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It’s so easy to get very worried when a social worker comes to visit about a potential match-to clean the house, think of all the questions etcThis morning I went to an outdoor ice-rink and whilst there remembered how 10 years ago we were looking forward to meeting a social worker who was traveling over 100 miles just 3 days before Christmas to visit us and tell us more about two children we had enquired about..The day before her visit I got our older adopted sons –then aged 12 and 14 to help me clean the and tidy the house. –As a reward for their hard work and in a vain attempt to keep the house clean for the following days visit I then took DS1 and 2, a 15 yrold adopted son of a friend who was staying with us for a couple of days and 4 other 10-14 year olds to one of the first outdoor ice-rinks. . Having helped all 7 of them get their skates on and gone a few times round the rink with them , they started to complain they were cold.So off went to find a local cafe ( 5 mins walk) and after a long queue , staggered back with a tray with 8 hot chocolates and mars bars.As I approached the ice rink on of the teenagers came running towards me –“ds1 fell over and they called an ambulance and he went off in to hospital-R went with him” I dropped the drinks and ran to the rink-helped the remaining 5 teenagers get their boots off and found out which hospital they had gone to,Now this was in the days before most people had mobiles. I arrived at the A&E and spent the next 3 hours with 7 teenagers whilst waiting for DS1 to be seen by triarge nurse, have an xray and then get strapped up. ( he had broken a bone in his knee cap!) we played every word and pen and paper game I knew!) I eventually got hold of one of the parents of the other teenagers who came to collect 4 of them!! By the time we got home it 8 pm and there was no time for them to mess up the house!! The social worker arrived the following morning to find DS1 with leg strapped up being waited on hand and foot by the visiting 15 year old and two slightly harassed future parents for the children she was family finding for! ( we were going away just after Christmas with 4 other families and were wondering how DS1 who has ADHD would cope with being forced to be still for the time away!)]Amazingly DS 3 and 4’s social worker decided if we could manage 7 teenagers skating and a broken leg- just days before Christmas then adopting another two would be no problem!And as I write this cautionary tale there are only my younger 2 + two visiting teenagers in the house-BUT no –we are not thinking of applying for some more children!!