Here We Go...

When I was 7 years old, my family moved into a new neighborhood. The first family we met had two sons, one of whom was my age and would be in my class at my new school, and one baby daughter. As we visited with our new neighbors, my eyes were drawn to the beautiful baby girl sitting on her mom's hip. Unlike her parents and brothers, she was Korean. It wasn't long until we learned that Katie was adopted when she was 6 months old. I believe God planted the seeds in my heart right then and there.

When Brandon and I were engaged, we talked a lot about having children someday. He knew from the get-go that I wanted to adopt. He never even batted an eye. He wanted to adopt also. 

We grew our family easily, very easily, and before we knew it we were parents to 4 little boys within 5 years. I was MORE than content to be finished with pregnancy forevermore, amen. People would ask us if we were "done" and we always said absolutely, yes. But we often added, "done having babies, not necessarily done bring children into our family." I figured we'd wait awhile, after all, it's been a long time since we got a decent night's sleep.

BUT.

More and more, it seemed that God was determined to keep orphans, their stories, and the desperate need right in front of our noses. I followed Brandon around, reading scripture, passages from books, all with tears falling down my face. You see, I'm a Mama Bear. Big time. I don't like it when my kids kick off their blankets at night, even in the summer. The thought of children in this world without parents to love them as much as we love our boys, pretty much shattered my heart. 

We discovered that the process would take a while. International adoption requires a double dose of perseverance. We also discovered that the price tag would absolutely require us to do fundraising and applying for grants. And so, we decided "no time like the present". Let's get this ball rolling.

And so, now we have stepped out, not sure how it will all work out, but truly believing that our heart is for children, we have plenty of room in our family, and God will not leave them as orphans.