Decisions, Decisions

We met with our adoption social worker last night and discussed the prospect of domestic african-american infant adoption. We also requested information from our infertility clinic on IVF. I have both folders of information on my desk...both seem like the right way to go, and we are having a really hard time deciding which path to take.
If we go with IVF, we'd most likely do their money-back guarantee program (which involves three fresh and three frozen cycles). If we do domestic adoption, we'd probably go with one of two agencies in Georgia that our social worker deals with. The amazing thing is, once we would turn in our app. and create a lifebook, the wait is anywhere from one week to one year. Most families seem to wait about 4-6 months, and the baby would be a newborn. One agency has you go there once the baby is born, but if the mom changes her mind, you are already there and have to give the baby back. The other agency has you come down two weeks after the baby is born, once the birthmom has signed over her rights. This agency requires that we belong to a church and include a statement of faith.
We are both pretty 50/50 on the issues right now, so we are taking another week or so to weigh all our options.
We'll keep ya updated! :)

Lots of Changes: A New Path

Many changes have taken place this week...Ok, LOTS of changes have taken place. Eric and I thought long and hard, and realized that we just can't keep waiting for the Ethiopia program, and have decided to withdraw. So, what does this mean? Well, we are still figuring that out. We have both been awakened through this process to the fact that we really want a baby, yet don't want to have to miss out on those early months of their lives. The fact that we could have ended up with a baby that was 12 months at referral was in the back of our minds, but I don't think we ever really sat down and thought about what we would be missing if that were to happen.
Our options now are to get on a list for domestic adoptions, or try IVF. IVF was something that we had originally rulled out d/t our worry that it wouldn't work and we would be out all that money. However, there are several places that now offer money-back guarantees, and we are seriously starting to consider this if we decide to veer away from the adoption route.
While we silently mourn the baby from Ethiopia that could have been, we both know that a family will happen for us one day, one way or another.
To those of you who have been waiting with us through this journey, we are so grateful for the support and hope you will follow us onto our next endeavor.
All our love,
Leah and Eric

Sigh.....

I think I spoke too soon with my last post. We just received an email from our international adoption agency today that stated the current wait time for a referral is 12 months. There have been unexpected delays, and these could continue, but they will know more in a few months. So....for our situation, we can now expect a referral around April, 2009, and would travel around July, 2009.
Sigh......... :(

Referral timeframes

Just to give everyone an update on where we stand as far as when to expect a referral, the courts are still closed for the summer in Ethiopia, and not many referrals have been happening since June or so. They said that regular referrals should start happening again in September. Right now, there are still people waiting for one that have been waiting since October, 2007. We have been waiting since April, 2008, so it will probably still be awhile. I am thinking that around February 2009 is the most likely time for us to get a referral, and then the wait to travel is still anywhere from 10-15 weeks from then.
Just thought I'd update everyone and will post more when referrals start up again and we get a better idea!

Birthday/Anniversary Trip

What a sweet husband I have! For our 6-year anniversary and my 30th B-day, Eric suprised me with a trip to Algoma, WI this past weekend! We had a lot of fun, swam at kohler andrae state park, stayed at the Britannia (a bed and breakfast run by real brits), ate at Penguin city pizza (not quite sure where they got that name, but were told by a local that it's a good thing God gave us butts so we can open the door when carrying pizzas) :)

We also biked 14 miles on a trail in Algoma, and it was a VERY beautiful trail. On our way home, we swam at the beach in Two Rivers (well, we tried to swim but only lasted 15 min. since it was lake Michigan and was COLD!!!!). :)

Tomorrow it's back to work for us, but since it is my 30th b-day tomorrow, I bought tickets to American Players Theater, so we should have a pretty fun night watching a play in the woods.

TIRED OF WAITING...FEELING BLUE

Wow, can you believe we've made it to the half-way point in our wait for a referral? I thought the waiting would get easier each month, but to my surprise, it's getting harder and harder. Oh, and my earlier post about how I was excited to have the distraction of orientation at work to occupy my thoughts and help the wait go faster?? TOTALLY NOT WORKING!! :) If anything, working up there has had the opposite effect on me. I work around babies all day, so that's all I think about at work. Everyone at work is talking about the babies they are taking care of all day, about 4 or 5 nurses are starting to come back from maternity leaves, so people are talking about their babies, there are three or four pregnant people working on the floor right now, etc.... You get the picture. Every time I watch tv, there are commercials with babies in them, there are babies and pregnant women at the store, mall..I could go on forever. ;) A lot of people don't understand my waiting intolerance. They say, "Yeah, but you've only been waiting since Feb. right?" Sadly, no. In fact, Monday marks our 6 year anniversary of when we first started trying to get pregnant (it also happens to be our 6-year wedding anniversary). Granted, we were not trying fertility treatments yet at that time, and there was the 2004 year from hell when Eric got laid off twice, but it still feels like an eternity has passed. The major fertility treatments didn't start until a year ago, but we had tried EVERYTHING up until then. I am amazed at how much time has passed, and how Eric and I have managed to stay positive and know that our dream of a familiy would come true one day.
So, I'll quit my pouting for now. I can clearly wait a long time if I need to, so a few more months is not going to kill me. ;) I have been having a lot of dreams lately that we've gotten a referral for a baby boy, so I should translate my nervous energy into keeping a dream journal. Maybe some of them will come true........

Diabetic Shadow, Gracie's Pet Bird

Well, we found out a few weeks ago that Shadow has diabetes.

:(

He had been peeing and drinking all the time and loosing weight. We started him on insulin shots twice a day, and he will have to be on them for the rest of his life. I, meanwhile, am searching for gloves that I can wear while giving him the shots since he likes to bite me. :}

Also new in pet news, gracie has a new pet bird. It lives in the bush on the side of our house, and she always runs outside and smiles at the bush until the bird flies out. Then, she goes trotting after it like they're playing a game. It's pretty funny to watch. :)