Home study #1....check!

Last night was our first home study visit. I was SO nervous, I got home early so I'd have time to clean up, as if our HOURS of cleaning the night before wasn't enough! Before they arrived I had the stuff for brownies, sugar cookies, and cream cheese dip all out trying to decide. Of course Scotty was finishing his "HW" last minute so I was left to stress over "to feed, or not to feed?".

I chose peanut butter pretzels in case you're interested, they were a hit.

We spent a lot of time talking about our families, our relationship, and how we arrived at our decision to adopt. Both of the ladies who came were so sweet and kind, especially with my unique family situation, compared to Scotty I sounded like a Dr. Phil guest! (Not in a bad way. My family is all incredible!! I just have A LOT, and the way they're connected to me requires a detailed explanation)

We talked about what we want in a child, age, race, how many!!! That thought never crossed my mind! She said sibling groups and I think I choked on a pretzel, lol. So we are looking for baby under a year old, either boy or girl, Caucasian or Hispanic.

We ended the night talking about E-mealzcouponing, and toilet paper. I emailed our social worker today about some things and told her that by the time they left I felt like they were friends visiting!

We also found out that they set their fees on a sliding scale based on your income and we are going to be paying A LOT less than what we were anticipating! YAY GOD!

Our agency works with the state too but I think our meeting helped solidify that we are going in the right direction.

Love to all! T & S


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A fork in the road...

We have arrived at a fork, we are in a pickle, we have a conundrum.

Here is our dilemma: private adoption or child welfare adoption through the state?

Private Adoption pros & cons:
Pros...
-You choose the age, newborns are definitely available. Possibly a relationship with the birth mother during her pregnancy.
-BM are carefully screened, we would have a very transparent view of the BMs pregnancy.
-Our agency will guarantee most of the money even if our adoption should fall through.
Cons...
-Cost of adoption starts at $15,000 and goes up. $15K would be a LOW cost.
-Since a BM chooses you, there is potential to have a longer wait. (it could also move more quickly)

State adoption pros & cons:
Pros:
-FREE. That's right, it's free. There may be minimal fees but not even close to a private adoption.
-Due to the high need of families it would move much faster than a private adoption.
-There's a huge need, google heart gallery. It is so sad and unbelievable how many children don't have families.
Cons...
-The average age of a child adopted is 8. Under 5 years old is rare, and at any given time there are 300+ families waiting for a toddler.
-The odds of being chosen for a toddler are very small.
-Kids up for adoption are in the foster care system, which means they will have been through emotional trauma and have special needs to connect to a new family.

So, we need to decide ASAP. We have been seeking God's plan throughout our journey, and right now we really want to continue on the path He has for us. One other prayer request is a financial one. Our homestudy is scheduled for this Thursday and on our second visit we will have to pay half of the cost. ($750) Scotty is working on a 5k to raise money but we seem to keep running into roadblocks. He's persistent and very resourceful, so we are pressing on! If you have connections or are interested in sponsoring something for the race, email or call one of us.

Thank you for following our journey, and we are so thankful for your continued prayers!

Tera & Scotty

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