Making Big Plans in Small Rooms: We Have Big News!

Today I want to talk about making big plans in small rooms.

When I was a college junior, I had the privilege of studying in London for two weeks. I took Art and Theater Appreciation (in London, which was magnificent!) and wandered the streets of London to different art museums and theaters.

Prior to that trip, we had a study-abroad informational meeting. I had two options. One, I could study in England for two weeks, then fly home, basically twiddling my thumbs in my hometown until the spring semester began. Two, I could take advantage of the puddle-hop to travel Europe for two weeks.

Yeah, you’re right. It was a HUGE dilemma!

OK, obviously not.

My folks–being the rational people they are–thought I should figure out which other students were planning on wandering a foreign continent for half a month. And I should do this prior to booking any hostels.

During that informational meeting, I discovered one male friend and two male acquaintances also planning to travel rather than be-bop back to the States. And so, we formed a squad and began routine pow-wows to decide the details of our grand adventure. We met in the university library’s basement study room and hunched around a laptop.

I remember thinking, “This is so surreal that we’re planning our whole trip in this little, windowless room. None of us have been to any of these places. I hope everything works out!”

And, thank the Lord, it did. With the exception of one black eye during a freak sledging (sledding) accident in the Swiss Alps (doesn’t that sound like an exciting story? Especially since I wasn’t the injured party…), everything went according to plan. We had a fantastic time, backpacking from Venice, Italy, to Berlin, Germany, in 10 days. TEN days. And we were naive enough to think two nights in Venice was a “long enough” layover! Ha!

OK, bragging complete. Let me also toss out a disclaimer that I had just started dating my future husband a few weeks before I departed for my solo-female-traveling-Europe-with-three-dudes vacay. That part sounds much more salacious looking back than it did in real life. It was all very sweet. Plus, it seems smarter to travel with guys, right? Doesn’t a group of American girls traveling Europe give off a more worrisome vibe?

And don’t feel bad for the future hubby. He got to have a grand, backpacking adventure to many of the same locations years later, prior to babies and real jobs. And we had a blast.

Now, I once again find myself making big plans in a small room.

Soon after moving to South Carolina (even now, it’s only been two months), my husband and I decided to put into motion a plan we’ve been discussing for years. We’re jumping into the surreal.

We’re adopting from China.

Even with some paperwork and a home study under my belt, that doesn’t sound real to me. Like, me? Am I the one writing that? Claiming that? Pursuing that?

YES!

We’re adopting from CHINA!

I spend nearly every early afternoon (quiet time/nap time for my crew) tucked behind my husband’s desktop, plugging away at online adoption training, printing forms, and organizing documents. I’m making big plans in a small room.

And with that, I’m not going to share a whole lot more until after the fact, which could be a year or two from now. Oh, I’m sure I’ll still share plenty about our life, don’t you fret, faithful reader! However, things can get dicey with adoption and even dicier when social media is involved. I’m sure the process will be frustrating or even heartbreaking at times, but I’ll need to keep that to myself, at least for now. I’m considering journaling along the way and sharing at a later date.

All you need to know is this: We are excited to meet our Kiddo #3. We’re not specifying if we’re looking to match with a boy or a girl (George, surprisingly, wants another baby sister, and Olivia is asking for a brother. Stick with what you know, I suppose!). Our child could be around 18 months old when we go to get him/her, which means he/she could already be born (this makes my brain explode a bit).

So, if you love and pursue a relationship with Jesus and don’t mind using a precious moment to pray, would you mind praying for us? For our possibly born or possibly soon-to-be-born child?

I can’t wait to share our adventure with you. Let the planning continue!

P.S. Remember that very vague post about waiting from last August? Yeah, this is the answer to that post.

Currently Reading:
Educated by Tara Westover: OK, this autobiography came out in February 2018, and I feel like I’m late to the game. I’d seen it on lists, but hadn’t taken the time to request it from the library. Well, get on the waiting list, fellow readers! Educated is a true story about a very conservative Mormon family in Idaho. It doesn’t pick on the Mormon faith, but shows how one person’s unshakable beliefs can impact so many. Tara never stepped into a school room until she started college at 17 (much to her father’s dismay…the going-to-college part). She was never treated by a medical doctor, even when she endured horrible injuries. I’m listening to the audiobook and am so enthralled, I’m risking the dime-a-day library fine just to finish it.

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