Rumours are flying all over the place, but nothing has yet been substantiated. Yes its the beginning of the month. Yes referrals are typically sent out the beginning of the month. No, we haven't seen anything yet. And yes, this process is starting to drive us crazy.
To give you some idea as to what we're going through, think of it in terms of a pregnancy.
To give you some idea as to what we're going through, think of it in terms of a pregnancy.
- you're pregnant for 9 months, we're pregnant for 18 months and counting,
- you're given a due date, we're given a logged-in-date with a guideline as to when the child might arrive, but we're almost a year past the first date we were given
- you wait anxiously as you near the due date for the contractions to begin, we wait anxiously as we near our referral date for the email to arrive
- you can feel the contractions start and rush to the hospital only find it's false labour and go back home, we wait for the referrals to come and find out that we're not included in this round and have to wait another month
- you go into labour and some time later (I know for some it seems like forever) you give birth, we get our referral and then begin 8 weeks of contractions followed by 2 weeks of labour - in China
And we're just guessing at this part, but we imagine that the travel and 2 weeks in China is going to be gruelling (no it's not a vacation, it's birthing - remember?), but as with childbirth, it all seems worthwhile when you're finally able to hold your child.
In case you're wondering about the Ladybugs at the top of this posting, Ladybugs are a popular good-luck sign among Chinese adoptions, and if you see a Ladybug it's supposed to mean that referrals are on their way. So, here's to seeing ladybugs.