Miscommmmmmm

Okay....yesterday..the day after I received the news that they were matching June 08 families, we got a corrective email stating that they had made a mistake. Correction, they are still matching families from May 08. Ugh..what a balloon popper. But that is not where the balloon popping stops. I received an email within minutes from our international agency to check with our local agency on the status of our homestudy expiration date. This is to assure that everything will stay up to date as we get closer. I believe they are only valid for one year, which means we are up for an update, but we have never received a call from our local agency. Anyway, I called them--our local agency--- yesterday and asked for our new social worker, Tracey. Our previous sw went on maternity leave earlier this year and will not be returning. Okay..you do remember that through this process we are on our 4th sw from this agency and our 5th sw from our international agency. That means 9 social workers!!! So, guess what they said?!!! "Oh, she no longer works here!!!". At first, I thought I had said her name wrong. So, I jumped in real quick, "Oh...I mean Stacey". .."No ma'am there is no one here by that name." "Oh, so it is Tracey? Wait, where is she? What do you mean she no longer works there? I havent received any notices or phone calls about this? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!!!!!". I ended up getting some very vague answers about how everyone that used to work in that agency no longer works there. I have been assigned an interim social worker because they are currently brokering out social workers to hold up the firm because there are over 80 families who are currently in their system waiting for little children. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!! It seems unbelieveable to me. This is like what happens to other people..not me. And ..of no surprise, my new social worker will be out of the office until Thursday, because she only works on Mondays and Thursdays. How convenient! So, let's recap. We are on our 10th social worker now. You can imagine why you might have found me a few minutes later on my bed crying. This has been an unbelieveable ride so far. All the stories that I have heard of other families sailing through their adoption process, we are not one of them. I have heard of others encountering bumps in the road. But let me just say this...in full faith and confidence...No matter what schemes the enemy may plan to halt, delay, discourage, or rip a part, my God is greater, bigger, better, smarter, and has been victorious in every battle He has ever been in. If my God can conquer the grave...death itself, then minor social worker changes and time delays will not stop His plans for matching us with our daughter whom He predestined to be in our family before I took my first breath. I am feeling better today about the whole thing..yup...better. Will I recommend this local agency to anyone?...uh...probably not :).

We are gettin' closer!!

"Families most recently matched with a child under 12 months of age with few known health concerns began their wait in June 2008."

This was the email that we received today from our agency. This news is tickling to my soul. We began our official wait 'on the list' in August of 08. That means that soon soon soon, they will be getting to the batch of families whose wait began in July and then August. woohooooo!
While the wait has seemed so so very long, and as we have seen other families who signed up after us already travel to get their little ones in ET, we have been diligently praying for wisdom and peace and patience. All the while, we have never felt led to leave our agency....despite the lengthening wait times. God matched us to our little sweetie before we even signed on the dotted line. And He knows exactly how to bring her to us. The closer we get, the more excited I become. The more I realize how none of this in our control. And that is the beauty of it all. For any of us to think that we might have been accidently placed in the wrong family has some revelations a comin'!! No matter what our circumstances, backgrounds, problems, upbringings,etc, there is such a plan over our lives that promises nothing but blessings. I can't wait to bring our beautiful little girl home and hold her and tell her that she is now in her forever family. Awh...sigh....I can't wait to see her face...to hold her hands ..to rock her to sleep and tell her how much she is loved. Soon we will be getting her picture. oh...joy!