Georgia peach

I spent last week talking to between 15 and 20 agencies, consultants and adoption attorneys. We got a lot of good information and learned a little bit about different state laws. We were torn for about a minute between an attorney that was referred to us in River and a consulting firm in Georgia. The attorney is significantly cheaper, which was very appealing. While she seems very knowledgeable, I just didn't see us getting along. She has a very strong personality and was borderline condescending. I think my personality is borderline (yes Jon, just borderline) sarcastic and I don't respond well to condescending!

We decided to go with a consulting firm in Atlanta. They are basically the middle man. In this case a middle man is good. Jon and I will start working on our family profile. Its basically the story of us with a lot of pictures. Once we are done with the home study, Courtney (our contact) will be able to start "showing" us. When she learns of a baby that meets our criteria (a girl), she will bring us the social and medical history of the baby, let us know the state and agency the mom is using and let us know what the fees will be. If the situation is something we feel comfortable with, we will give the ok and Courtney will give our profile to the birth mom. The birth mom will then either select or reject us.

There are 2 really good benefits to using a consultant. First, we will be presented to moms all over the US, not just in Ohio (or the state what ever agency we picked is located). Second, since Courtney has one set fee regardless of who we go with, when we adopt or how much we pay, Courtney can be completely honest about the agencies. If a mom is working with an agency that has a poor reputation, she can tell us with out worrying about any ethical or contract issues.

Another really good advantage is time. Since Courtney works all over the US, the wait for a baby is SIGNIFICANTLY reduced. In my last post I mentioned we could have a baby by the end of the year. With Courtney, it is very possible we will have a baby by the end of summer!

We're trying not to get too far ahead of ourselves though. We will most likely be moving Sam into Bens room so we want to make sure both boys will be ready to share a room. We want them to understand (as much as they can) the adoption process and what it means to have a new baby in the house. We want to be comfortable with where our girl is coming from and what kinds of things she has been exposed to. We want to be sure that we can afford the process. Since things could be moving significantly faster, we wont have the next year to continue saving money. The cost will be pretty close to the original Ethiopia cost. It will all depend on the state the birth mom is in and what the agency fees will be.

Right now we just have to finish the home study, start our profile and continue to pray for patience.