My Love Affair with Craigs List

Ever since I felt the panic settle in about getting everything together for the baby sooner rather than later, I have frantically been searching Craigs List (countless hours a day every day) in pursuit of thrifty baby purchases :)  You won't believe it but there is so much wonderful stuff out there, gently used and still in good condition, for just a fraction of the retail price!  Earlier this week I contacted a nice young lady about an Eddie Bauer travel system she had posted for sale.  It was the exact same one I had picked out in the store (except in black instead of brown), so I inquired about it.  She was hoping to sell the car seat, stroller, and car seat base for a total cost of $100 - that's over $150 in savings!  So we emailed back and forth all week and agreed to meet in the Lowe's parking lot in Salisbury this morning to check it out.  Sure enough, it was as fabulous as I expected!  The stroller has a little "wear and tear" but nothing I couldn't go in and spruce up myself.  So we bought it!  We made our first official big baby purchase today!  It felt great!  I'm looking forward to all the other little treasures that are still to come :)

Eddie Bauer Adventurer Travel System in Westlake

Bring In the Media

Last night we received the news that our Phase 1 funding had just been submitted and approved and we have officially set sail on the adoption ship!  We were informed that our next contact will be with the media team and they will provide us with the list of questions and information needed to get started on building our websites. 

Looks like we're officially underway!

Baby Harrell's First Purchases!

Okay, so while I was at the store shopping for a friend's baby shower this weekend, I stumbled upon these little treasures that I just couldn't pass up for our little one on the way:

First we have an adorable Paul Frank paci set (2 pacifiers and a clip) and then a super soft teddy bear blanket (just big enough for strollers, carseats, etc.).  I just couldn't resist the urge . . . :)

We're Moving Right Along!

We were finally able to submit all of our loan documents to the credit union last night - what a time intensive excercise that was!  Chris had been working on them for a couple of weeks already, but last night we sat down for 3 hours just to finish them all up!  It was A LOT of information, a lot of paperwork and legally binding signatures (lol), but all that matters is that it's officially done!  We should have all the funds in the bank by the end of the week!  This means that the marketing team should be contacting us as early as next week to spend time creating our webpages together (that the birthmothers will look at) in hopes of grabbing someone's attention and being matched as soon as possible!

In the meantime, we are busy coming up with ideas for the nursery, acquiring all the necessary baby "gear" (furniture, stroller, car seat, etc), and registering for baby showers!  FINALLY we get to actually feel excited about the opportunity of bringing our baby home!  It's been a long time coming . . .

Additionally, I shared the news of our adoption with my boss yesterday.  I was SUPER nervous about the timing of this news, but very relieved when he seemed genuinely happy and excited for us.  He asked some basic factual questions and ended with a dialogue around the timeline.  I told him it could be anywhere from 2-6 months and that I would be on maternity leave for at least the full 12 weeks given (through the Bank).  Other discussions will be had in the future about how to cover my role while out, but at least he knows now and I don't feel like I'm carrying around this secret anymore!  I figured, given the uncertainty of a timeframe, the most advanced notice I could possibly give him would be the best option.  So, a huge relief for me!

NC Background Checks

Yesterday we got our state background checks back - everything's clear and we are good to go!  Still waiting on the FBI checks but hopefully the turnaround time on those won't be too long.  We are chugging right along with our homestudy "stuff".

We're in a holding pattern with the loan docs at the moment but hopefully we'll get all of that stuff completed and finalized by end of next week and we can move right along to the next phase of the process - marketing!

The Harell's vs. The Cabarrus County Sherriff's Department

Okay, so I knew to expect a certain level of frustration along the way, but today's experience (so far) takes the cake!  Today we had set aside some time to obtain our background checks and fingerprint cards from the local police station.  Already, it's a pretty crappy day.  It's pouring down rain and neither of us feel inclined to leave the comforts of our office / home to visit the local government officials.  However, in hopes of keeping the momentum going, we braved the rain anyway.  I had spent some time on the phone with our homestudy agency earlier today just to clarify what it was EXACTLY that we were supposed to accomplish on our little fieldtrip downtown.  Our homestudy rep, Anne, told me that we needed to acquire 2 copies of our state background checks, FBI background checks, and fingerprint cards.  Included in the original packet of information she had sent over a few weeks ago were the applications for both the state and federal background checks.  So it appeared we had what we needed there to begin compiling the 2 packets of information required by the state and FBI.  On our way to the police department, as I'm reviewing the applications with Chris in the car, we read that both background check applications will require payment in the form of a money order or certified check.  Great!  Now, in the pouring down rain, we have to make a pit stop at the bank to obtain 4 money orders (oh, and btw, the fingerprinting area of the police department closes at 4pm on Friday's and it is now 3:23pm).  As we are sitting in the bank parking lot getting ready to go in, we review what it is exactly that we need to ask for once in the building.  There was a lot of confusion about the number of money orders we would be requesting, so Chris placed yet another call to Anne for further clarification.  Once everthing was clear, we walk into the bank and FORTUNATELY there was no line to wait in!  So we were in and out in 10 minutes with all the certified money orders we needed to move right along.  We head straight over to the police department where they inform us that they don't do fingerprinting on Friday's.  Next thing I know, the words "no, i called and spoke with someone this morning" come rolling off my lips in a completely intolerable tone!  (At this point, I really am rather frustrated with this whole charade!)  I am told that I must have spoken with someone at the Sherriff's department and that I would need to drive over there in order to get my fingerprints taken today.  UGH!  So off we go.  When we get to the correct building, we take the elevator up to the "records department" floor during which Chris gently reminds me that my expectations for customer service should be low from this point forward.  And boy was he right!  The lady that was assigned to us was a down right terror!  She couldn't have been more rude or condescending if she tried any harder.  I felt like screaming out "this is for an adoption, lady!  I'm trying to do some good here!!!"  After barely giving us the attention/guidance we deserved for this request, she handed us 2 forms to complete.  She asked us for the name and address of our agency but never indicated why she needed that information.  So we go about filling out our applications with the basic identifying information (name, address, phone number, business name & contact information, etc.).  We happily turn it back in to her (as it finally feels like we're getting somewhere in the process) to which she takes one glance at the paperwork and says "Mr. Stephen Harrell, remember when I asked you for the name and address of the agency?"  Insinuating, of course, that "business name and information" on the application implied that of the agency, not our employment information.  The entire application asked specific questions about us personally, so naturally, BOTH of us thought that "business name and contact info" meant "name and address of where you work".  So she returned our applications to us to be filled out "correctly".  FINALLY all the preliminary crap stuff was over and we were approved for the next step towards obtaining our fingerprint cards.  But it took everything inside me not to say "would it have been so hard for you to tell us that that is why you asked us for our agency information?  Because perhaps it isn't self-explanatory on the application?  Or maybe I should remind you that it's your job to be of service to the tax-paying citizens of Cabarrus County???  But I digress . . .

The good news is, we now are in possession of: 4 fingerprint cards (2/ea), 2 executed state background check applications, 2 executed FBI background check applications, and 4 money orders. Now, all we need to do is create 2 packets (1 for the State and 1 for the Fed) and mail them off!  Good-freakin'-grief!!!