News - This time it's the good kind

We had our first visit with a social worker today to start our trek into the world of foster care. It went very well. We sat and talked for about an hour about our backgrounds, history with children, parenting philosophies, and reasons for wanting to foster. She actually said in the end that she was pleasantly surprised. That she had initially thought our ages would work against us, but she was impressed with what she found. She even said she wishes there were more foster parents like us out there. Also, with our experience and backgrounds, she said we've got a really good chance at being placed quickly. Yeah, I'm bragging. Indulge me this once. It's nice to have something to be excited about.

There's quite a bit we still have to do to ready the house for our home study. We're childproofed, but not quite foster childproofed. We have to put all medications, cleaning supplies, and anything else toxic in locked containers. That includes things like shampoo and hand soap. (Which, to be honest, I think is a little silly. But okay.)

Fritz and I bought a new door handle for our hall linen closet that has a key lock on it. We figure we'll put the majority of cosmetics and cleaning supplies in it. We also got some locking tool boxes for medications and everyday toiletries.

We got a waterproof mattress protector and new pillow for the twin bed in the playroom. We're approved to foster up to 4 children, so we still need to get another twin bed and/or crib, as well as some back-up bedding. I'm hitting Craigslist and Freecycle hardcore, yo.

There were tons of clothes on clearance at Wal-Mart today for $1 apiece, so we bought one outfit in each size. They were nice comfy cotton t-shirts and shorts, so they'll be good for playclothes or jammies in a pinch. We're given a clothing allowance for each kid, but many times they'll come in the middle of the night or other inconvenient times, so we need to have something on hand.

Aside from that, we've got most everything we'll need. Certainly all the big stuff like a crib, cradle, bed, carseats, high chair, stroller. Also most of the less-necessary things that make life easier like an Exersaucer, Boppy, toys, books, rocker, dressers, art supplies, kids' dinnerware, etc.

Anything else, we'll get when the children are placed with us. We're open for birth-10 years, so I don't want to stock up on too many things geared toward a certain age, especially perishable things like formula, toiletries, and wipes. I may get a few cloth diapers, just to have on hand. And we could probably use a set of nail clippers, nasal aspirator, baby gum cleaner, etc. But we won't suffer for having to wait for those things until we've got our placement.

Our next step is to fill out an information packet, get fingerprinted, undergo a background check, get a doctor to sign off on our health, and submit 4 references.

Then the training begins in September. It's held over two weekends up north, about 3 ½ hours away. 32 hours of classroom time (oy, vey!), and we're done with that.

Finally, the home study. Basically, someone will come do a safety inspection on our house. They'll tell us what needs to be fixed, then come back to ensure it's been done. Then we're certified!

Unfortunately, with us both having lived out of state in the past 5 years, our background checks could take up to 3 months to come back. So we probably won't be done until the new year. But we're ok with that. It's just nice to have a timeline now.

And that's about that!