What happened to the Grapevine?

I went back home last week for my cousin's wedding and found out that not all my relatives know we are adopting! Communication was never our strength but wow, something this big I would have thought would have made the rounds of the grapevine. Obviously not. It begs the question, where did the communication fail and why? For those of you who don't know me, I grew up in Ohio where most of my family still lives. I now live two hours away in Pennsylvania so I don't see all my aunts, uncles, and cousins all that often. We were at my mom and dad's at Easter when my nine-year-old daughter let it slip that we were adopting. This slip came about a week after my older sister announced she was pregnant again. Her news was very welcome and exciting as she suffered two miscarriages in two years. Now we didn't get a lot of excitement over our news from my family, a bit of a surprise, but not a big deal. I knew deep down they supported us and they've proven this over the last five months. So why isn't the news of our "paper pregnancy" being circulated? I'd love to cast the blame on anyone but myself but I'm afraid that that wouldn't be fair. As excited as I was to start the adoption process I wasn't excited to talk about it with anyone who wasn't going through it or gone through it. Having said that, if anyone asked me anything about adoption or Ethiopia I was more than happy to rattle on and on and on. Very rarely though, would I iniate conversation. Simply put, this is my nature. I am not a talker. I don't share easily, make friends easily, or open up quickly. I can talk though. When we were having a spaghetti dinner I spoke in front of three different church groups about adoption, Ethiopia, and orphans. I found it a joy and privilege to do so. Put me in front of a large group of people and ask me to speak, no problem. Small talk? No can do! I do recognize my, oh how should I say it, obligation, duty, need, to speak as a PAP on behalf of my someday son and all orphans for that matter. I know this but I probably won't ever have the nerve to start a conversation in the grocery store line so I've started this blog instead. I'm not much of a reader or writer for that matter. I just don't have the attention span. It's taken me nearly a week to write this little thing but I will try. I will try. For my little son who I don't even know yet. I will try.