Is this really happening?

Really, last night and today have been such a blur! I am still in shock as I really wasn't expecting to get approval news at all this week.

Yesterday, I had gone to the worksite to deliver paycheques just as our crew was wrapping things up at 5pm. The developers had bought the crew some cold beers for all their hard work... so I hung around for a few minutes talking to them. One of our employees started to talk about his ex wife (this gets really good... lol)... just as my phone rang.

'Blocked Number'

Who the heck is calling me from a blocked number? Must be telemarketers...

So I press the answer button, just as our employee says '...and she's a real facetious B*tch!'

'Hello?'

'Hello Jo, this is Mary from the agency, have I caught you a bad time?'

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? That is totally my luck!! She couldn't have called 2 second earlier or later...no she called right at the '...facetious B*tch' part, and there is just no way that she did not hear it! Oh my...

'No, I was just up at the job site delivering cheques..' (How. Embarrassing.)
I don't really recall the rest of the conversation... something along the lines of... We finally have the results of the last NAC meeting, you were approved ... followed by the details of our approval etc..

By this time, I'm across the street... hiding out in some bushes. (Far from further worksite conversation.) The surge of adrenalin rushes through me...
OMG! This is really happening!! This is all real now! Within 2 months we are going to set eyes on our child!

I immediately update my facebook status - announcing to the world - APPROVED!... because I am that person. Then I messaged my dear friend Tracy, who lay fast asleep in her bed in Kenya. I wiped the few tears that were collecting in my eyes and tried to collect myself. My husband and children... across the street carrying on, with no knowledge of what was going on.

As I took a few deep breaths, Hubby had come around the corner to see what I was doing. I tried my darndest to hold in the tears... and softly said... 'That was Mary, we have been approved.'
'Your kidding me, we're approved?!'.... as he too tried to choke down some tears.
We kissed and hugged and set off to join the crew to share our news.

Muffin, not even privy to the adoption process, was the most excited. To her, she viewed this as our permission to move to Kenya. 'WE ARE? We get to move to Kenya now then right!!? YAY!!!'

It's an amazing feeling. I didn't think it would be this emotional... but really we have been trying to get approved since March and it was the one last thing that stood between us and our child. We never fully believed that it would ever happen. Hubby says he didn't expect it to be this emotional either. He says he felt the exact same thing when I told him I was pregnant with our first.

On the flip side of this approval... unfortunately, no one else in our group has been approved or at least received news of approval. Many files were not seen, so it seems as there might be a small backlog again.

Hang in there you all... it's going to be back for review next week already. NAC meet on the 16th.

Now that we are approved, I am opening this blog back up to the public! Yay! I missed sharing with the world, and meeting new adoption folk... not to mention it was not doing much for my blogging motivation either.

Thank you all for hanging in with me! Now is the beginning of the 'fun' part of the process...

I will leave you with Tracy's response to my middle of the night text (because it's too cute not to share.)

'Oh ....... Jolene is moving to Kenya! It's going to be awesome (please sing along!) Jolene is moving to Kenya! It will be so awesome she's getting a baby girl soon. 'Mister' and 'Muffin' are going to be awesome big siblings. Did you pass out from shock????'