn it in. So I went at 4:00 and spent an hour going over all of the paperwork to make sure we had everything.
So what happens now? We have to call the head of Resource Development, who is the second person to look over the paperwork to make sure everything is in there, on Wednesday to confirm she received the paperwork. She is located in Thomasville, which for those of you who are unfamiliar with south Georgia geography, is about 45 minutes-1 hour away from Bainbridge. Once we confirm that this person has received our paperwork, she calls the vendor who will complete our home study. Then, that vendor will call us to set up an appointment for the first home study. We will have to have 2 home studies. Both home studies must be completed within 30 days of each other. After the home studies are complete, we go for approval and then the fun stuff begins!!
On another note, Russell spoke to his oldest brother today and told him our news. They haven't always had the best relationship, but he was so excited for us. I can't express how uplifting it was for us to have the support of Russell's oldest brother and his wife.
Overall, everything on the adoption front is looking up!!
So what happens now? We have to call the head of Resource Development, who is the second person to look over the paperwork to make sure everything is in there, on Wednesday to confirm she received the paperwork. She is located in Thomasville, which for those of you who are unfamiliar with south Georgia geography, is about 45 minutes-1 hour away from Bainbridge. Once we confirm that this person has received our paperwork, she calls the vendor who will complete our home study. Then, that vendor will call us to set up an appointment for the first home study. We will have to have 2 home studies. Both home studies must be completed within 30 days of each other. After the home studies are complete, we go for approval and then the fun stuff begins!!
On another note, Russell spoke to his oldest brother today and told him our news. They haven't always had the best relationship, but he was so excited for us. I can't express how uplifting it was for us to have the support of Russell's oldest brother and his wife.
Overall, everything on the adoption front is looking up!!
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Don't fall for the myths about foster care and adoption
Happy Wednesday everyone! I just wanted to post this quick article that has some myths about foster care. It is such an uplifting article-enjoy!
Read it at http://www.thespectrum.com/article/20110707/OPINION/107070302
-Taryn
Read it at http://www.thespectrum.com/article/20110707/OPINION/107070302
-Taryn
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Our Life Story...
What an interesting past few weeks it has been. Russ and I have been consumed with filling out our adoption paperwork and getting everything we need done in order to move on to the next step in the process. We have had to fill out about 100 pages of questionnaires, dealing with every aspect of our lives you can imagine. I will share just a few questions with you that we have had to answer:
On top of that, we FINALLY got our Georgia driver's licenses last week! Most of our records and tests that we have needed to get done are finished. Our goal is to have the last bit of paperwork ready by Monday so we can turn it in and move closer towards getting our child.
- What was your childhood like?
- What were your pre-teen years like?
- What were your teenage years like?
- Describe your relationship with your parents as a child, and now as an adult.
- Describe your relationship with your siblings as a child, and now as an adult.
- What role does each person play in your family relationship?
- Please give us a physical description and layout of your home, including sleeping arrangements.
On top of that, we FINALLY got our Georgia driver's licenses last week! Most of our records and tests that we have needed to get done are finished. Our goal is to have the last bit of paperwork ready by Monday so we can turn it in and move closer towards getting our child.
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