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Find me at: www.angiewashington.com

Hello Faithful Reader! Thanks for clicking through to my little corner of the blogosphere.

All the changes are complete for my blog upgrade. My dear husband granted my birthday wish and gave me free reign to contract whomever I liked to do the design. I am really happy with it. I would love to know what you think, too.

If you have a feed reader that lets you know when I add a post then you will want to be sure that the address is: www.angiewashington.com (without wordpress.com at the end).

Thanks!

10th, 11th, Escuela de Padres and Medical

This week has been jam packed with adoption stuff! It has been fast, and I am grateful for that. Today the psychologist sat down with me for about 15 minutes and had me describe what I saw in various distorted scenes one by one. Then DaRonn took his turn. That was the last of the interviews / evaluations. Then we had to do the ‘escuela de padres’ (parents school). It ended up being split into two parts. The first part was with the social worker and the psychologist. They are so sweet!

They kept on saying, “What more can we say, you are great parents.” I was slightly embarrassed how they took a good 15 minutes and just talked about how impressed they were with our relationship, our family, our communication skills, how we have fun together, how romantic we are. Three things just made me want to jump up and kiss them both on the cheek. I would be lying if I said I didn’t have a tear in my eyes as they spoke.

First, they said, “Whichever little girl gets to live in your family will be very blessed.” Amen.

Next, they said, “We were so touched by what Angie said in the truck the other day when she explained that you would want a child that would come between Tyler and Gabrielle so that she would not feel excluded, rather as part of the family. That is so important that the child is made to feel like they belong.” This is especially encouraging because the age thing has been an issue. Our lawyer has intimated that it is necessary to be open to the idea of adopting a baby because the judge prefers to assign a child younger than the youngest biological child. We had prepared ourselves for that outcome. Now, with the interviews with these gals it looks like they might advise the judge to consider allowing us to adopt a girl of three or four years old like we had planned in the outset.

Finally, they both were speaking at the same time as they said quite seriously and yet with huge imploring smiles on their faces, “Would you consider adopting two or three children? Please, just two or three? Let’s just do it now. What do you say about two or three?” They finally stopped begging when we told them that we wanted to see how this goes but the door is not closed. We will be open to the idea. They clasped their hands together and were very pleased. My heart about burst!

After we were done with them they gave us a warm good-bye. They gave us professional yet affectionate hugs and wished us well. Then they ushered us into the office of the last member of the team, the lawyer. We made an appointment with him for later in the afternoon.

[Brief interlude for take out fried chicken for lunch at home with the fam and opening presents for my birthday. In addition to the blog facelift that I am in the process of getting my wonderful husband and kids got me: chocolates, a cool reading lamp, a jar of tiny green olives with pimentos, and a fancy-dancy coffee / cappuccino / espresso machine. Anyone want to come over to my house? My kitchen is a veritable coffee bar. Turning 33 rocks!]

So, then we returned to social services for the second half of parents school. The lawyer was lethargic and drab, to be quite honest. His youthful appearance had me hoping for a more interesting session. He flipped through the booklet containing the legal code for adoptions. He touched on some important points about our rights and the child’s rights. I was so glad that I had tried out my coffee maker before I left the house so I could stay awake. It helped, too, that it was only about 15 minutes long. He shook our hands and shewed us out the door.

Then we were off to turn in the medical reports. There had been a bit of confusion when the social worker told us we would have to present blood work on us and all our kids. The lawyer got it straightened out for us. Thanks for your prayers about that. The place we had to go was heck and gone on the other side of town. Our lawyer had also advised us on what tests we needed done at the lab. There were six or seven in all. So we came with results in hand. The doctor seemed pleased that we had already had all that done. It made her job smoother. She said she would have the report sent to social services on Monday.

That means that all the evaluations, interviews, classes and medical exams required are completed. The complete report will be done next week. They will send it on over to the judge. She will then assign our child and we can begin visitations as we finish up with the legal stuff.

Dare I say it? I do believe we will be able to meet our daughter in the month of July. I am trying to keep my feet on the ground and my game face on. I know we have ended this phase victorious. Now we are entering the next phase. What does it hold for us? Will then judge look favorably on us? Will things move quickly? Let’s pray over those points together, please. I really have felt that the prayers we have lifted together have made a big difference. Here are the points in bullet form:

• That the report gets made and sent quickly
• That the judge attends to our case quickly
• That we have favor with her
• That we will remain in peace yet not become lax

Whew! It has been a big day, a good day. I am so grateful to the Lord for His hand in all this. It has been amazing to watch. Truly amazing. And do you know what? The best is yet to come!

5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th Interviews

5th – DaRonn got to do his drawing yesterday. He has been evaluated, psychologically speaking.

6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th – At the second home visit yesterday afternoon the psychologist and the social worker took each of the kids off to the side and talked with them. The kids thought they were pretty hot stuff because they were asked what they felt about the adoption. The big kids were honest and chatted with confidence. Tyler just flirted. Hey, whatever works, right?

The ladies were pleased with the visit. They said they were trying to get everything done quickly so that they could present their reports to the judge. They said it would be a matter of weeks and we would have our girl. (!!!) Yes, they are that confident. Whew! Do you think that the oatmeal cookies I served had anything to do with it? The fact that they had seconds might indicate it to be so.

Friday morning we will wrap up the interviews with three things. Once more with DaRonn and I with the psychologist. Once more both of us with the social worker. A final sit down with the lawyer who directs the “escuela de padres” (parents school). As she was informing us of the agenda for Fri. AM I stopped her. I told her that I was under the impression that the “escuela de padres” took place one evening a week for a month. Here is what the psychologist said, “We have seen that you are experienced parents and that you are capable of parenting an adopted child. One meeting with the lawyer is fine.” It seemed almost like a formality that they were most interested in dispensing with. The social worker just smiled real big and nodded vigorously in agreement. Thank you God!

Wow, you guys, the prayers are working! Here are the updated prayer points:

• That ‘parents school’ would go smoothly
• That a discrepency with the blood work would be cleared up with no problems
• That the report being written would be turned into the judge and attended to by her quickly

Thanks so much folks! You are so awesome.

Wordy Wednesday

Third and Fourth Interviews

Today I participated in my first ever psychological evaluation. The psychologist left the room twice during the interview to help some co-workers with urgent issues. I imagine that means that she was not too concerned about my mental state. The whole of the evaluation consisted of me drawing a handful of pictures and writing a small story about one of them. I like drawing and I like writing stories, so this was a painless three quarters of an hour.

She then said that she wants one more meeting with DaRonn and I together. That will be Friday morning.

After I got done with her I asked if we could schedule the home visit. She said that took place with the social worker. She went to grab her. When the social worker came out of her office I asked when we would be able to do the home visit. She said right now. So we climbed in the truck and I brought her to the house where DaRonn and Tyler were. I offered some coffee, she accepted. As I prepared it DaRonn showed her around. Tyler flirted with her. We then sat down in the living room and she asked some economical questions. I then asked her if I could get the order for the blood work that I would take to the clinic. She made it out for us. Overall she seemed pleased and said some nice things about us. Whew!

Then she wanted to find a time this week that she could meet our kids. So that is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. I will go to social services and pick her and possibly the psychologist up at 4:30 and bring them here to our house. Good thing I love driving because she needed a ride back to social services as well this morning.

DaRonn goes in for his psychological evaluation tomorrow morning. When this week is through we will have had five meetings related to the adoption. Good stuff. I am glad it is rolling along.

Our lawyer said we need to get one more medical report done by a urine sample. Then we take the findings into the clinic. We might do that Friday afternoon. Then the people at the clinic will turn in their official report to the social services office.

When that is done the social services team will make a complete report of medical, psychological and social findings to present to the court. The judge will use these findings to assign us a child.

If you are still with us in prayer thank you so much. It helps so much, especially in a full week such as this one. Here are the points you can touch, if you don’t mind:

• DaRonn’s psych eval
• The home visit with the kids
• The final meeting with DaRonn and I together with the psychologist
• The medical report to be expedient
• The full report to be completed and given to the court in a favorable and timely fashion

I am really getting excited about all this!

Vlog Slang

@ngie vids

Vlog: Slang

Location: Cochabamba, Bolivia

Date: 12 of Jun. ’09

Secret Admirer

Not all traits are admirable. Not all people are admirers. Not long ago my husband informed me that I frequently admire others. Not ever having thought about it before I now agree with my husband; I am a secret admirer.

Inborn traits and skills acquired by considerable effort are usually picked out by my admirer’s eyes. At the top of the list would be:

1. Confidence
2. Chastity
3. Tenacity
4. Originality
5. Creativity
6. Dedication
7. Passion
8. A pure heart
9. Selflessness
10. Self control
11. Fearing God
12. Fearlessly loving people

There are other things that pop out of my mouth when eulogizing those people who happen to cross my path; these are just the first generalizations that came to mind.

Bruce Wilkinson in his book “The Seven Laws of the Learner: How to Teach Almost Anything to Practically Anyone” talks about a method that teachers can employ to help their students flourish not only in the subject they are learning but as an individual. The exact term escapes me so I will call it ‘blooming’.

There are a few simple steps to blooming another person. The first is noticing something that the other person does well or has put effort into. Next, you find a moment to address the person one on one or off to the side at least. You smile. You use the person’s name. You highlight what you noticed about the person as clearly and concisely as possible keeping it short and sweet. Up until now this would seem like a simple yet thoughtful compliment and nothing more. Then comes the next step. You tell the person how you see that this certain trait or skill will affect their future in a most positive way. You paint a bright picture of their future with well chosen words. When appropriate you can end the encounter with a meaningful touch on the arm or hug.

Blooming someone can aid them exponentially as they maneuver through this thing called life. Here is an example from this morning.

My oldest daughter was lounging around in my room. I asked her if she was bored. When an affirmative sigh was breathed from her shy smile I asked if she would like to make me breakfast. The smile grew, her eyes lit up and she asked me what I wanted. I dictated detailed delicacies and she ran off to get it ready. As I munched my scrumptious morsels I took a moment to bloom my daughter. Here is what I said as I smiled at her across the table, “Raimy, I really like that you got breakfast ready for me today. Thank you! You know, I think that God is pleased that you had such a happy heart as you served. In the future I think you will enjoy serving God and that will make your life more pleasant.” She went on to inquire about what that meant. We had a lovely discussion about God’s will and sovereighty in reference to human volition. Years from now she may not remember our little morning chat, but I am confident that this interaction will affect her.

Why not give blooming a try today? I would love to hear how it goes.

The Second Interview

Tuesday morning I wasn’t as jittery as the previous week. On our way down to the social service office we wondered what they could possibly want to know about us that they didn’t cover in the first interview. Evidently our childhoods are an important element for evaluating if we are suitable adoptive parents. For a solid hour they asked about our relationships with our siblings, our parents, and our extended families. They asked about where we lived, what our neighborhoods were like, what we liked to do as kids, what our adolescent years were like and what our teen years were like. They asked about what we learned from our parents that we would like to transmit to our own children. We laughed as we dug up old memories of pranks pulled on our siblings. Tears of gratitude moistened our eyes as we called to remembrance what our parents have instilled in us. We sighed in relief and smiled when they told us that the interview had come to a close.

Next week is a big one. Tuesday I will go in for a personal interview with the psychologist. Then Wednesday the psychologist will meet with DaRonn. Any day the social worker will visit our home. We both don’t have to be present for that, nor do our children. She just wants to see the space we have and the bedrooms. They didn’t mention an interview with the whole family. So that might happen, it might not. We are still waiting for them to give us the go ahead to present our blood work to the clinic they work with.

Thank you so much for all your prayers. They are really helping to keep things rolling smoothly. Here is the short list of prayer requests for this coming week:

• My psych eval.
• DaRonn’s psych eval.
• The home visit.

Thanks so much for walking alongside us in this process.

Wednesday Without Words

Tuesday Tip #20 – Vulnerability

Today’s Tuesday Tip comes to us from C.S. Lewis.

“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket- safe, dark, motionless, airless–it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.”

Photo by Lacy Inscho