3. Interviews and the final walkthrough

Alex here! After what seemed like an endless stack of paperwork came interviews, classes, and home visits I will reflect on the interviews and home visits here. When it came time to meet with our amazing licensing worker neither Sarah nor I knew what to expect. Sarah did a lot of online research and reading but there were still a lot of unknowns. Every state has its own set of rules and procedures so we were finding a lot of generic information. We both like to be prepared but how do you prepare for the unknown? Our licensing worker met us at our home one morning and all that we knew was there would be a preliminary walk through and then take care of some business. The walk through was very basic in the sense that she told us what we would need to pass the official inspection. Then we went over what would happen over the next few months. We also went through what paperwork we still needed. Sarah and I marked home visit one as a win and it felt great moving on to the next step.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mO-aEkfAt6w%5D

I found the interview process to be a little nerve-wracking. Again, how was I supposed to prepare for questions when I didn’t know what questions to be prepared for? I knew they would ask us some personal questions but beside that I was prepared for everything and nothing at all. Our licensing worker came to our first official interview ready to get to know Sarah and I and the roads that lead us to where we are today. We were both given a small packet to complete right then and there. One half was for me to answer about me, my family, and my upbringing. The other half should have been titled “How well do you Know Sarah?” We went through the packets immediately after completing them and talked about our responses. Fortunately Sarah and I are open with each other and there were no surprises. This told our worker that we know each other very well.

Our second interview was more situational. We were asked about how we planned on disciplining and how we planned to interact with our foster child’s birth family. It was a lot of what-if type questions. I deferred a lot to Sarah. Not because I did not want to have an answer but because Sarah has the experience I don’t. Along with situational questions she asked us about our schedules and about our community. She wanted to get to know us and where we would be raising the kiddo. South Milwaukee is a cute and quirky town but being in Milwaukee County we are not too far from anything we might need or an experience the child and us would benefit from.

Sarah had her individual interview next. She had her individual interview in her office at work over her lunch. Our licensing worker asked her to describe her home life growing up and how that affected her as an adult, what her experiences are with children, and how she felt about bringing a kiddo into her life. Nothing earth shattering or surprising with the questions. At this point we were told that we could be approved and have placement within a week after my individual interview!

Now we prepare for our final home visit. The room is ready, we checked our carbon monoxide detector and our smoke detectors, our outlets have covers, and our cabinets are locked. Now we wait for our inspection which takes place after my solo interview on Monday. Eek!