Money, money, money....

My second interview is over! :) One more and my homestudy will be complete. I just got my Dossier checklist from my agency in the mail today too. I don't understand why notarized isn't enough, but for EVERY document I have they have to be CERTIFIED by the state they originated in. Hmmm... that stinks! Now I have to collect the following: an adoption petition (a letter saying I want to adopt), an original birth certificate, an original divorce decree, a criminal clearance report from my local police, an employment verification letter from DPS, a notarized/certified letter from my doctor saying I'm in good enough health to raise a child, a letter from my bank, copies of the last 3 years of my tax returns, proof of medical insurance, proof of medical insurance for my adopted child, three notarized letters of reference, three notarized letters of power of attorney, and 8 passport photos of me. All of the above have to be certified and notarized. Certified means that I have to take the notarized document to the secretary of state (to the state that it was notarized in) and they have to certify the document? Wha?? Yes. What a pain in the buttocks! Ugh.

But my interview was fun. We talked a lot about my childhood and who I am. Easy. We will do the "home inspection" next time. I am getting a new refrigerator tomorrow. So the home inspection will give me motivation to clean and organize the "junk room." One week... can I do it?

I also looked at new kitchen cabinets today. Some are very very pretty. And very very expensive. On one hand, if I'm spending all the money to redo the kitchen I should use good materials. On the other, I'm spending all my money on redoing the kitchen and don't have much extra for the materials. It's an odd place to be!

I'm still working on securing my loan. I have two possible places. It's hard to guesstimate how much I'll need for the remodel, adoption, and travel to Ethiopia. Hmmm...