The most important interview of my life.......

When Kari and I decided to begin an adoption plan to add to our family we chose The Adoption Option as our adoption agency. The Adoption Option is a collaboration between The Village Family Service Center and Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota.

The adoption process is very detailed and involves numerous visits with our adoption counselor and/or other staff at the adoption option. Our journey began with an informational session, then the Adoption Educational & Preparation Workshop. We are currently in the Assessment portion of the process. This includes taking a Temperamet Analysis and Parenting Inventory as well as the visits with the counselor.

Today, I had my first invdividual interview with our counselor. This allowed her to learn more about me in a one-on-one discussion. We talked about many different topics, a few of which include my family history, school history, medical hisotry and my parents. I learned alot about my parents as we disucssed their parenting techniques and my many experiences growing up. Thank you, Mom & Dad, for setting such a great example of how to be a good parent - it's going to be useful very soon!

Kari had the same individual interview yesterday. Next, in two weeks, Kari and I will meet wtih our conselor together to discuss marriage and additional family background information. After that, hopefully by the end of October, we'll be able to schedule our first in-home visits. If all goes as planned, we'll be added to the list of available adoptive families ready to bring a newborn into our home by December.