[Mrs. Krispe] Homestudy Visit Completed

[This post written by Mrs. Krispe.]

Today is the anticlimactic end of a busy weekend-plus. We kind of deferred Father's Day until next weekend so that we could focus on getting the house clean. I know, the social worker is not there to evaluate how good a housekeeper I am. Still, I wanted to show our home in its best light. Besides, it's been awhile since we did a good thorough cleaning.

I can't say that I got things really organized. It was mostly cleaning up clutter, then vacuuming and floor cleaning. And wiping down counters & mirrors & dusting... On Sunday I had Kris take Cerri to FunLand. They had a good time, and I could clean more efficiently. By the end, I felt like the house was glowing, kind of like Nemo after the French cleaning shrimp finishes with him ("Voila! He is clean!") That said, I did leave a few things undone -- a half-folded basket of laundry on a spare bed, a couple of items on the drain board. I didn't want to seem like a total perfectionist. (Whether I am or not, I didn't want to APPEAR that way.) In any case, I am fairly certain that we won't be required to take a Remedial Housekeeping course before being allowed to adopt. :)

Monday, Cerri was nicely tired out from the weekend excitement, so we managed to get through the day with minimal re-cluttering. We dined out, giving me a little break & continuing to keep the house in a state of maximum cleanliness.

The home visit seemed really short to me. The whole thing (including the face-to-face interview with a referrer) was completed in just an hour. The house tour was actually quicker than a typical walk-through when we have friends & family come over for the first time. She was favorably impressed of course (truly it is a fantastic house), but mainly she just took a VERY quick look in each room and jotted down answers to her set questions (number of bedrooms, bathrooms, etc). She didn't go down to the basement at all. Yes, it's unfinished, but I still vacuumed it, and there are things set up down there (a freezer, an area for overwintering plants with fluorescents & a timer...) No doubt we'll be storing some of our garden harvest down there on ventilated shelves. Still, I guess that's not really relevant to adoption.

We finished a few minutes before our referrer showed up, so we were able to show her the garden. When he arrived, they actually did the interview on our canopy-swing that faces the playset while Kris pushed Cerri on the swing and I weeded the garden. And then, just like that, she was finished.

As she said, the next time she sees us, it will be with our new child(ren).
Wow.


I can't fully grasp the idea. But then, it reminds me of what it was like when I was pregnant with Cerri. I knew it was going to happen, and I knew I wanted it, but somehow the whole thing didn't seem completely real to me until it really happened. It was pretty wonderful when it did. So, it's ok with me that I can't fully imagine it. That's probably better than having a bunch of daydreams and then being disappointed if it goes differently than I imagined it. I'd rather let things unfold in their own way & be open to appreciate each moment as it happens.