Interviewed By a Stranger....

Yesterday was our home study. We were both a bit stressed even though we had been through a home study before. The house had to be just right. At the last minute we started to think about all the things we might have forgotten. We forgot to change batteries in the smoke detectors...... we didn't have carbon monoxide sensors..... the dogs were dirty and the back yard was a mess! And then 1PM came.... and we waited..... and waited. At 1:15, we started thinking about our previous communication with the home study agency. Had we given them our address? We went through old e-mails and realized that we had NOT. The social worker was coming in from Ft. Worth and surely wouldn't leave without our address. We were a bit worried when..... the doorbell rang. Ahh, she had gotten our address from the criminal background forms we e-mailed to her.
So the interview went well. She asked many questions about our relationship, our parenting, why we wanted to adopt, support from family and friends and so on..... We seemed to have a lot in common with her. She and Leah were born in the same small town, we had children of similar ages and similar issues, medical and otherwise. So she talked to the two of us for ~2hrs and then spoke to both of us individually. How were we brought up, how is our relationship, what things do we struggle with in our marriage? Then she interviewed the kiddos.... all 7 at once without the two of us present. 15 minutes later she was done. After all of the stress and worry about the house, she spent only 5 minutes walking through it.
We felt really good about the home study. The four hours of discussion felt more like old friends talking than being interviewed by a stranger. One more major milestone completed! Today we finalized our USCIS (United States Customs and Immigration Service) paperwork and dropped it in the mail. Unfortunately, we've already exhausted our funds and had to borrow a bit of money to pay the $830 USCIS fee. Tomorrow is our passport appointment. The last thing we need to do before vacation is to get our signed physicals. Our previous pediatrician finally found the kids shot records so we will pick them up tomorrow and deliver them to our new pediatrician. She should sign the forms right away and then we're off to our doctor for our final physical appointment. Although we are both healthy, the doctor seemed to have some concern about Leah's back pain and arthritis. We are praying that that won't cause any problems with signing off on our health.
The ball finally seems like it's rolling now that we've completed a few major milestones. We're so excited about the next steps and are still relying on God to carry us through the entire process. We are so blessed to have the opportunity to adopt again and are praying that God will clear the path before us. Proverbs 3:5-6 keeps coming to mind.... Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight. We are trusting in the Lord and will continue to glorify Him throughout this process.......