Today is a special co-written post with my husband, Steve. Say hi, Steve. Hi, Steve.

I haven’t said a huge amount on here for the last several weeks because we wanted to get a big update instead of a bunch of little ones.

After three and a half months of working on our home study, we have been approved, found a lawyer, and as of October 30th, we are officially waiting for our child. Yes, that means the next time we get a call from the group we’re working with, we will be parents.

We don’t know how long it’s going to take. It could be a month. It could 10 months. All Steve and I know is that we’re going to have our family by the end of this.

YEA!!!!!!!!

The group that we’re working with is The Hope Box. This amazing group is “is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded to address the issues of infant discarded, abandonment, neglect, and abuse through legislation, education, advocacy, and Safe Haven drop centers. THE HOPE BOX is the Safe Haven chapter for the State of Georgia and was instrumental in amending House Bill 391 in 2017.” (The Hope Box)  They’re not an adoption agency. They’re completely funded by private donations and don’t take money from birth families, adoptive families, etc. for their services. (We can only give them donations.) The Hope Box is there to help to those who need it. If there are birth parents in a situation where they can’t keep or take care of their baby or toddler, The Hope Box will find whatever resources available to help them parent. However, if it is a situation where they must give up their child, The Hope Box helps connect adoptive families to the birth parents.

That’s where we come in. Steve and I are on their list of possible adoptive parents. We have a lawyer lined up to help with all of the legal stuff. When we learned about this organization in July, we felt called to start this part of our journey. After meeting Sarah, the executive director, and Emily, the associate director, on October 30th, we knew we made the right decision. Now, here we are: one phone call away from being parents. It is so exciting and terrifying, which I’ve been told is how all expectant parents feel. That makes us happy.

So, what are we doing as we wait? Talking about names, looking at car seats and diaper bags, thinking of ways to decorate a nursery. The normal parent things. We’ve been told by The Hope Box and the lawyer to go ahead and have a car seat and diaper bag on standby. This made the whole experience more real than anything so far! Sometimes, Steve and I look at each other with wide eyes and just know what each other is thinking.

Yep, no words needed. Steve knows what I’m telling the truth.

So, now we wait. While we do, Steve and I want to encourage the readers, our family and friends, and anyone else who stumbles across this to check out The Hope Box or any group in their state that does similar work, especially with Safe Haven laws and human trafficking. Also, send your thought, prayers, good vibes, etc. to Steve and me so that we can stay sane while we wait.

Until next time.