Paperwork, Photos, and Pack Rats

L's social worker, M, visited last week.  It's been a while and she was amazed by how much L has grown.  Now that he's coming up on 18 months, he looks so much more like a little boy than a baby.  Not to mention that he has started to walk!  He still has that just-got-off-the-horse-look when walking, but steps are steps. 

We love L's social worker.  She's very on top of things and has a gift for explaining a situation in a way that lets you know exactly where you stand.  The court is still waiting for L's biological father's death certificate from the Medical Examiner. They were told last week, by a reliable source, that it would be sent within the next two weeks.  Once the court receives the death certificate, it can issue a decree legally freeing the boys- L and his brother. When that's done, M will begin L's adoption paperwork.  We have our next meeting scheduled for the end of March.  At that point, she hopes to have the paperwork for us to sign and then she can submit it to the court for finalization dates.  The goal remains for us to finalize in June. L's brother's family hopes to finalize in March since he has already been with them for some time. 

I asked M about the possibility of getting photos of L from his first foster home where he lived until he was six months old.  The earliest photo I have of him is from when he was 11 months old. His second foster mothers weren't big picture takers. M was able to get us L's footprint and id bracelet from his hospital stay after his birth.  I know these are priceless treasures and we are so grateful to have them.  However, I would really like to have some early photos for his lifebook and for those rotten autobiography projects in elementary school. M is going to get me the address of the now-retired FM#1 so I can contact her.  FM#1 took care of L's brother for the first year of his life, until he was placed with his adoptive family, and I know she took lots of photos then.  L's brother's mom shared them with me last weekend when they visited.  I'm hoping FM#1 also took lots of pictures of L.  She has downsized and moved since taking care of L and my fear is that any photos might have been tossed.  I pray she's a pack rat.