rock stars

My social workers are rock stars.

My friend, Galina, called my Russian sw today, at 1:30 p.m. and explained that the school had moved me to a new flat and I needed a homevisit as fast as possible; that a child was waiting.

My sw came at 3:00. That was barely enough time to drive home from Galina's! After 30+ minutes in the car, I found a great parking space close to my building. (That is a miracle in and of itself at this time of day and year.) I made a mad dash to the shop for a bottle of wine to give my rock star sw as a thank you gift (and believe me, I was THANKFUL!), tidied up, cleaned the cat box, changed clothes, took out the trash and found her waiting on my front step fifteen minutes early.

AND she said it didn't matter if my apartment was not clean (I was pleading "new flat" before she entered). All that mattered was that my baby had a place to sleep.

She asked me about Sasha and, after looking at her sweet picture, told me she was a good, kind girl. ;>

In as long as it took me to copy the statement requesting the visit (that she'd prepared and brought with her) she looked around, complimented the size of the rooms, and was finished. We LOVE her!! Her report will be ready Monday. Monday! Or maybe Tuesday.

AND, my US/international sw (who lives in Germany) said she'll take the information I sent her today (who did the visit, size of flat, etc.) and plug it into her update without even waiting for a translated copy! (I'll send her one, nach.) That means we can be finished!

I have to re-do my fingerprints (tomorrow) and type up a letter to accompany my lease (in Russian) for my principal to sign (also tomorrow) and then...that's it. ВСЁ!

If the judge asks for more, we can get it without looking shifty.

We already gave a shout out to Barbara Parker, who is a bureaucratic rock star.

The final rock star in today's post--Dr. Victoria Khoudoulis who did Sasha's in-country exam. She's already written the letter that I need to get Sasha's visa and handed it off to my rep in-region. (For the record, this was my call, too. Agency still is hemming and hawing about what to do.)

It's like We are the World or Band Aid or something around here. Rock stars everywhere you look! (OT: Anyone else find it ironic that Band Aid was mostly Brit musicians...and the Brits call band aids plasters?)