1st group session

This week we went to our first group "counseling" session. It isn't really counseling but more of a support group. After you adopt it is required until the adoption is finalized. But the groups are open to any couples in the process. We weren't the only couples waiting to adopt who attended but we were in the minority. We heard some fantastic stories. Everything from easy as cake to long drawn out processes. But they all had babies so the stories always had happy endings.The group was very supportive of each other and helpful with challenges. Since everyone is different places in the process there is a lot of experience to share.
Our process is getting close to the next phase. All the paperwork has been turned in. We will have to do some revisions to birth mother letter and then the web site.Once that is done we will start with some self promotion. So, if you are reading this you will probably get some letters to hand out. One of the stories we heard was how the adoptive mother and birth mother's mother had the same OB/GYN. The OB/GYN showed the letter to the birth mother and they ended up matching. So, the match doesn't have to start at the agency. Our baby can come from anywhere.

Seeing all those couples at the meeting with their babies made it real for me. This will happen. It is just a matter of time.

Long overdue

Well there hasn't been a lot of progress lately but I still feel like it has been too long since I posted. We are finally closing in on the last of the paperwork. It is a long and tedious process and over the past few weeks I realized that the actual paperwork is only part of the process. Each of the choices we have to make on the forms will have influence on the birth mother we match with. So, it isn't the actual check this box if you want this or fill in this form for that. It is the discernment process of what is the best choice for us. Can we spend X for more travel, or medical expenses, etc? How much is X? Can we accept and handle the challenges of a child who is A or B?
But with that said, we have made almost all those decisions and filled out all the forms. We are now down to finishing the birth mother letter. And that is progressing nicely. I made a lot of progress this weekend on the photos and formatting. With a little bit of writing we should be able to send it off to our case worker at the agency for review.

Life keeps happpening

We are still working through the process. Life keeps getting in the way of our planning. :)
the good news is that A's cousin took some great photos for our birth mother letter. We are still working on the letter. In case I have not made the challenge clear. Imagine that you have a 2 page full color letter to convince a birth mother that you and your partner as great parents. That is our birth mother letter. We want it to be honest and true but we want it to be appealing to the birth mothers.