UACs Adoption Conference, part 1

What to say... I was so humbled by this experience, which honestly isn't what I had expected going in. So what had I expected? Information, lots and lots of information. And I got that, and so much more. I've thought a lot about what to write in this post and how to write it, and I'm still not sure.

First of all, God is amazing. He let everything work out so Jason and I were able to go to this thing together. And so much thanks to the friend that took our boys for two days. We couldn't have done it without her.

So Jason and I show up and find out that they have a gluten free lunch option that we weren't informed of. And everyone was so ready and willing to help out and make sure the chef was able to get us some gluten free food. From the get-go, we were astonished at the camaraderie and helpfulness everyone showed. We had obviously just walked into a very special club of people. And we had only just arrived.

We were in the minority being prospective adoptive parents. There just weren't that many of us there. We noticed that pretty early on and asked our caseworker about it, who was also there. She confirmed it for us. Let me tell you about the other groups we were honored to run with for two days--
Organizers-
      I'm talking about the amazing people that made all of this happen, the people that make up the Utah Adoption Council and other amazing organizations that are putting everything they have into helping others in all kinds of situations. We don't have any idea how big of an influence they are on the lives of so many people.
Professionals-
      Caseworkers, DCFS employees, lawyers, etc. These are the people in the nitty-gritty, and I'm glad they got to relax a little. This was the largest group by far, and Jason and I got the impression that the conference was originally put together for them. We're glad they're willing to share, and it doesn't surprise us, because they are an amazing bunch.
Adoptive Parents-
      This is the group Jason and I are hoping to join sooner rather than later. To hear their stories and learn from them really was a special experience. And where we have experienced moments of hesitation from others as we have pursued this dream, this group showed not one ounce of faltering, and it was a breath of fresh air.
Birth Parents-
      There are no words for the love I felt for these women while I was there. (I say women because I didn't encounter any birth fathers.) This was the strongest, most courageous group of all. Many of these women have gone on to give their lives to the adoption cause. Most of them are still learning how to find the strength that we all know is in them. I just wanted to hug them all and thank them for simply being there, for being strong, for being who they are. I wanted to attend their classes, simply to glean some wisdom from them and their experiences.
Adoptees-
      These are the people that everyone is doing all of this for. I loved listening to them. I feel the wisdom in this group is what I need to make me a better adoptive mother when the time comes. This group was fascinating for me, and I hung on every word they said.

The presenters were mostly made up of people that fit into one of those categories (or multiple categories) so I didn't give them their own category. I get the feeling they won't mind. :) There were also Foster Parents there, but I believe all of them had officially moved into the category of Adoptive Parent.

So the classes we attended--
1Opening a Closed Adoption
2Myths and Fears of Adoption from the Adoptee Panel Perspective
3(Okay, there should be another class listed here, but none of them really applied to our situation, so we ran home and hugged our babies instead.)
4Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
5Ethics and Post Placement Agreements
6Fear and Myths Dialogue and Panel
7Social Media and Its Impact on Adoption (Panel)

I will post more about each class and our lunch conversations in a second post. Right now, it's getting late and I want to have a sleepover with my boys. I bought Planes as a surprise sleepover movie, and they are crazy excited about it! Popcorn, here I come! (I also bought Frozen, which I am saving for another sleepover day or for Easter. Shh! Don't tell!)