Change, Change, Change...

A lot has happened since the last time we wrote anything on the blog.  Since July we have been waiting to hear word of another matching meeting in Lesotho but every month seemed to come and go.  On December 1, the Lesotho government decided to join the Hague convention for international adoptions.  I am sure there are others out there that could explain this better than me, but from what I understand, they are trying to protect their children from trafficking.  What it means for adoption agencies and prospective families is more paperwork and higher fees, etc.  With all this said, the Lesotho government also asked for 3 more months of a break from meetings to work on getting their new system in place in Lesotho.  All of the above brought many new questions for us, including whether or not our current placing agency would really be able to finalize our adoption since they are not a Hague Accredited agency.

After a lot of discussions and prayer, we decided to walk away from our investment in a potential match in Lesotho.  It felt very much like what I imagine a miscarriage to feel like.  …All the expectations of a son from Lesotho, imagining what he would look like, imagining traveling there to bring him home.  

…None of that will happen now.  But…unlike a miscarriage, we are moving full speed ahead.

For the last month, we have been diligently working on updating paperwork with Adoption Associates in Jenison, MI (our new placing agency) to have a new dossier sent to… Addis Ababa, ETHIOPIA!!