Ok we've decided to pursue adoption - now what? So far the only real decision we've made is that we are going to pursue domestic infant adoption, instead of going the international or foster-to-adopt route. At face value, it just seems to make the most sense for Ryan and I. However, as you all know, none of our plans have worked out thus far. haha. So we are willing to be flexible if the Lord starts leading us in another direction. :)
We are signed up for a introductory seminar on June 2nd with a local agency called
NightLight Christian Adoptions. I am very excited to get there and hear what they have to say. I think it will provide a good overall picture of what adoption through an agency would look like, and will help us figure out where to start in this process. We are not necessarily going with NightLight, they just happen to be close enough to home and offer a free seminar in the near future. Works for us! :)
We are also very curious to learn more about independent / private adoption. In a nutshell, this form of adoption would mean finding a birthmother apart from an agency, and working with various adoption professionals such as an attorney and social worker(s) to fulfill the necessary legal requirements. In order to find a birthmother you would typically have to advertise yourselves, and utilize various networks to get the word out. This idea grabbed our attention because, surprise surprise, my husband's expertise happens to be internet marketing and we have developed a huge network of people who have joined us on the search for Baby Miller. Could God utilize these resources to help us find a baby? Maybe so! On the flip side, going through this process without an agency could also be incredibly daunting and put us in over our heads. Thankfully a few of the agencies that I've looked into offer modified packages if we were to find our own birthmother so we may be able to do a combination of private and agency adoption. There's just a lot of learning to do, so we're not taking any steps beyond research right now.
I came across this
beautiful slideshow on an online forum a few months back. It continues to bless my heart by giving me something tangible to hope for and look forward to as we head down this new road. Just wanted to share. :)