The hardest part of adoption is the waiting!! I have known this a long time now - oh, about 22 years! LOL I can't believe it has been 22 years since we held our first sweet baby in our arms at the adoption agency here in Houston, at LDS Family Services, and looked into Andrew's gorgeous dark brown eyes. It was love at first sight!
Two years later we were back to waiting for a little girl to join our family. That took another two years to happen and 18 years ago our darling Katie joined the Mason family. The four years we spent waiting for Andrew was agonizing, as we wanted a child so badly! We were so thankful to have him! Then after two years we applied again, and the next two years was again stressful and loooooonggggg. But Katie was worth the wait - she is a jewel!!
For six years we were content and happy, until that adoption bug struck again! We then waited two more years to get the call about our Chrissy!! She came at just the right time, and has blessed our family in ways that are unfathomable!
Interestingly enough, after adopting Chrissy the "waiting" was over for us! Stephen came along just 18 months after Chrissy and we didn't have to wait at all for him!!! We got news of his impending birth and adoption availability just days before he was born! Before we knew what hit us, we had a new little angel in our family! Those were some crazy days, I tell ya! Two babies, only 18 months apart, both with disabilities. We were so happy, but so busy!!
Then our family was transferred to Alaska. That was a fun time too! And while we were there, we again were "surprised" by an adoption call. In 2005, our precious baby Emily was born and a month later was all ours!! I was kind of liking this "NOT WAITING" thing! It was much more fun to be "surprised" with a baby!!
But alas, here we are again......waiting......a bit different this time! We have applied to adopt from the state of Texas from the foster care system. All our other adoptions were private agencies. It has been an interesting process applying through a state approved agency. We had to do a new home study (our sixth one), re-take the adoptive parent classes (called PRIDE), re-certify with our First Aid and CPR, go through FBI fingerprinting and background checks, and complete a host of paperwork!
Now it is all done, and we are approved, and here we are......waiting......
Even after 22 years, the waiting is not fun! We have inquired on several different children, and are still waiting to hear back on some of them. Some have our home study and are reviewing family home studies to find the best match for a child. Others are not even that far in the process. One possibility was looking great and then at the last moment the foster parents decided they wanted to adopt the child. I was happy for her, as she had been in their home since birth and she was nearly three! But sad for us, as we were back to "the wait"!
"Patience is a virtue" and "Good things come to those who wait" are my mantras lately. And in the meantime, we have lots to keep us occupied! It will happen when God mean for it to happen, and when it does, the child/children we receive will be meant for our family!! Funny how that works!! And it always does work! So excited to see what God has in store for us next! But I do so hate the "waiting"~~
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