First home study meeting
Yesterday we had our first meeting with our social worker at LCFS. We didn't sleep well the night before...butterflies in our stomachs & worries in our heads. Of course, it went fine. We were afraid that we'd have to have "fully grieved our infertility," but she just wanted to be sure we were working through it and that we weren't TTC any more. She said "Adoption cures childlessness; it doesn't cure infertility," which seems like a useful distinction. Most of the meeting was just going over why we chose adoption, why international adoption, and why China. Basically it seems like they want to make sure you've actually thought about what you're doing.
So we left the meeting with lighter hearts and a heavier stack of paperwork. Illinois has some particularly stringent requirements, which is good for the kids, so we're all for it. But it means we have to be fingerprinted several times and get 2 different versions of the I-171H that everyone stresses about. After the meeting we went out for a (late) steak-and-egg breakfast, and then came home & wrote up a complete to-do list based on the info from the social worker and the dossier kit from CCAI.
Sample item: "Take Ahab to vet for rabies shot; get certificate"
Number of items on the list: 45!
