Emily:Today I bought our fire extinguisher, smoke detectors, and some child-proofing stuff for the home study on Monday. I have the rest of today and tomorrow to get everything ready. Namely, make curtain rods for the TV stand, get a box spring for the bed in the nursery, and generally make the nursery less office-y. I feel fairly confident about the rest of the apartment, but this room makes me tired every time I think about it :)
On Tuesday we spent the night in Durham so that we could get our fingerprints done at the USCIS (US center of immigration services) on Wednesday morning. Praise the Lord that the USCIS office was in Durham, and we could just spend the night at Graham's parents' house! I was so excited/nervous about the appointment that I woke up at 4:30am and couldn't sleep. Once we got to the office for our 7am appointment I was so jacked up, and poor Graham was so sleepy, the contrast was laughable! The office didn't open till 8, no big deal, we had a lovely experience overall. It's a running joke amongst adoptive parents that the personnel at these offices are VERY serious, bordering on grumpy. Homeland security is no laughing matter. However, I'd like to report that I made one laugh!!! I was asking him if we were set to leave, and if he needed the form in my hand or if we were done with it. He assured us we were done, but suggested "you may want to keep it for your own records, though." Bless his heart, there was so much concern in his voice, he had no idea who he was dealing with. I assured him "OH, I KEEP!!!" We laughed, it was miraculous.
Today I shipped off:*Graham's FBI clearance letter (I'm getting my fingerprints redone for the second time tomorrow)
*All of our employer letters/rental income letter
*our family/apartment photos
*2 more reference letters (they're all in!!!)
*and proof that the government received our I-600a petition (to bring an immigrant into the US)
We're getting there! I have to admit I'm a little over it today. I think we're both ready to be done with paperwork and officially "waiting". God has blessed us so much. From an empty parking space in front of the court house downtown with time left on the meter, to getting FBI results back in 1 week instead of 13, to finding pillows that match our couches perfectly for free, to getting physicals and insurance letters (the two things everyone said take the longest) almost as soon as I ask for them, it's seems He's laying this out for us. Praise the Lord!!! I want to give Him all the credit He deserves in front of everybody!
So, all we have left to send in is:
*my FBI clearance
*my birth certificate (waiting for it in the mail)
*our home study and associated documents
*our bank letter/financial statement (waiting on it from the bank)
*and our USCIS approval letter (waiting for it in the mail)
We're so close!!! Yay! Thanks for caring! And a giant THANKS! to everyone who's helped us along the way, given encouragement, written a letter!!! Thanks to our family! Thanks to Lee, Liz, Katey, Sam, Marty, Parks, Dr. Holdsworth, Roland, Christy, Samantha, Shelley, Debra, Susanne, Natalie, Kate, Sandra, and Maria!!! And thanks to everyone else for all the love!!!
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