Finding my smile....

Ok, so in my feeble attempt to help a friend find HER smile... I found this old post of mine while looking through some old blog stuff.

Check out where we are... TOO funny today!

I often feel like I do not do a very good job at communicating ideas to people, so I come up with little analogies.

Today... it's the Adoption Road Trip.

If I were to describe the adoption process in these terms, I think most people can identify.

I keep getting the question "how soon till they come home"... well...read on.

Deciding to adopt = "Road Trip!!!!!"

Choosing a country/agency/home study social worker = Deciding on the destination
Home study paperwork (essay questions, birth certificates, marriage license, scheduling doctor visits) = Washing laundry, hauling suitcases out of the attic, getting the oil changed in the car

Home study visits, more paperwork = packing suitcases, loading up the car

Dossier almost done = "Everyone go to the potty ONE more time!"

Mail the dossier, Mail the I600A = "Here we go!"

Dossier arrives at agency = "Honey, did you lock the back door?"

Dossier approved! = First road sign... 3000 miles to destination

Waiting for dossier to get to Ethiopia = Everyone ELSE in the car is asleep. Car sickness creeping in.

Dossier in Ethiopia, Get fingerprinting appointment with FBI =Quick stop at rest area, have a snack, potty.

Waiting for court date = "Moooommm! She's looking at me!!" and "Well, he won't share his gummy worms!"

Court Date and waiting for news = "Ooohh... only 300 miles till the world's largest ball of string!"

Finding out you have a 2nd court date = Dog vomits in the car, no place to pull over, no rest area for 50mi.

Finally passing court = Overnight stop at hotel with free room service and indoor waterpark! Woohoo!

Waiting for travel date = Back in the car, wondering what that smell is.

Getting a travel date = Road sign "100 miles to go"! Start to calculate arrival in minutes instead of hours.

Packing, going to the airport, boarding the flight = Exit ahead!

Arrival and meeting your child for the first time = You have finally arrived!

There are pot holes, there are traffic jams, there are flat tires, there are wonderful moments of bliss that make you glad you get to take this trip...but its and unpredictable timeline under ANY circumstances. Sometimes, you just have to take an unexpected potty break.  

It's not a perfect analogy, but hopefully...someone out there who has not adopted before and doesn't know much about the process for us or other families will understand that at some points on this adoption ride, parents are not getting updates as frequently as they would like (raising my hand here...),  don't know why it's taking so long, are on the verge of tears at the thought of having another delay... and as much as we fully welcome your questions, thoughts, prayers and concerns... sometimes needing to say one more time that we don't have any new news... well, its like the "Are we THERE YET???" coming from the back seat every 5 minutes.