Well...we have a fire marshall inspection on Monday. It should take all of 10 minutes for this one! Then we will wait for the Certified Investigator to complete the Home Study. It is all a waiting game at this point! Lots and lots of waiting! We are just living as normal, axiously waiting for a call that they have a baby for us. We will have to complete the home study first, but because we are willing to foster/adopt, we shouldn't have to wait too long. At least with the holidays on us, we will keep very busy during our wait. I've thought of volunteering at church for the nursery. It might curb my appetite for a baby, or backfire and make me even more anxious. I'm praying about it asking God for guidance.
!
Today is Sunday and Jorge is out mowing the grass, fixing my flat tire and helping around the house. He's so great about doing these types of things. I'm cleaning the bath and the rest of the house. Pretty boring Sunday! I LOVE IT! I know once we adopt we will not be bored any longer! We always find something to do now. Seems like we are always running here and there. Jorge and I promised each other we would make Sunday our day of rest. Not much resting going on here! Jose is at work and Chris is at a friends house.
Jose is working lots of holiday hours! Can you beleive Christmas is just around the corner? Chris alreay has his Christmas gift. He wanted a new cell phone. A $330 cell phone! How many 15 year olds do you know that need a $330 cell phone? Not our idea! We chipped in a little money for it, but that's it! CRAZY!! Jose hasn't asked for much. He's always a little harder to buy for. We're excited about spending Christmas in our new home. Jorge and I both have off the whole week of Christmas and we're looking forward to it. We hope to go cut down a tree right after Thanksgiving.
That's all for now!
The happenings of the Valentin Family as we go through life.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Election Day!
Today is a historical day in the United States. For the first time we will either have an African American or a woman in the white house. Something I'm for sure my parents would have never thought they would see in their lifetime.
We got up at the crack of dawn to go stand in line for an hour and a half waiting to cast our vote. We were so proud of Jose for voting in his first election! Jorge and I were so excited for him. He was just trying to stay awake in line! A very nice lady in line even gave him a McDonald's Egg n Cheese McMuffin. He certainly didn't want it to go to waste and kindly took it off her hands. At a few minutes after 8am, our votes were cast.
Now we are sitting in the living room watching the election coverage with both the boys. It is interesting to see how they think about the election and listening to their questions. Chris chose not to vote in school election because he didn't like either candidate. (Do I hear a teachable moment coming?) We let Chris know that if he doesn't vote, then he's letting others speak for him. Even if you don't like either candidate, you should make an educated choice to who will lead your country. No one should ever take their right to vote for granted! He blew us off and was just happy he got the day off school! He's 15! I keep telling myself that and I keep looking for the teachable moments.
Jose looks at it very differently. He is very excited to be able to vote and let his voice be heard. As always, he has an opinion about EVERYTHING! I love it. He's so much fun to talk to. Jose usually has me laughing about something.
In any case, I'm glad this is something I'm glad we are sharing as a family. As I look out into my own living room, I am reminded how blessed I am to have such great kids, a loving husband and yes...three hairy dogs! God is so good.
We got up at the crack of dawn to go stand in line for an hour and a half waiting to cast our vote. We were so proud of Jose for voting in his first election! Jorge and I were so excited for him. He was just trying to stay awake in line! A very nice lady in line even gave him a McDonald's Egg n Cheese McMuffin. He certainly didn't want it to go to waste and kindly took it off her hands. At a few minutes after 8am, our votes were cast.
Now we are sitting in the living room watching the election coverage with both the boys. It is interesting to see how they think about the election and listening to their questions. Chris chose not to vote in school election because he didn't like either candidate. (Do I hear a teachable moment coming?) We let Chris know that if he doesn't vote, then he's letting others speak for him. Even if you don't like either candidate, you should make an educated choice to who will lead your country. No one should ever take their right to vote for granted! He blew us off and was just happy he got the day off school! He's 15! I keep telling myself that and I keep looking for the teachable moments.
Jose looks at it very differently. He is very excited to be able to vote and let his voice be heard. As always, he has an opinion about EVERYTHING! I love it. He's so much fun to talk to. Jose usually has me laughing about something.
In any case, I'm glad this is something I'm glad we are sharing as a family. As I look out into my own living room, I am reminded how blessed I am to have such great kids, a loving husband and yes...three hairy dogs! God is so good.
On our way!
I can't believe I've only blogged once in the month of October. It was a very busy month for us. It seems as if each weekend was full of something to do. We spent two Saturdays in "Adoption Training". My mom and dad came during another weekend. We really enjoyed our time together with them. Well....let me fill you in.
We completed our adoption/foster training and turned in all of our paperwork. That was a major accomplishment in itself. It felt never ending! I turned it in on October 19th. We know the next step is to complete our Home Study. Every adoptive couple must complete this portion of the adoption process. So...we wait for a call to schedule an appointment with a Certified Investigator for a home study interview.
Last week I was sick and stayed home on Tuesday. I got a call from someone with the Health Dept. calling to schedule a home health inspection. I knew I would be off on Monday and made the appointment for that day. I went through the house like a white tornado making sure everything was clean, in it's place and looked its best. I thought for sure we'd fail this portion. I cleaned bath tubs, the boys rooms, the kitchen and even closets. With three dogs, I thought there is no way my house would ever be clean enough. I even considered re-organizing my walk in closet. It is the pit of the house. When the inspector arrived, she immediately walked in and started towards the kitchen, carefully looking around the floors and taking in the surroundings. I thought for sure I'd find a dog hair tumbleweed floating along the hardwood entry floor. I was so nervous. Fortunately for me, she was sooooooo sweet. I had all my ducks in a row. Outlet covers on every outlet a baby could reach, my chemicals were stored in a locked cabinet in the garage and a baby proof cabinet lock for under the kitchen sink. I thought, "What am I missing?" I thought for sure I was missing something! I have had friends tell me to make sure the laundry room doesn't have lint on the floor or behind the dryer. They knew someone who failed because of this. As usual...I worried for nothing. The whole inspection took a whopping 15 minutes. She didn't look in all my drawers and cabinets. She didn't even check the laundry room. She looked in the nursery and checked our crib, asked me a few questions about our house, the dogs, normal things! I couldn't beleive how easy it all was. So....big weight off our shoulders. Now we have to wait for the home study and the fire marshall to inspect the house.
The fire marshall will look to make sure the bedroom window in the nursery is a certain amount of square footage so a fully dressed fire fighter can get into the room through that window. Crazy...right? We had to purchase a fire extinquisher and are supposed to have it mounted on the wall in the kitchen. Okay....I doubt I'll "mount" it to the wall unless I absolutly have to. It is ready and available in the kitchen. We also have to have an evacuation plan posted in the house somewhere showing exits. You know...just like on the back of a hotel door. Mine is lamminated and on the fridge. Hotel Valentin! :0)
I'm busy painting the nursery and organizing clothes. We have been given so many clothes for a little girl! I feel pretty well set and ready to bring a baby home. We haven't gotten diapers or anything like that. Those are last minute items we can get once we know the age of the child. We're saving up for that day. I keep sticking money aside for all those last minute things. So far we have a crib, changing table, bedding, bouncy seats, a small swing and a few toys. Not to mention all the clothes! Oh...and the pack-n-play! We were given a great pack-n-play! Thank goodness for friends with babies! I was amazed at the other adoptive parents who are going through the process and are waiting till the last minute to get their crib and other baby necessities. I guess we're jumping the gun. We haven't even been approved to adopt yet. However, I'm very optimistic! I really don't see the approval being an issue. As always...we'll keep you posted on our progress.
We completed our adoption/foster training and turned in all of our paperwork. That was a major accomplishment in itself. It felt never ending! I turned it in on October 19th. We know the next step is to complete our Home Study. Every adoptive couple must complete this portion of the adoption process. So...we wait for a call to schedule an appointment with a Certified Investigator for a home study interview.
Last week I was sick and stayed home on Tuesday. I got a call from someone with the Health Dept. calling to schedule a home health inspection. I knew I would be off on Monday and made the appointment for that day. I went through the house like a white tornado making sure everything was clean, in it's place and looked its best. I thought for sure we'd fail this portion. I cleaned bath tubs, the boys rooms, the kitchen and even closets. With three dogs, I thought there is no way my house would ever be clean enough. I even considered re-organizing my walk in closet. It is the pit of the house. When the inspector arrived, she immediately walked in and started towards the kitchen, carefully looking around the floors and taking in the surroundings. I thought for sure I'd find a dog hair tumbleweed floating along the hardwood entry floor. I was so nervous. Fortunately for me, she was sooooooo sweet. I had all my ducks in a row. Outlet covers on every outlet a baby could reach, my chemicals were stored in a locked cabinet in the garage and a baby proof cabinet lock for under the kitchen sink. I thought, "What am I missing?" I thought for sure I was missing something! I have had friends tell me to make sure the laundry room doesn't have lint on the floor or behind the dryer. They knew someone who failed because of this. As usual...I worried for nothing. The whole inspection took a whopping 15 minutes. She didn't look in all my drawers and cabinets. She didn't even check the laundry room. She looked in the nursery and checked our crib, asked me a few questions about our house, the dogs, normal things! I couldn't beleive how easy it all was. So....big weight off our shoulders. Now we have to wait for the home study and the fire marshall to inspect the house.
The fire marshall will look to make sure the bedroom window in the nursery is a certain amount of square footage so a fully dressed fire fighter can get into the room through that window. Crazy...right? We had to purchase a fire extinquisher and are supposed to have it mounted on the wall in the kitchen. Okay....I doubt I'll "mount" it to the wall unless I absolutly have to. It is ready and available in the kitchen. We also have to have an evacuation plan posted in the house somewhere showing exits. You know...just like on the back of a hotel door. Mine is lamminated and on the fridge. Hotel Valentin! :0)
I'm busy painting the nursery and organizing clothes. We have been given so many clothes for a little girl! I feel pretty well set and ready to bring a baby home. We haven't gotten diapers or anything like that. Those are last minute items we can get once we know the age of the child. We're saving up for that day. I keep sticking money aside for all those last minute things. So far we have a crib, changing table, bedding, bouncy seats, a small swing and a few toys. Not to mention all the clothes! Oh...and the pack-n-play! We were given a great pack-n-play! Thank goodness for friends with babies! I was amazed at the other adoptive parents who are going through the process and are waiting till the last minute to get their crib and other baby necessities. I guess we're jumping the gun. We haven't even been approved to adopt yet. However, I'm very optimistic! I really don't see the approval being an issue. As always...we'll keep you posted on our progress.
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