Tuesday, August 19, 2014

(more) official

Last night (this morning?) at midnight we passed another big step in our journey towards becoming a forever family! Georgia has a 10 day 'wait period' after legal consent papers are signed wherein the birth mother can revoke the consents. The 10 days begins the day after the consents are signed. If at any point in those 10 days she decides that she regrets her decision and chooses to parent, all she has to do is say so and custody is returned to her. This is exactly what happened in November- we only made it to the second day of the wait period.

So while Camilla's birth and bringing her home were both incredibly exciting, we were all holding our breath as we knew we'd have to make it through the 10 days before we could really celebrate. And because we are super duper lucky, our 10 days were actually 12- the law also states that the final (10th) day canNOT be on a Saturday or Sunday. If it falls on one of those days, then the '10th' day gets moved to the following Monday. So our 10th day was actually Saturday, but couldn't be observed until yesterday, so...there ya go, two bonus days of fun. 

While I am ethically extremely supportive of Georgia's mandatory wait period (it differs by state; some states have NO wait period, some states are as long as a month)...that doesn't necessarily make it any easier to sweat it out. Fortunately, we have a strong relationship with J and knew that she was remaining confident and sure in her decision to place Camilla with us, so that helped a lot, as did her empathy for how nervous and worried we were. But we were still counting down the minutes until midnight last night. So were a lot of other people, as evidenced by the number of calls, texts, and emails I received at 12:01 a.m. :) 

In this case, no news is good news. Nothing about our legal standing has actually changed since yesterday or last week (we remain her legal guardians until the adoption is finalized in a few weeks), but we now move forward with a lot more confidence that this sweet baby will stay with us forever. It's like I can breathe again.

With this last major hurdle behind us, we even went 'public' on Facebook today. I mean, if it's official on Facebook, you KNOW it's real, right? Do we even still have to go to court??


I'd been wording and re-wording how to 'announce' it for days (in my head, while I'm busy not sleeping). How do you announce the most amazing thing that's ever happened to you with the proper excitement, but while remaining respectful to J and her family and any birth parents, adult adoptees, or adoptive families that may happen to read it? Not to mention the friends and acquaintances struggling with infertility or prolonged adoption experiences...how can I be joyful without rubbing salt in their wounds? These are among the things I ponder at night. I probably would have written and rewritten it a dozen more times, except that my sister couldn't contain her excitement and went ahead and 'outed' me with a post of her own. That forced my hand to get my own post up quickly, ha. God bless enthusiastic sisters, right?

So we're another step closer to forever. Another day more head-over-heels for our sweet girl. I am so incredibly thankful, I just don't know what to do with myself.


34 comments:

  1. Whooo hooo!!! As an adult who was adopted as a baby, I think this was a wonderful way to word the announcement!

    Every time I read a post about YOU being Camilla's MOM, I get teary-eyed.

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  2. So glad she's FB official! Congrats again and here's to many more milestones in your future.

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  3. YEAAAAAAAAA!!!!! I knew Tuesday was a big day, but wasn't exactly sure what it meant. Your wording was so perfect. So perfect that I found myself a blubbering mess at work as I read it. :)

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  4. Yay!!! This is such wonderful news!! I think I can speak for all us in saying that no matter what our struggle is we are still so happy and excited for ya'll!!

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  5. This post made my day! So happy that your wait period is behind you and you are one step closer to finalizing everything! Congrats sweet Mama!

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  6. Yayyyyy! I've been checking all day for this blog! The Facebook status was perfect, so hooray for enthusiastic sister forcing your hand! And I agree, you should just let the court know that it's Facebook official: no need for further paperwork!

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  7. Woohoo!!! Congratulations!!! Such exciting news. I am so happy for you! Sending prayers for all of you during the incredible adjustment phase.

    -Lee Ann

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  8. Yay! So happy that it is more official! And as silly as it may seem, I'm sure making it public on Facebook really makes it feel more real! So excited and happy for y'all! Millie is so precious and motherhood looks fabulous on you!

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  9. Yay! So awesome! Glad you can breathe a sigh of relief and love the facebook announcement!

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  10. Yay!!!! Legal official and FBO! :) So happy for all 3 of you!

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  11. Whew!!! What a huge milestone as parents :) Very exciting!!! So glad that wait is over and can't wait for her to be LEGALLY yours!!!

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  12. I've been wondering about the logistics of adoption in Georgia. So, so thrilled for you and Matt! Yay for another giant hurdle crossed. Camilla Ann is blessed to have her forever mommy and daddy.

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  13. I am so thrilled for you!!! Congrats! Little Millie is SO blessed to have two families to call her own!! God is so cool.

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  14. In Colorado it's a 21 day waiting period, and I held my breath for each one. That feeling of passing that deadline is such a relief, but at the same time, you do mourn and feel for what the birthmother is going through - our greatest gain is her greatest loss. I think you've been incredibly gracious and kind through this journey, and it sounds like your birthmother has those traits as well. My heart is singing for you this week, and now the only question is when do Millie and LittleM meet?

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  15. Whew! So glad your wait period is over! Looking forward to the next few weeks for you!!!

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  16. This just brought ugly sobs out of my throat -- AT WORK. Thankyouverymuch. ;) So, so happy for you. That's a perfect announcement!

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  17. Such great news. I think your wording of the announcement was perfect.

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  18. This is so amazing!! I am so happy for you!!

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  19. Yayayay I'm so glad to hear that!!! I think your announcement sounded great!! :) Millie has such great people around her!!

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  20. Thankful this day is finally, finally here!! (And glad you had Bachelor in Paradise to distract you last night.)

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  21. Yaahooooooooooooo! So exciting! And for what it's worth, I think your announcement is worded perfectly. If you were my friend on Facebook, I can guarantee you that this would have made me happy, unlike the dozens of other birth announcements I encounter each week. :)

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  22. So happy that you cleared this hurdle! Love your announcement -I think it's just perfect!

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  23. I'm so happy to hear this! I love the announcement. :) I'm sure the wait is so scary. It's amazing you get the finalize in a few weeks.

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  24. What wonderful news! What a relief.

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  25. Waaahoooo!! Congrats!

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  26. I am just so so happy for you guys. I seriously have tears in my eyes from this post, you guys are such a deserving couple and you look like such devoted and loving parents.

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  27. I'm so far behind... but had to comment here to tell you how much I love this. I also just now noticed that Millie is exactly 2 months younger than my boys! :) XO

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  28. Okay, I don't know you, so this is weird. But I am sitting at my desk CRYING right now reading this. Good grief. I'm so glad you got to keep this precious baby.

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