Monday, January 14, 2013

The Waiting Game

When it comes to adoption you will find that emotions are just part of the gig. Even the manly-man may shed a tear (In the case I suppose I, Brandon, am that manly man. Although I do enjoy a pink shirt now and then). Julie and I have realized that anxiety, disappointment, or even helplessness grip us when we allow them to. Actually, I recently went to see Les Miserables, with Julie. This was her choice of movie mind you. I was told that my clothes would be soaked with salty drops of empathy before the final scene. I walked out dry as rock in the desert. I know, maybe I have no soul, or probably real life is so much more intense. Within this adoption we are now playing the waiting game. I believe that God is in this, and I trust Him, but my very human reaction at times is to feel sadness. With so many of our pals on their second or third kiddo, we are just ready to finally begin parenthood. Yes, emotion is very much a part of adoption. I will say that it will all be worth it soon. When I look into the eyes of my child, I'm sure all the waiting, anxiety, and helplessness felt will be washed away by my tears of joy. That I look forward to.

Monday, January 7, 2013

We Need Your Help

Just a quick note that now you can donate through a third party, and it's tax deductible! We love this organization. You can paste this link in your search bar http://www.villagetovillageintl.com/the-boatner-family-family-52.php . Another option would be to search Village to Village Intl. (international), and visit the website. Then search for the Boatners. We are one of the newest families on the site.

The Adoption Emotional Roller-coaster

What a new year! We have been on a bit of an emotional roller coaster leading from Christmas through to today, but I'm excited as we press on. Let me start from the beginning, as it is essential to give you some background...especially for those that are thinking about adopting. My family (PB posting by the way) has had some wonderful new editions. Actually within the last 2 month my brother and sisters have had a combined 4 children. That's a bunch of new faces to meet, and we loved every minute of it! This wasn't the emotional part of our trip, although seeing children does make you yearn to have yours home. Part of being a family in the adoption process, at least with AGCI, means that at times you receive pictures of waiting children that need homes. Well, just before Christmas we got a picture of two little boys. These guys were right up our alley in age, need, and we were quick to act on letting the agency know that we were interested. Because of the ages of the boys we also knew that there would be a great chance that we would be able to adopt them (most adoptees want babies, but we are great with older children). Being Christmas time we found offices closed, which is totally understandable. That left us playing the waiting game. Even worse we allowed ourselves to become emotionally attached to the boys by talking about names we could give them etc. On New Years Eve we got an email telling us that the boys were given to another family. I want to say here that we are ecstatic for that family, who we follow through various channels. I am very happy for them, and the boys will be a beautiful addition. Still though, a small part of us was hurting in a big way. Again, our adoption process has taken about 5 years, and we are very ready to be parents! I'm so glad I have God with me, because through Him I know there is a plan. We have children waiting for us, which we will meet in God's time. By the way I believe that will be this year. --PB