And now good news...

Well, friends, I have some good news to report. (By the way, I am feeling much better and less discouraged, so thank you for your kind words and your PRAYER!)

First of all - the VA child abuse clearance has arrived! That means NC is complete and VA is complete! Come on, do the dance, people! :) (Have you seen Evan Almighty - "I now command you to DO THE DANCE" - very funny!)

Secondly, in talking with my home study agency we discovered that the MD child abuse clearance seemed to be missing. So, I decided to play the squeaky wheel today and called, and called, and called (leaving messages each time). I guess I annoyed someone enough that I finally got a live person and she said, "Yes, I will find your report and call you back within 30 minutes." She was awesome! About 15 minutes later, she called. (I kept my phone in my back pocket so I wouldn't miss the call and dropped it twice as I was answering.) She had located the form which she promised me would be completed today (Tuesday) and in tomorrow's mail. I have a sneaking suspicion she rescued it from someone's in or out box where it was languishing.

I'm so glad I called and I'm so glad I was a squeaky wheel. Yea for squeaky wheels! Yea for Keisha, my hero in MD!

So, the only outstanding form is Erik's criminal background check for MD (mine is already cleared). He's headed up there soon to take care of that.

We do have one more minor hoop through which to jump for the home study, but it is just a double check of our financials (insurance, savings, checking, etc). In the past the home study agency did not have to have copies of these statements (they only verified employment, pay and tax returns), but for the Hague, they do. So, we have to get that together. Not a big deal, just needs to be done.

Pray for the Lord to redeem our time, which seems in very short supply lately. The days FLY by around here.