[tem0627]

Hi everyone,

We received a phone call from our agency yesterday that we are expecting a baby boy in about 6 weeks! We are so incredibly in awe of God, His timing and goodness!!!

We have a match meeting in the beginning of next week at the agency. Aside from being ourselves, can anyone give us some pointers? We have no idea what to expect, however we are anticipating a lot of nerves and a bit of an overwhelming emotion on both parts. Is it appropriate to bring a small gift like a journal or bring a snack (cookies, chocolate, etc)?

Thanks so much!

Erica

[Gwen72]

Congratulations on your match. I'm sure everyone involved will be a little nervous at the match meeting. Will the agency social worker be there to facilitate the meeting? They are good at calming everyone's nerves and keeping the conversation flowing. You will have to ask the agency if you are allowed to bring a gift. Each state has it's own laws as to if gifts are allowable or not. Good Luck!

[tem0627]

Yes, the social worker and potentially the agency director will be at the meeting. Our SW is getting married in June, so she will be gone for a couple of weeks!

[snaps]

It is good that you will have someone there to facilitate the meeting. With our first adoption we worked with a facilitator in CA, but we lived in GA and bmom and bdad were in TN. We had a match 3 way call with facilitator, bmom and us. Later we met in person a few months prior to the birth. Bmom's dad actually helped facilitate the meeting that time. Funny, we were all soooo nervous and the first thing bmom's Dad said with a big smile was, "well......isn't this awkward and it just broke the ice." Ironically too, he is only a few years older than my husband.

You will do fine. It is hard not to be nervous. Write down questions you may have and the facilitator can tell you which are appropriate. Try to focus on bmom (and bdad) and try not to be all about the baby and you. It is hard because that is what we want to do. Care about how she feels and her support systems. Facilitator can prepare you for possible questions you may get too (you can also look some up on the web) so you can "rehearse" how you will answer. Sometimes it is so hard to think when you are nervous. GOOD LUCK!!!