In the Beginning...

It seems like a very long time ago, but it's really been just a little more than a year since I started this adoption journey. It's funny when I think about how nervous I was about telling my parents. I think I half expected them to try to talk me out of it, but they've been supportive all the way.

At that point I was still mulling over agencies--there are so many of them. I did a lot of research, though, and finally went with Children's Hope International. I'm really glad I did--every day I hear horror stories from people who are using other agencies, but my entire experience with CHI has been nothing but positive. Dealing with a foreign government (especially one in such a state of flux) is hard enough by itself. It definitely pays to have an agency you can trust working with you.

So... last summer was spent doing the homestudy and pulling together all the documents for my dossier. All that got submitted in October and then the long wait began. At first I was really anxious--checking the message boards every day, pricing flights, researching hotels, etc., but by February I finally managed to relax and just let the time pass. I checked with the agency once a month for updates and pretty much put it all in God's hands, trusting that he would make it happen. My faith was rewarded last week on May 11 when I received my referal for a beautiful baby girl.

The day of the referal call was a funny one--it seems like everyone was asking me when I would hear about the baby. I spent the morning running all over the building at work meeting with colleagues in various departments and answering that question over and over again. "Could be any day now..." The morning came and went, though, and with it went my expectations of getting "The Call". I remember vividly looking at the clock as I walked into my office and thinking, "Well, it's 2:20 in the afternoon now and 10:20 at night in Tver, Russia, so I won't hear today. Maybe tomorrow--I'll be at Disney--wouldn't it be a hoot to get 'The Call' while I'm there." The very next moment my cell phone rang and it was Lindsay. Suddenly the rest of the world went completely silent--there was nothing but me, the phone and Lindsay. It was "The Call" and I knew my life was about to change forever.

~ Jeana