One of the ways to spend all of that waiting time is by getting ready for your child. There are so many things that need to be done and if you take the time to enjoy them, they will also help to fill up those months until your child comes home.
Prepare the Room
One of the most exciting things for any parent is getting a room ready for their new child. Take the time to really enjoy this. If you are crafty, then try making some or all of the decorations yourself. If you or your spouse have a special skill, then find a way to incorporate it into your child’s room. For me, it has been helpful not to rush the creation of our son’s nursery. I just feel like it would be too difficult to have a completed nursery with no baby in it. So, I am finding ways to drag out the process. We bought a bedding set, but I am sewing accessories to go with it. I’m searching high and low for just the right decorations and I’m taking my time arranging everything exactly the way I want it.
Organize and Complete Projects
You think you’re busy now, well wait until your adopted child has come home. If there are closets that need to be cleaned out or projects that need to be finished, do them now. This form of “nesting” also can help you feel like you are actually doing something that contributes to bringing your child home. Take the time to create a neat and orderly house so that you won’t have to worry so much about those things once you have your child.
Child Proof
This is a big one. Make sure that you spend the time now to childproof your house. It will be very hard to take care of all of it with a baby crawling around the floor or a toddler running through the house. Get some books on child proofing and carefully view each room in your home from the eyes of your child. What can they get into? What could hurt them?
See The International Adoption Wait – Learn All You Can, for more tips on surviving the adoption wait.