Fingerprinting Field Trip #5

Yesterday we got our fingerprints done for the 5th time (2nd time for this adoption). No, we're not criminals, nor do we frequently exchange our hands for new ones. In fact, I'm pretty sure all 5 times showed exactly the same prints. But nonetheless, this is what must be done. This should be our last time ever to be fingerprinted since we're not planning any more adoptions, but I've learned to "never say never."

The last time we had to do this two years ago we had a 9:00 appointment. We had the boys with us (ages 4 and 2 at the time). I guess "appointment" is a very loose term because we waited for nearly 3 hours to get our fingerprints done. So this time, I asked my sister-in-law to babysit, thinking that three kids in the waiting room for three hours would not be a fun day. We drove to Baltimore for our 12:00 appointment. We walked in, and the waiting room (which was overflowing last time) was empty except for 3 other people. We filled out our information, and were told to sit down to wait. But Heath was called back before he even got to sit down, and I was called just a couple minutes later! The staff members were friendly and happy, and it was the complete opposite of our previous experience. So, not wanting to waste our opportunity of having a babysitter, we walked a few blocks around the Inner Harbor (it was a GORGEOUS day) and had a delicious lunch at Panera Bread before heading home. Instead of the torture it was last time, this time it ended up being a very fun day!

Now USCIS has all the information about us that they need, and we'll just be waiting for their decision on whether or not to qualify us to adopt a foreign child. Last time that took about a month from this point. After that we can submit our dossier and get ready to find our next daughter!