Saturday, February 28, 2009

The Beginning.....

Hi Everyone!
As most of you know by now, Glenn and I are in the process of adopting a baby from Korea! We are so unbelievably excited and thought starting this blog would be a great way to keep all of our family and friends up to date as we go through the process. (Also, reading other blogs has really helped us to understand what the process entails and what to expect. So, we will be very happy if ours can be a help to anyone starting this journey.)

Glenn and I had always talked about adoption. During the three years of trying to conceive (two on our own and one with fertility treatments), it was something that we discussed often. After a very long 2008 filled with a handful of treatments and three surgeries, we both knew in our heart it was time to move on. Our original plan had been to hopefully conceive our first child and then adopt our second. Well, God evidently had something different in mind for us. As soon as we made the decision to forge ahead, we both felt completely at peace.

Glenn started doing all of the initial research. We looked into all of our options which included numerous countries and domestic as well. Many of the countries we were not eligible for simply because we both had prior marriages and have been married for three years. (they require a minimum of five) We met the requirements for Korea and once we learned about their amazing program, we knew that this was the journey we were meant to take. We called a local agency to get their information packet and were planning to attend a meeting. When the packet arrived, there was no information about Korea. As it turned out, they were not accepting anymore applications. We felt so discouraged and didn't know where to turn to next. For a good hour we both sat on the sofa feeling quite defeated. Just then I heard a noise from my computer letting me know that I had a new e-mail. (I used to read and post on a fertility forum as I was going through the process....it was a huge support during that time.....and I had just posted something on an adoption forum asking for recommendations on adoption agencies in my area.) Well, just when we needed it the most, someone (that would be you, Jackie!! ) responded to my post and suggested the agency they were using. She couldn't say enough good things about them. How ethical they were and how amazingly quick they worked as well. We immediately did some research and the next day were on the phone to see what we had to do to begin!

It's been a whirlwind since then. Things are moving right along. It was almost a blessing that I was home recuperating from surgery all of January, because it gave me lots of time to gather all of the needed documents and fill out the piles of paperwork. It also gave me lots of time to be on the computer all day! All of the forums and blogs are so helpful and it's been amazing to me how people have just reached out to help since they know you are kind of clueless and still trying to figure it all out! It is definitely overwhelming at times and their kindness (Jackie and Angie!! ) has been truly appreciated.

Well, I think I have rambled on enough for my first post. Hopefully the next one will be telling everyone that we have our home visit scheduled :)