An Unexpected (but very welcome) Turn of Events

Well, there have been lots of odds and ends over the last few days. Temperatures soaring over 100 degrees, the largest flagpole in the world going up before our eyes, prices on numbered cabs going up 50%, and so on and so forth. But all of that pales in comparison to the news I'm about to share.

Stephanie and I will be parents about two weeks from now. We decided to adopt a baby some time ago and started the process last summer. We haven't been posting about it on the blog because it involves a lot of waiting, which doesn't make for interesting stories. We did have a potential match fall through earlier this year and thought it might be awhile before another opportunity came along. Luckily, we were wrong.

About two weeks ago, we got notification about a potential match and it quickly developed into an actual match. So now we find ourselves barely more than a week from leaving Dushanbe for San Antonio to meet our son. Aiden Thomas Harley Barnett was born on April 27th and weighed 7 lbs, 6oz and was almost 20" long. We had picked the name Aiden Thomas some time ago, but the birth mom has been calling him Harley. Wanting to honor her choice as well, we decided to incorporate the name and really like the way it sounds.

Aiden is still in the hospital because he has a small cleft palate and they are monitoring him to make sure he can get enough nutrition from a bottle. We're hoping he'll be released soon after we get there. In the meantime, he's getting lots of attention from the hospital staff, the staff at the adoption agency, and his birth mom. We've really been impressed with how attentive and thorough the people at the hospital have been.

For us, the next two weeks are looking like both the shortest and the longest weeks ever. They're the shortest weeks because we have so much to do to get ready. They're the longest because we can't wait to get there. That said, we're being well taken care of as well. The mood here is very celebratory as all of our friends in the embassy community are very excited for us. They're throwing a small congratulations/farewell party this weekend.

I think it's safe to say that this is by far the biggest and best news since we got to Tajikistan. Although, despite our excitement, we're a little sad to be leaving so soon. I'll have to return for a bit in August to finish my tour, but Stephanie will stay in the U.S. with Aiden. So in addition to preparing for parenthood on three weeks notice, we'll be trying to say good bye to Tajikistan as well.

Oh... you didn't really think I would leave this without any pictures, did you?