Catching up with our fellow adopters

We met R&A last Friday for drinks. G&S were there as well. R&S, the third couple that make up our local adopters’ group couldn’t make it as it was all decided at very short notice. It was meant to be a quick drink round theirs, but we ended up staying nearly five hours while we caught up with everyone’s stage in the process and R&A showed us pictures and video clips of their little girl. They started introductions last week and their little girl should move in permanently this Wednesday. They told us everything they could about the linking, matching, and introductions process (some of it is obviously confidential and they can’t tell us) and they showed us the nursery they’ve managed to set up and decorate in two weeks. R&A were beaming, with smiles as wide as their faces. They are really happy and everything seems to be going really well.

One thing that almost surprises me is that we are genuinely happy for them. This may sound awful, but I feared that when one of the couples in the group was matched, the other couples would be unable to avoid feeling like “why them and not us?” But that hasn’t happened at all. Of course we’ve only been approved for just over two weeks, so if we had been waiting for several months it might be different.

Today I was back at the school where I volunteer. It was a lovely, sunny and warm afternoon so we spent the whole time outside playing catch, throwing balls, painting with water... we all had a great time. I told the teachers the news that we’ve been approved and they were worried that that would mean that I wouldn’t continue volunteering, which was nice to hear, but I intend to continue until we have a match. I really enjoy it and Glen really enjoys his Beavers work as well. Today he’s been arranging stuff to do with them for St George’s day as well as a visit to a Buddhist temple (you can’t complain about diversity, can you?).