The road to baby is not without stress. Whether that baby comes from your womb or the womb of another courageous woman, the road to baby isn't easy. When a baby is in your womb you might deal with morning sickness, weight gain, cravings, loss of sleep, uncomfortable feelings most of the time and on and on. Sometimes, as I deal with a totally different set of struggles on the road to baby, I find myself forgetting the struggles of tummy pregnancy.
This week the US government made official what has been rumored for some time... Starting May 9th families adopting from Ethiopia will have to be present for their child's first court date. They will then return home without their child and wait for an embassy appointment so they can make another trip to Ethiopia to bring baby home! MOWA (Minister of Women's Affairs) is still not very excited about this change, so I guess one never really knows how long this change will be in place. This is a blow for our family as it will cost time, emotions, and money. I also feel like the reasons for it are not totally just. To me, the agencies who are having the issues should be penalized, not everyone. I guess my heart breaks in the same way for the 1,000's of families longing to adopt from Russia who were told today that because of the actions of one woman the country is now closed. At any rate, we are powerless and will conform to the law.
Honestly, I have spent very little (no) time thinking specifically about how this will affect our family. We have some dear friends who are further on the journey and this new law will affect them in huge ways. We are praying for a pre-May 9th miracle court date. Only God can do a miracle like this! Please join me in praying and trust God knows the details that I can't share!
Our specific agency (which I so respect and appreciate) has not been giving out "healthy" (HIV and Hep -) infant referrals in a LONG time. I know that babies have come into their care, but the pre-referral paperwork is bogging them down (or something like that) and they are not being referred. Also, there have been many orphanage closures in a region of the country and this plays a part too. Please pray that one day soon we will see things turn around, and even that ground will be gained on the big waiting family list.
Through it all we see God's blessing surrounding us. We see glimpses of hope each day, and we experience joy with the struggles. We have MANY opportunities to practice surrender! The road to baby is never easy, but in the end... it is worth it!
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