"I think one day I'll probably adopt"

Really appreciate all your comments and support - thank you so much - I got very teary from it all.

Things move so slowly in Ethiopia, in part because they have frequent power outages, so internet connections are delayed. They're still working on the request and we hope to have an update before the end of the week. I know it's insane, difficult to get one's head around how all this works (or doesn't!), but trust that we really are doing all we can and unfortunately, this is just part of what is involved in international adoption(IA), particularly IA from an undeveloped country.

This whole experience has been so excruciating; I can't wait for the day where we can feel unequivocal joy about our child and adopting. I'm still trying to navigate my way around how best to communicate with all of you because I want you to know what's going on with the adoption, but at the same time don't want to alarm you or have you wondering if we're doing the right thing. Sometimes I think it would be better to journal instead of blogging, as this is very personal stuff, but have been inclined to post as of late, so we'll see... Sometimes Chaat posts, sometimes I do (you can see the author at the bottom of each post), but I may transition to the journal someday.

Perhaps part of why I'm posting lately is that I think it's important for people that have the interest in adoption to know the realities of it. I know when I was in my early 20's I used to casually say: "Yeah, I think one day I'll probably adopt" and I heard several other people say this too. It's easy to think it's a great idea when it's just a hypothetical, right? Especially when you don't have a significant other yet and you haven't experienced that visceral desire/need to procreate with your partner. And it seems to make so much sense in a way - I mean we're all aware of how overpopulated the world is and how many orphans are in need, right?! But then the reality of it hits and I gotta tell you that out of all the people I heard say they may adopt someday, I'm the only one actually doing it. Cuz it just ain't that easy and most people don't end up doing it unless they've run out of other options. This experience has made me think that I'd really like to do adoption advocacy work someday when all this settles, and we've settled with Bedilu, because it outrages me that something so beneficial to orphans and willing parents is so difficult. Despite all the obstacles thus far, I'm STILL excited (and nervous) about becoming a parent this way.