Hi Kathy I am in Erie. We started the process in Dec 2004. We sarted the classes in September of 2005 I think. But we were really slow at getting the process going. Laziness I guess
But after we started,the classes are 10 weeks long and were awesome. I have taken care of children for a long time and have a back ground in Early childhood and I still got a ton out of it. It is hard work. I am assuming that it is alot of the same info. You definately get to know your spouse alot more or at least we did because they want to know your whole life story. I suggest taking the classes and then deciding, because they walk you through it. You can choose your age, sex, race. how many, siblings or not. We are certified for a sibling group of any race under the age of 5. We are young so we didn't want to foster children that we weren't old enough to have ourselves. So we finished our Classes in Dec, our home study was finished mid January and then went up for review by the board on Feb 12 which was a Monday and by Friday we had our first call. We have an amazing Home finder that I think rushed our case along and she also helps place the kids when they get calls from CPS so I think she moved us right along. It is such rush when you get that first call. I truely recommend it. It is like being on an emotional rollar coaster all the time, but you are making an impact on the lives of children. Let me know what you decide. I would love to keep in touch.
Dee