The internet brings instant and constant access to opinions you didn’t even know existed. Issues you thought had only one side have three at a minimum. 140 characters from a stranger can lead to sleeplessness, loss of appetite and increased heart rate. Prior to being involved in adoption, I thought the public consensus was it… Continue reading The Weight of the Web

The mom moment- the raw beauty, the tears, the realization you have this new title more important than any one you’ve held before. I’ve seen it commercials, reality TV, regular TV and actual reality. I had mom guilt over the mom moment. I’m a crier. I’ve cried at graduations, Facebook videos, a dog memorial page… Continue reading The Mom Moment

One of my 7th graders once asked me if there was a word for feeling happy and sad at the same time. I introduced bittersweet to his vocabulary and topped it off with a sentence frame. “_____is bittersweet because (reason it’s happy) and (reason it’s sad). ” He was describing the finale of The Voice.… Continue reading Mother’s Day

From the get go I wanted an open adoption.  I could tell this inspired fear in those who knew me as the “what if’s” poured in.  They ran the gamut from my child being confused to being kidnapped. When I think of the anxiety many of us face on a daily basis, it is the… Continue reading Choosing An Open Adoption

I like to think I’m a decent writer, but I know there is no way that I’ll be able to do justice to the incredible, emotional and beautiful experience I had with Maeve’s birth parents.   I met them in the parking lot of the hospital and we all walked in together.  We got so… Continue reading “This is Us” has nothing on us.

I’m writing this on the plane to Atlanta.  The last 10 days have been the most surreal of my life, I’ll try to recount them as best I can.   To update the timeline: 5/16 finished home study 6/2 finished classes 6/16 matched 6/27 scheduled C section Total time spent on adoption process= 6 months.… Continue reading And just like that- off the market…

I just got my official license to parent.   Not exactly what I had envisioned.  My expectation of the home study process was  shaped partially by 30 Rock.   My follow up to the episode “Murphy Brown Lied to Us” would be something like “Liz Lemon lied to us about Murphy Brown Lying”.   However,… Continue reading Officially On the Market

When having a biological child “you get what you get” (and I won’t tell you that you don’t get upset).  With adoption there is choice, which makes it harder.  Some people feel that they will get the baby God intends for them and are open to anything.  I’m much more analytical and a researcher.  And… Continue reading Race, Drugs, Mental Health and Puppy Litters

From what I’ve gathered so far, the home study feels like a formal version of the classic “Why are you still single?” holiday conversation.  Its terrifying. It consists of two in agency meetings, two group classes and one in home visit.  It’s part of the screening process but also a way for the agency to really know… Continue reading Phase 2: The Home Study

…At least you can enjoy wine during it. Done: Phase 1:  Application  COMPLETE 2/2/17:  Decided on an agency near where I work. 2/5/17:  Received the 21 steps/ forms packet 2/8/17: Consultation with Social Worker 2/25/17: Wrote autobiography, requested official copy of birth certificate 3/1/17: Got fingerprinted and received FBI clearance the same day 3/7/17: Met… Continue reading Being “Paper Pregnant”