A New Move

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I was searching online for information about adoption -- my eternal hobby, it seems -- and stumbled across an agency about three hours from here, located in a town I lived in for 10 years.  I don't know why that agency never popped up on my radar before, but somehow here it was.  The reviews seemed quite positive, and there didn't seem to be too many waiting families on their website.  I sent away for some information and got a response rather quickly.

We set up a Zoom to meet with the agency director and were pleased with what we heard.  This new agency does things a bit differently than our current agency, which is to be expected.  The biggest difference is an initial large fee that represents a third of the agency's costs; unlike our current agency, we would be entered in a two-year contract with the option to extend only if we don't match through no fault of our own.  The time frame, explained the director, was the result of other families claiming to be open to different things but turning down multiple matches seemingly for no reason.  We will get to work with a graphic designer to create a new profile for this agency, although in the interim our current profile can be used.  Most of our home study materials will already suffice, and the few other things needed are easily at hand.  So last night we held our collective breath, wrote a check, and bundled everything into an envelope. 

Our hope is that once everything arrives we will be cleared to go live pretty quickly.  So far the new agency has been extremely responsive, so we feel comfortable with that.  We aren't turning our backs on the other agency -- if anything, we hope our visibility will now widen across two states.  It is scary to commit emotionally and financially to a second agency, and while I feel extremely anxious about it I also feel strangely hopeful.  I don't regret not finding this agency first; our other agency was wonderful during the home study process and ensured we were appropriately informed on so much.  It's also not to say that a match from the first agency won't appear soon enough, although even if it doesn't we are happy to continue with them for our home study and any necessary post-placement visits.  This is another turning point in our journey, and it's a risk we hope pays off.

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