Yes it really was 160 pages of paper work!

We really did turn in 160 pages of paper work last week.  You might be wondering what in the world would make up 160 pages . . . . well here is a little of what we had to turn in.

* Monthly budget
* Checking account statements
* Savings account statements
* Retirement account statements
* Copy of credit card statements
* Copy of mortgage statements
* Copy of last year's tax return
* Copy of car insurance policy
* Copy of home owner's insurance policy
* Copy of birth certificates, marriage licence, and social security cards
* 6 references
* Employment records for your past three jobs
* Family history/relationship questionnaire that was about 20 pages long
* Physical exam and release of all medical records
* Permission to do a background check
* Agreement to a discipline policy
* And one of the most important parts was what type of child we would like.  We had to indicate if we wanted a boy or a girl, which race, any physical handicaps, any mental handicaps, and any health issues.  Right now we are open to everything.  We don't want to close the door to any child at this point.  We would like to learn as much about a child and their situation.

So there you go - that is a list of almost everything we had to turn in.  We are glad to have this part behind us.  It was a challenge to get all those details pulled together.

Several times in the process of the paper work Brett and I would joke that to have a your own child you don't have to fill out any forms.  It make us think that it might not be a bad idea for some people to have to do a little paper work before they have a child!