Feeling a little bummed in the adoption arena....

I talked to my case manager on Monday and she said we were around 4th in line for a baby boy.  I was kind of excited about that, because that put us moving 3 spots.  Yeah!  However, I have made friends with a lady on-line that is also adopting a baby boy from Ethiopia through our agency, and she has been hearing something different when it comes to where we are in line.  She got her paperwork to CWA like a day or two before me and she it right in front of me for a baby boy.  She has been talking to the lady at our agency  that actually hands out the referrals (not just a case manager like I have been) and we have been e-mailing one another what we hear.  So today I decided to get an update from the 'horses mouth" so to speak, so I e-mailed the referral lady.  I asked her lots of questions, but I specifically asked her to be very realistic with me.  She replied back with an incredibly sweet e-mail.  I could tell she really took her time to explain things to me and she didn't just brush me off.  Pretty much we are 7th in line for a baby boy right now.  That number can certainly vary based on what comes in.  Some people are waiting for a boy and girl, some for just siblings, the list goes on.  It all depends on how the referrals fall.  She also said that it is doubtful that even the people getting referrals now will be able to get through court before it closes, so there's little to no chance of us getting to Ethiopia before October.  In some ways that takes a little pressure off me, but in more ways, it makes me sad.  All in all I am not at far along down the line as I thought I was and there's pretty much no chance to get in before the big close.  Also, we got an e-letter from our agency today and they said that the embassy appointment process has changed some and that change will add time until you can travel.  **SIGH**

On a good note, the referral lady said that most their baby referrals are younger than 6 months, so it is good to know that our age range of 0-6 months shouldn't hold us up too much.  On another good note, God is in control of this adoption.  He is moving in ways that I may never see.  He knows who our son is and I truly believe God will bring our son to us in His perfect timing.

Julie