Adoption - Day 182

Happy Winter! There's not much in lieu of holidays right now, so a generic "winter" will suffice.

Well, I'm happy to say we are officially on the Adoption Waiting List! Hooray for unnecessary capitalization and for being on the list! It is finally, completely, 100% out of our hands. It's up to that right mother to choose us. Well, we know that all along it's never been in our hands. We know that this whole thing was scripted long ago by God to play out exactly as it has been.

So, now's the hard part, I suppose. All we do is wait. But, I have been talking with our program supervisor and she has told me that there are 8-9 mothers (the number is a moving target, since more mothers join the program and some mothers decide not to adopt all the time) that are about ready to make their decision about a family. Now, we do have to keep in mind that we are 1 of about 30 waiting families, so we could very easily not be selected, too. But the crazy part is that if one of these mothers does select us, we could be parents as early as late March. Um, excuse me did you say March? As in 2011 March? Yes, yes I did. Holy toledo it's time to get a move on! I've got to get a crib, diapers, clothes, curtains, bottles, nursery stuff, baby shampoo, lotion, car seat, stroller, a name we like, a middle name we like, formula, insurance plan, a will, a work plan, a......a........a.........(me.... running for hills)

...20 minutes later.

Wow, okay those pretty hills I can see out my window sure are a lot farther away than I thought. And I realized a jacket might have been a good idea. So, I came back. Back to reality. Back to my senses. So, I guess having a baby means you have to be prepared. I get that. I was just telling a girlfriend the other day that truly, honestly, I have this supernatural peace that I cling to. I mean seriously cling to, like it's going out of style. (Aside: Peace going out of style, let's hope that never happens. Except those peace signs. They can go. I thought they did, but they creep up and sneak into "fashion" every now and again just to remind us that yes, yes, peace can be contorted into something terrible and ridiculous). This peace I have soothes me during those times where I feel so incapable, so unprepared, so inadequate. I have this peace that God showers over me and says that this whole thing was scripted long before I even knew we would be adopting. He's never going to give me more than I can handle and He will always walk beside us through this. Of course everything is going to be okay. If that means our baby wears grocery bags for diapers for the first week, so be it. Disclaimer: Don't worry you CPS folks, I have no intention of putting our infant in a grocery bag. I realize the hazard they are. Sheesh, oversensitive hooligans.

So, we are once again finding ourselves excited. We realize there is much to accomplish before baby comes, not the least of which is finances to pay for this ordeal, but we are trusting that God's going to provide. I've mentioned this before, but I had a friend ask me about it last week. Yes, if you would like to give (and this is my: There is no obligation whatsoever clause) to our adoption fund, you can do so by clicking on the link to the top right of my blog. It will take you to a Paypal account that deposits directly into the fund. No, not our personal vacation fund, it deposits into a bank account called "Itty Bitty Ainley" and the account will only be used for adoption expenses. If this is something you are considering, please know that we are very grateful!!! For those of you who prefer to simply read the blog and journey with us, please know that your presence (even in a distant cyberspacey way) is deeply felt and so appreciated. Your support has been felt by the two of us with every step.

Well, it's been lovely checking in, but there's a heckovalot of things to be done so I'd better scoot. Oh, by the way, I did finish up the painting portion of the nursery, thanks to both my wonderful hubby and my dad who helped with putting up a beautiful chair rail.

Adios!

Ashley



PS - Yes, I realize these aren't stellar. I'll try and take one during the daytime to give you a better idea. It's supposed to be a sky blue and latte tan color with off-white trim. It looks very boyish, but with a cute pastel pink it easily swings girl. Oh, and the closet doors are going away and that will become a built-in closet with cute curtains. I hate closet doors.