Harder but Better

The first two times we adopted, adoption in general was a lot different than it is today. What a difference 5 years makes. Things now are much more open and information is shared much more freely. With our first 2 adoptions, we never heard anything until we got the phone call that we had been chosen by a birth mom. From there on, you went into planning mode and were able to somewhat organize your life. This time around, there is much more contact between birth parents and adoptive parents before, throughout, and after selection.

We are dealing with the before aspect right now. We have received several emails from birth moms. Some of them seem promising, some do not. However, each one gets your heart fluttering. Any little scrap of hope keeps your brain hopping with possibilities. The stress level increases. Once again, I'm a slave to the computer hoping for a response or instant message. This part is much harder emotionally than it was before with no contact previous to selection. However...

It's an amazing experience to have these conversations with birth moms, to open their eyes somewhat to adoption and the blessings and love that are involved in the process. Some who have no one else to confide in or turn to will initiate conversation and we feel lucky to be the ones on the other side of the conversation. Yes, we are praying that one of these situations will work out for us. But, we realize that although we sometimes feel like we have it hard, these birth parents are going through something much more difficult and we empathize with them.

The roller coaster continues. We continue to anticipate, weather, and grow through the twists and turns.