The Friday after receiving my referral, Iris (agency director) called asking if I wanted to officially name the baby since she did not have a birth certificate yet. I did not feel prepared to name the baby, but I thought if I did, the act of doing that would make her “more” mine. Over the… Continue reading Adoption – What's In A Name
Sometimes, with my disability, I find myself worrying and making things worse than they really are. Don’t get me wrong; there are times things suck and time to worry and plan and to be prepared. But then, there are other times to just push through - literally! In this particular situation, it was Christmas Eve… Continue reading Just A Little Push
My documents were submitted to the Guatemalan consulate on 2/5/2003. Iris, the Agency Director, immediately contacted me – that very day – about a potential baby. It was hard to believe that the process was truly beginning. I was excited and nervous all at once. I received Alice’s referral picture on 2/10/2003. She was one… Continue reading Adoption – The Referral
After the home study, I completed the dossier. This was a package of notarized documents that I mailed to the Secretary of State for approval and then it would go to the Guatemalan Consulate, before going to Guatemala. This process took me forever. I still remember the day my friend Lee came over to my… Continue reading Adoption – The Dossier
The application, the home study, the dossier...there was so much paperwork to complete! It took me forever to finish the application. I woke up one morning at 6 a.m. sat down and typed out the answers to all of the questions… but two. The first related to my financial information, which I needed to document… Continue reading Adoption – The Paperwork!
The funny thing about adoption is that a series of small decisions made along the way determine the outcome, which child becomes yours. Your choice for the agency and birth country and the timing of the paperwork. It truly is a miracle that it all works out. I had thought about adoption for years. At… Continue reading The Decision To Adopt
Anyone who has experienced loss, knows that we often have to hold onto two opposite emotions at the same time. A dear friend expressed this situation so honestly recently on her Facebook page: "This week my daughter's volleyball team won their state championship. It's been a year and a month since my son took his… Continue reading Capacity For Joy and Sorrow
Finding Abilities 