Dotting the "i"s and crossing the "t"s

This morning, Spencer's legal father relinquished his parental rights to LDS Family Services. That was the last hurdle we needed to make Spencer officially part of our family. It is a huge relief to have that behind us. It wasn't that he didn't want to sign, it was just getting his caseworker to call our caseworker back. James made a strategically placed call yesterday to someone he knows and, viola, we it's done.

We also found out that there was a Child Protect Services hearing yesterday and the judge, attorneys and caseworkers were all supportive of his placement with us. Not that there was much they could do at this point, but glad to have that behind us as well.

Now if we could just get the insurance company to add him to our policy, the world would be as close to perfect as we need right now.

On a whole, this week is going much better than last. Instead of molasses, it feels more like maple syrup. Still sticky, but the progress is coming a bit faster. A few less temper tantrums and a few more smiles and hugs. And just like A.J., Spencer's smile can light up this whole place.

Tomorrow, we are going to take him for a check up and medical evaluation at our clinic. It will be nice to get a doctor's opinion about his medications, development issues, etc. Next week we start counseling with him.

And tomorrow, we are also going to get new family pictures taken. A few times in the last week, Spencer has looked at our wall and pointed to our family pictures. I want him to know we think of him as part of our family when he looks at those pictures, even if he is not quite ready to do so himself.