[alreadylove2005]

I would love to adopt again and dh says "no way"! But he said that the first time too and now he is over-the-moon in love with our daughter.

He thinks it would be too much for us to handle having two. Is it that much harder with two than one?

My daughter is 2.5 yrs old and although in some ways it's much easier to take care of her than it was when she was a baby - in some ways it's harder because she needs a playmate and that is usually me.

Oh, I forgot to say, I'm soon to be 52 years old and dh is 61.

I would love to have two girls - and thrilled that they would have each other after we're gone (hopefully in about 50 years, smile). Yes, there are things that I can't do as well as a 25 year old, but there are more things that I can do better! I think we're above-average parents and could do a great job raising two girls.

So.....how much do I push dh, do you think? How much does he have to agree?

Do you think Guatemala will open again soon? If not, what are good alternatives for us oldies but goodies?

Sorry, lots of questions, just bustin' out of me here!

[Larue]

Janet - I know this is an old post, and you might not see this. What age are you considering for your next daughter?! If you're open to a an older child, you may have more options. DH are I and "mature" parents, and have researched various international programs.

Best wishes!!!

[2xaround]

There are certainly challenges to having an only child and challenges having two or more children. We have 3 grown boys and now a 1 yo daughter, which is basically the same as having an only child. She requires a lot of attention, especially mine and while I love having a mommy's girl, it can wear a mommy down quickly. What I do notice is how much she loves being around other children. I'm a SAHM so she doesn't attend daycare and is too young for pre-school. However, I do try to provide her other opportunities to spend time with other children.

My boys had each other growing up and likewise my husband and I had our siblings. I personally can't imagine my dd not having the opportunity to grow up with a sibling closer to her age. Therefore, we have begun the process to adopt another baby girl. This time we'll be adopting from Ethiopia.

Our dd is from Guatemala and I haven't read very encouraging information about future adoptions from Guatemala. While no one knows for sure if adoptions will one day be a possibility for families from the U.S., Guatemala has made it pretty clear that the process is going to be much different. Unfortunately, the process they describe sounds similar to the process that has all but shut down adoptions from other Latin American countries. As time goes on, I hope the process is tweaked in such a way that it allows all orphaned children the opportunity to find their forever family, no matter where that family comes from.