Adoption Obsession

"God sets the lonely in families..."

Psalm 68:6

I'm just so happy. So very happy. Yes, that's my view of the dining table... My glasses, my cup of coffee, my HUGE binder and my stack of books. If only I could just let all of my obligations go for the next few weeks and just snuggle up and read! But, life doesn't work that way does it?

This week we attended a wonderful two-day seminar at our adoption agency. I cannot say enough about our wonderful agency and its top-notch staff. Not only are they providing such solid and valuable information every step of the way, they are truly partnering with us in bringing home this precious child. It's amazing to see their dedication, not only to the orphans and their caregivers around the world, but to the families who are eager to welcome them into their families. It's clear that they want to see God glorified in every aspect of this. They also have monthly events, support groups, educational opportunities as well as great ways to partner with them in ministry. Additionally, they offer support groups and retreats for adopted children. I pray for anyone reading this who may be considering adoption now or sometime in the future, that you would find an agency that offers this level of support. It's such an indescribable blessing!

We learned so much over the past two days, covering all areas of adoption, including not only how to prepare ourselves but also how to view the process through the eyes of the birth parents and most importantly, the child. We looked at the issues of bonding and attachment, developmental issues, sensory integration issues (very interesting to me), medical, speech and language development, meeting the child for the first time, and bringing them home. We also discussed something I think will be so fun... creating a "life book", or a story book for your adopted child telling his or her story. There are some wonderful resources for that here. I'm not a scrapbooker by any stretch, but I can't WAIT to do this!

The best part of all...we met in country-specific groups and had a fabulous time meeting the other families, who I already feel are kindred spirits. One of our agency's staff members just returned from our child's birth country a couple of weeks ago and we saw an unspeakably precious video of the staff and children in the baby home there. My eyes brimmed with tears as I realized that I could be looking at our child!

So, it's official. I'm obsessed. This adoption all I'm thinking about, reading about, planning for, and cleaning house for (our final home visit is Monday!) I think that emotionally I've held much of this at arms' length for awhile because I was afraid once I started crying I might not be able to stop. (And I don't cry pretty.) Now, I just don't care. I am a blubbering idiot. I'm crying right now as I type this. I have at least one other child on the other side of this world, and it's okay for me to be emotional about it and be passionate about bringing her home!