It is odd to think about child care for your future child–most women may check out child care options when they are expecting, and if that is the case, they have an anticipated due date and an anticipated date when they will need to have their child enrolled child care. Exploring child care for an “unknown” child–before you have been matched with a potential placement, feels odd. But a little leg work early on can reduce stress later on.

As our questions were answered, we journeyed from uncertainty and ignorance, to confidence and passion about adding Dimples to our family; however our challenges were far from over.

Two Fridays ago, as I dropped off yet another immigration packet update at our agency, I stumbled into an adoption placement. The director of my agency and I shared smiles during the paperwork hand-off as a young couple became parents for the first time, just a few feet from me. During my brief, two-minute visit, I watched the faces of those standing in the room, so filled with joy and hope, absolutely awe-struck while gazing at this three-month-old infant.

As technology has progressed, so has our contact. For the past 18 months or so, I’d say about 75% of our contact has been via text messages. We tend to meet in person about every other month. It’s a low stress, low pressure sort of affair.

Adoption is sometimes called a “paper pregnancy”, due to the lack of a visible baby bump on the mama-to-be, and due to the amount of forms required to proceed with an adoption. Procedures for each agency vary a bit, but every potential adoptive family in the US must go through a home study

Angels were singing. Birds were chirping. The huge weight that had been sitting on our shoulders since a fateful day at the RE’s was gone. WE were going to do this.