The author of "Jesse's World" talks about the reactions you may get from your family members when you tell them you are adopting from overseas. Apparently some people get negative reactions - a kind of suppressed racism is the insinuation.

We don't expect any negative reactions - we are pretty confident that our families will be supportive and happy for us just as they would be if we announced another pregnancy (god forbid!)

We told my parents a couple of weeks ago. This was a tough one. My Mum has Motor Neurone Disease and there is not a snowball's chance in Hell that she will live to see this child. I felt a little insensitive telling her about our plans but decided that it was her right to know she is going (hopefully) to have another grandchild and that she still has the right to good news despite her illness. My Dad's reaction was pretty much as I expected - he said "oh great, I love Chinese food" but later on asked for more information. There's nothing Dad loves better than being a grandfather so he doesn't give a rat's arse where the grandchildren are coming from - just bring 'em on!

I'm in no great rush to tell everyone else - I mean, we haven't even filled in a form yet, so I don't want to tell them now and have them wait through what must seem like the world's longest pregnancy. It could still be 2 years before the baby arrives in our home.

I love the thought that this child is likely to be of a similar age to my sister's children and my cousin's son. I worry a bit that Gemma & Ben will be so much older that the Ashanti Girl will feel like an only child, but so long as we have friends and family with children of similar ages I think it will be fine. My sister is 10 years younger than I am and we are great friends now, but growing up we didn't really know each other. Now she has to do her duty and present my new baby with cousins of around the same age - I think she will be happy to comply :).

Scott and I have finished reading Jesse's World (http://www.capersbookstore.com.au/scripts/shop_item.asp?by=cat&item=1900) by Basia Bonkowski. It's the stories of several international adoptions in New South Wales. Some of them are heart warming, some heart breaking, but most of them a bit of both. We already know that this is what we want to do, but reading the book makes us wonder how could we possibly not?