An Update...and a vent!

Okay, updates from my last post...
1. We finished our last homestudy visit and we think it went very well. Our SW said he would start preparing the report after he left. He is now waiting on our paperwork which we are almost done with. We now have 2 out of our 3 reference letters; should be getting the 3rd one any day now. Craig just needs to coordinate the notarizing of these letters and then we are done. Hopefully this will all be completed by the end of the week (end of the month at the latest).

2. We've added a new name to our list of likes...Gabrielle or Gabriella. We are leaning towards Gabrielle and I have to say it's *really* growing on me...we'll see!!

3. Okay, and here's the vent. A lot happened last week in Guatemala...a lot of disturbing stuff. I won't go into ALL the detail, but basically the President and First Lady Berger of Guatemala are trying to enact the "Protocol of Good Practices". Basically, if this was presented as law, it would likely have the immediate effect of paralyzing adoptions until the legality of the Protocol could be established by the courts and may cause a shut down or a slow down in adoptions for a couple of months. That being said, no one really thinks that it is anything to worry about. There are lawyers at the ready to fight this. They have tried to enact this Protocol in the past and every time it has been shot down. So basically my agency said that they sincerely believe everything will be okay.
The presentation was set to happen on Friday. Apparently there were caterers and florists there setting up for the big presentation. There were even elaborate folders made for the occasion to hold all the written materials. But right before the meeting was suppossed to start, a note was posted on the door saying that it had been postponed. They gave everything away...the food, the flowers and even the folders! Does giving the folders away mean they won't need them anymore because they are giving up on the Protocol?? We hope so, but noone knows for sure.

So basically I've been beating myself up since this all started last week...telling myself that because I started thinking of names, looking at baby supplies, etc. that I jinxed everything. I know deep inside that this is silly...all this would have happened if I looked at that stuff or not. But when things like this happen you really start to question everything...should I still go through with this? am I strong enough to get through this? will it all work out in the end? I'm trying to stay positive, but it's so hard when you're dealing with an international government who obviously doesn't care about the welfare of their children. Everyone in the guatemalan adoption community is praying that this just "goes away" and our process will continue on schedule. Please, say a prayer...

Thanks for reading,
Jen