So much paperwork!

Almost two weeks ago I received the orientation packet from my adoption agency. It included the contract and a fee schedule. The morning of December 18th I left work and went to the UPS Store to get everything notarized. When I got home I realized I had missed getting two documents notarized (there were about 14 places to sign on the contracts!) so on my way to work that evening I went back to the UPS Store, got those two documents notarized, and then I shipped everything to arrive the next day, which was Friday. I also had to send my first payment to the agency. As it turned out, there was bad weather which delayed the delivery of my contracts until Saturday. The UPS driver left my contracts and my check at the front door of the agency. I was nervous for two days until I knew the agency had the contracts in their hand!

I got an email Monday, December 22 stating that they had received my contracts and that everything looked just fine. I was so relieved.

I have contacted a home study agency in Dallas and they will be completely my home study. They sent an application and about 20 forms to be filled out. It's taken me a while to get them all done. I think I have two pages left to fill out, one of which is references and I wanted to check with certain people before I put down their name and address to make sure they didn't mind writing a letter of reference for me. The references can't be related to me so I picked 4 very special friends.

In the next few days I'll send the paperwork back to the home study agency and have an orientation call with them so that I know what to expect next. I also have an orientation call scheduled for this coming Monday with my case manager at the adoption agency so she can tell me what to expect in the coming months. I know there is a lot of collecting various documents, but I don't know yet what else is involved at this point. I'm anxious for Monday. I'm not the world's most patient person, which is not good, because there are things that are out of my hands - like weather, holidays (and offices being closed), and dealing with sending and receiving documentation from the government - both the US and Nepal. I have to get a passport too so I'll be ready to travel when the time comes to go get my daughter.

So while I wait, I am doing a lot of decluttering and getting things ready for a garage sale. It is boring work but it keeps me busy when I'm at home. Once I get my baby's room cleaned out, I'll start painting and getting the nursery ready. That part will be fun! I've already bought the bedding, even though I don't have a crib yet.

I had a really nice Christmas yesterday with my family. This used to be a sad time of year for me because there was always an emptiness within me. But this year was different. This year I wasn't sad. This year I didn't feel empty. This year I felt at peace. Hopefully next Christmas will be the best one ever! I'm not getting my hopes up that I'll have my daughter home with me by then, but it would be so wonderful! You just never know how quickly (or slowly) things will move in adoption.

With yesterday being Christmas, I got my first baby gift. My friend Linda sent a pink bib that says "I love Mommy". It's so cute! She also sent some tiny pink and green sunglasses (I absolutey love pink and green!). I can't wait to take my daughter to the beach! I hope she'll love it as much as I do!