WE ARE MATCHED

It is hard to believe I am typing the words that we are matched but here we are!

We went active with the agency on January 8 and we were matched on February 18. We feel honored to be chosen by our birth mom to parent her son that is due June 25. I cannot believe that we will be parents to two sweet boys come June. It feels surreal.

I am not sure how much I am going to be able to blog this time around because Camden keeps us busy but I do want to try to capture the highlights of the adoption process.

The matching process was entirely new to us since we did not experience it with Camden. I was so excited to start receiving birth mother profile sheets and we received 2 the night we went active. I try to be very transparent in regards to our adoption process and I was definitely not prepared for what it would be like when reviewing the profile sheets. It was so hard not to feel instantly connected to the women and their stories. Some of their stories were completely heartbreaking. We presented to the first BM due with a baby girl and 1 week later, found out she chose another family. That was really tough on me and I did not expect to feel so sad when we were not selected. 

Craw and I chose to present to another BM that was due in June. We decided to guard our hearts this time in case she didn't pick us. I contacted the agency last Monday to see if she had made a selection and they told us she was still trying to make a decision but she did find out she was pregnant with a baby boy. I decided to surprise Craw and Camden with a small gender reveal just in case she did pick us. I also knew I couldn't keep it a secret so last Monday, Craw popped a blue confetti popper and it was fun to live in the moment.

On Thursday, I received an email from the agency saying that the BM had chosen us to parent her baby. I honestly couldn't believe it and it was such a fun surprise. We have spent the past weekend trying to grasp what life will be like with 2 boys. The baby is due in June and we will be spending the next 4 months preparing our hearts and home to love this new baby boy. We will travel to Florida once the agency notifies us that she is going in to labor. We are not sure if we will be allowed in the hospital due to Covid protocol so we will just take it one moment at time. Right now, our BM is 22 weeks and baby is the size of a red bell pepper. It is going to be fun following along in the app to see how the baby grows each week.

Adoption #2

I guess it's true what they say, as a first time mom, I had all the time to write my thoughts down on paper. Here we are halfway through our second adoption and I have yet to write anything. Time has been flying and life has been hectic with the holidays, quarantine, and the home study. 

So here is where we are...

We completed the home study and were officially home study approved on December 24th but we received the home study in the mail on January 2nd. It was a great mail day! Once we received the home study, I contacted the agency and we completed all of the paperwork for them and I also ordered our profile book. On January 8th, we were officially and active waiting family.

We submitted the paperwork and home study to the agency on the 8th around 5:30 pm and by 7:00, the agency had already emailed us two birth mother profiles. This is new territory for us because we never matched with a birth mother for Camden's adoption. Seeing the profiles of these beautiful women and their due dates made it feel VERY real and it was a bit emotional. Craw and I spent all weekend looking at those two profiles and daydreaming of the baby that might be ours.

On Monday, we said "yes" to one of the birth mothers and now we are waiting to hear back from her. It has been an exhausting week and I have tried to keep busy but this whole waiting game is an entirely new emotion for me. To be honest, it is really difficult to see the gender of a baby and the due date and not dream of that baby belonging to us some day. I am trying to focus on all of the good things and not get my hopes up but I would be lying if I said I wasn't anxious.

One night this week, I sat in the recliner around midnight and all I could do was pray for these beautiful women that are choosing life for their baby. I pray that they feel loved and safe and that they can feel empowered when making the best choice for their baby. 

So this is where we are...just waiting...and hoping...and praying! Hopefully, I will have more news to share soon.