Somewhere along the line I moved to updating people by email and not too sure why... My email circulation list is now getting so long which is greatthat people are actually interetse din what we're doing... So this blog is purely to update with posted emails...

It all re-starts with the visit from the adoption manager:

6th November 2006

Well we got around to having the big meeting with the adoption boss today - apparently it is what is termed a 2nd Opinion Visit and becoming increasingly mandatory by various social services after the homestudy has been completed and before you go to panel. The man was really nice and bearing in mind all the defensive preparation James and I had been doing he was really positive.

He basically said our biggest problem was going to be Panel's disappointment at losing such a "resource for domestic adoption" but as we never wanted to adopt domestically... It seems the biggest prep we can now do for panel is to get a very strong clear argument in our heads as to why intercountry and not domestic.

Apparently we are expected to attend our Panel - they meet beforehand to discuss the documents and then we are called in with our social worker to stand before panel and answer their questions. We are then asked to leave whilst they discuss us and then we are called back for their recommendation that day. Even if it's a definte yes, after the decision maker makes his decision (7 working days after panel) it still takes a month before they can send the papers to the Dfes as they need to include a copy of the approved minutes of the Panel meeting (which can only be done at the next panel....)On the plus side he did say they had seen some marked improvement from the Dfes and they had actauul got some documents turned around in 6 weeks!!! Didn't want to listen to that as it seemed way too positive. If we can get 3 months I'll be ecstatic.We are booked into panel on Jan10th and 1st in the waiting list for 13th December - would be great if we could sneak in to the Dec panel and get some good news before Christmas.Actually alot of his questions in the 2 hour interview was on how we would handle bullying, diversity, Identity etc so the course was actually really useful. We also came up with a great view - he was talking about how adopted children may not be as academically achieving as birth children and how would we cope given we were both fairly bright/educated. We told him that it wasn't the final level of attainment that gave us parental joy but helping the child reach each one of their own little steps of achievement that gave us the greatest pleasure. He loved that and furiously scribbled it down...So there you go, another one of our own little steps of achievement accomplished today - now we just have to wait for panel....