As we have moved forward into the heat of summer, our number on the waiting list has stayed the same. It's a double edged sword, I've learned, as you get near the top: on the positive side, we are in single digits in the top 10. Since we began at #27 eleven months ago, we have made some progress and #8 feels encouraging. On the downside though, a month (or a few) can go by with no movement and people waiting for just one child can get referred AFTER us....while we stay at the same number. (Because we are waiting for two children, our wait has been longer than others.)
I had a friend from church last week, baby son in her arms, stop me to ask if I would photograph her son. As we were chatting, she said she remembered when she and her husband first announced she was pregnant, Ryan and I also announced we were adopting.
And there she stood, cuddling her adorable, 7 MONTH OLD baby.
And there I stood.
No little one in my arms.
No toddler tugging on my dress or crawling around my feet.
She was very empathetic as she talked with me about the difficulty of waiting so long for something. The reason it is so difficult is because its such an unknown time frame. Our agency does its best to give us estimates of how long the process takes, but not having an actual end date has been tough.
There is no due date.
There is no inducing two weeks-later plan either.
It's totally unknown.
Ever since we began praying about adopting, our hearts have grown to love these family members we don't yet know. As we prepare our older two for the changes, we discuss and imagine what life will be like everyday with 'the littles'. Who will take them in the hall if they are crying during church? Where will they sit at the dinner table? Who will sit next to whom in the car? We basically think about them being with us and anticipate their arrival into our family every day.
Every. Single. Day.
So as you can imagine, praying, dreaming, and longing for these little people and not knowing when they are coming is difficult!!
So as I wait for the God's perfect timing, I am brought to my knees for several requests:
- that God works in my heart to wait patiently and with a grateful heart. It's easy to feel discouraged, focusing on what we don't yet know. I want to keep my mind on all of the blessings - they are numerous!!
- that He has a hand of comfort on our little ones. My heart already breaks for the pain and loss they are experiencing.
- that God gives our family of four precious moments together before we become a family of six
Thanks for listening and thank you even more for praying for our family!
