Match Ready

I'm pretty confident at this point saying that the adoption journey is a roller coaster ride.
You know how it feels like it takes forever to slowly climb that first incline, hearing every "click, click, click" as you are towed to the top? That's been what the home study process has felt like. You see the ground getting farther and farther away, but you still don't really feel like you are going anywhere.

Then, at the top, you stall, just for a second, and you see it all in front of you. The twists, turns, loops, and hills all laid out and somehow you are both excited and terrified. This is what it feels like to be match ready.

Woo-hoo!

For us, match ready fell almost on our birthdays. So we celebrated!

Then we started our new to do list.

• Tell the bosses and co-workers
• Work on funding (grants, loans, and fundraisers)
• Give the go-ahead to plan baby showers
• And wait...

Suddenly, it seems like time has stopped moving. We would (almost) love more paperwork to do or appointments to make or anything that makes us feel like we are taking steps forward. Instead, we feel a little like we are just standing still.
It's so hard because how quickly the beginning of the adoption process goes all depends on you and how much time you can devote to finishing your paperwork and tracking down information. Once you finish the home study and profile, it’s all out of your hands. You no longer have any control over how fast or slow the process moves.

You just wait.

You wait for your profile to be shown to expectant moms who are considering an adoption plan that fit your preferences. You wait for a phone call that you have been matched, that the just right person has found you to be their just right people. You wait for the call that the baby is coming and that you are needed at some hospital somewhere sometime soon.

So what should you do during your match ready season?

I'm really new to this season, but I already know that the most important thing to do is to find intentional ways to spend your time. When the anxiety arises and you feel like you don’t know how much longer you can wait, you need to have things you can turn to.

1. PRAY. A lot. For your little family. For your the just right family to find you. For your future child. Pray often and for everything. You don’t need to go through this alone. If you are a person of faith, surround yourself with people who will pray for and with you. In a time where you have no control, it can offer such peace.
2. PREPARE: You know yourself best. For us, it eases a lot of anxiety to have plans in place for work. We also want at least one corner of the house, the baby’s room, to be ready to receive a little one which means baby showers. Our friends and family are all so excited to help us celebrate and prepare for the coming of the child that baby showers are helping to keep us occupied and supported.
3. PLAY: Once the baby comes, your life will change. You know that. So take the time now to practice your hobbies, get some quality time with your spouse, and dive into things you love. You may not have a lot of time for it once your little one is ready for you.

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I'm hoping and praying that we are able to find ways to use this season to grow and flourish. It would be easy to become a slave to the wait, constantly staring at our phones and emails waiting for a match. Instead, I hope that we are able to enjoy this season to the fullest as a part of the great story leading up to our family ever after.