I've joined a couple of Ethiopian Adoption Yahoo Groups since we started the process, and although I don't post much on them, I do get a lot of information from them. One of the groups, is specifically for this part of the country, and they had a get-together yesterday. So Jesse, Rachel, & I all decided to go.
I have to be honest, and say that we were a little nervous at first. One thing that we've noticed from these yahoo groups is that some people are very outspoken on how they feel about everything. And often times I feel like adoption becomes their platform. I know this isn't necessarily bad, but I guess it's just not where we are. I haven't felt that way about the local group, but we were still nervous that maybe we wouldn't fit in.
Well we were pleasantly surprised. We met some wonderful families, and it was so nice to see all these Ethiopian children running around. It was great to hear how much this group has even grown in just one year. They said that at their gathering last year, there were only two children, and a bunch of families waiting to go pick their children up. Well this year there were about 10 children! And since the weather wasn't all that nice, a lot of families didn't come.
On the ride home from the picnic, Jesse and I were so excited! We couldn't help but have huge grins on our faces. We just can't wait to bring whoever God has for us home! Rachel talked the whole car ride home about how she couldn't wait to be a big sister. Yesterday I think just made it more real to us, which is nice, b/c sometimes I think you can become a little removed from it, since it's not like pregnancy, where the throwing up constantly reminds you that you are going to have a baby. : )
