And the wait has begun. . .

Adoption seems like one big waiting game.  I can already affirm the fact that a paper pregnancy is much harder!  We have already been waiting to adopt longer than all three of my pregnancies combined! 

30 months ago   Brad and I recognized our mutual call to adopt (pursued initially through foster care)

12 months ago    I started being pulled toward international adoption

9 months ago     We began the process with our agency

15982 miles       The distance our dossier travelled from our home to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (with stops in Kentucky, Utah, and Washington, D.C)

11/11/13             The date our dossier arrived in Ethiopia and we officially got on the waiting list

159                     Our first waiting list number (will be updated the 1st of each month)

Now we simply WAIT. . . and prepare. . . spiritually, emotionally, financially, prayerfully. . . we educate ourselves for the next phase.  We update our paperwork as it expires (can you believe we have already done that with one of our clearances?).  The bulk of our adoption expenses are yet to come and when they do, the timeline will be much less flexible and closer together.

Some have asked how long our wait will be.  The short answer is we don't know.  There are currently 158 families ahead of us on the list.  That means every time our agency gets a child or children who meet the criteria to be adopted, they start at the top of the list and locate the first family on the list who is a match (each family has their own criteria for a "match").  Many families never get to #1 on the list before they receive a referral.  We were originally told the wait was estimated at 15-18 months once we were on the list, but that wait could be shorter or longer based on multiple factors.  This fall some of the paperwork requirements in Ethiopia changed and that has resulted in the referral process to come to a standstill, but that will hopefully pick up soon.

Micah is still praying every night for her baby brother and/or sister. . . and when I say she prays nightly, I mean she NEVER forgets her sibling in Ethiopia but has forgotten to pray for her other family members quite frequently (much to her father's disdain).  For 3 years old, she has been so patient.  She has only asked once why it is taking so long and I've have asked that question myself more times than I can count.

Please continue to pray for our family and our patience!