Today was our final home study interview. I must say, having a social worker come over to inspect your house gives you great incentive to clean like you have never cleaned before. We're talking all of the rooms have been dusted, vacuumed, closets organized, everything put away where it belongs (not hidden or piled somewhere else), and windows washed. And all at once (these things have never lined up so perfectly)! Phew!
Good news and disappointing news came out of the visit. The good news is that we are once again working with the international adoption coordinator (she was in Africa for the other home study interviews we had). We get along with her really well and are looking forward to a long relationship with her through Bethany. Part of the visit was to work through a timeline so Brian and I could have a very general and very loose set of expectations for how long this process will take. This is where the bad news comes in. We were told we could expect it to be another 18-24 months before we bring our kid(s) home.
I have to be really honest and tell you—this was a big blow. I anticipated it to be a while, but not up to two years from this point. Today has been a mixed bag for me. I see how God is giving us time to take care of some things that would be difficult with kids in the mix, but it is still hard to look at this path knowing it just doubled in length.
I would just ask that you be praying with us as we discern what we are to do with this extra time we have been given. We are also still praying that paperwork and court dates would go quickly and smoothly, but with that timeline in mind, it will help soften the blow if that doesn't happen. Who knows? We may even hop on a plane to South Africa and experience the culture firsthand before we make the trek back to pick up our child(ren). We will just have to wait and see.