Waiting with Excitement

September has been busy and exciting in the Nix household. On September 3rd, we were officially placed on the wait list to receive a referral for our baby! This is a huge milestone in the adoption process and means that we should be getting a phone call and email to introduce us to our baby in about 8 months. This is an average, based on our agency's recent time frames, so it could be sooner (which is what we are hoping for!) or a little longer than 8 months. Also, on September 17th, we received confirmation that our dossier is now "on Ethiopian soil," about to be translated into Amharic! One step closer...
Along with all of this exciting news has come the beginning of the Fall season (my favorite!) and the start of a new school year, which means I am working again! Crossing another adoption milestone and being captivated by the busyness of the new season has resulted in a halt of preparation for the arrival of a new baby. Of course, we are always preparing for our baby in our hearts and praying for his/her well-being. But practically speaking, we have a A LOT to do before Baby E arrives, and realizing that we could be getting the phone call in 8 months or less puts that into perspective! Fortunately, my wonderful friends who are already mothers or who are currently expecting have helped me to realize that it's okay just to "relish in the moment" when you're about 8 months away from being introduced to your baby. So, that's what we're doing...relishing in God's grace and thanking Him for this amazing gift.
And we're thankful for friends and family who are celebrating along with us. Somehow amidst this busy month, we managed to get away to Ohio and spend good quality time with Jeff's family. And in October, we are going to visit my family in Alabama. We are so blessed to have such amazing, supportive families who are anxiously awaiting for the arrival of Baby E!

Here we are enjoying an NFL football game...Can't wait for Baby E to wear his/her Bengals jersey!

My sister-in-law, Carrie, welcomed us with these great gifts...games from Africa!

Our nieces and nephews love Uncle Jeff...he is going to be the best Daddy!