Thursday, July 22, 2010

Domestic Adoption

I said that I would answer the question “Why are you adopting internationally, instead adopting the children that need a home in your own country?”


So, I am going to go back a few years to get to today.  Steve and I always knew that we wanted a large family and that adoption would probably be apart of our story...though, we never knew how large apart!!!  When we heard about the little girls of China that were in orphanages waiting for a family, we knew that this was where the LORD was leading us. So, two years after the life-threatening pregnancy of our 3rd child, we added our small daughter from China.  We found out that boys were waiting in S. Korea and we knew that this was were the LORD was leading us. After Landon came home, we felt (again) that the LORD was leading us to waiting boys in Vietnam. At this point MANY trials and pains hit our family.  
As we walked through those difficult years, we also waited. We had put in paper work asking to adopt a child from an amazing organization in Tulsa, O.K.-Crisis Pregnancy Outreach.  Two years later we received a phone call that a birthmother had chosen our family to adopt her baby and she would be giving birth in the next few weeks. Much healing and growing had happened in our family and we were ready!  A few weeks later, before Christmas, Kalyn and I were flying to Tulsa, to meet our newest family member-a newborn baby boy.  It was amazing to go to the hospital and meet the birth mother, and then we waited (for what seemed like forever) for the nurses to bring “the baby”. I was so dying to meet him and so wanting the respect this young birthmother.  Finally, he was there!!! I was allowed to stay in a hospital room and able to begin mothering him immediately.  And I was able to continue to visit the birth mother and share the miracle of this new child. 
Corbin Samuel will turn 6 this Christmas.  And I can still say that experience was one of the most amazing times of my life. 
A few years later Steve and I felt that the LORD was taking us to Liberia, Africa, where over two years, 3 small children would be added to our family....children who were sick, close to death, starving, stuck in one of the longest African wars, living in refugee camps.  I always wanted to adopt again from the Crisis Pregnancy Outreach (and they NEED families!!!), and after bringing our children home from Africa we looked again into domestic adoptions and we found out that Colorado has a rule called “8 is Enough.”....meaning the state would not allow us to adopt domestically because of our family size and we could not even do foster care within our state now.  At one point, we had been able to do temporary foster care, however, our family size made that impossible now.  
After this, we found out that a door was opening for us to adopt from Ethiopia.  And now, precious Keshawn Lee is home.  Why, because he was on a waiting list, just needing his family to come. 
So, Steve and I continue to pray, as we do not feel that the LORD is through with adding to our family.  And though we never planned to adopt from so many different countries, I am continually amazed and thankful that the LORD had/has such an awesome journey for our family.  And I really am in awe of the fact that when I sit at my table, so many different nations are sitting there with me, but we aren’t strangers, we are family!!! Surely, this is only a small glimpse of Heaven with the Father of all Nations!!!!  I will always be grateful to a brave birthmother and the USA for my Corbin Samuel!!!


And I feel compelled to advocate for the boys at this point. We have been blessed with 5 daughters and I will always be thankful for that!!!!
However, most of our sons are home because they were waiting for one reason only - they were boys. So whether it is domestic or international, I ask you to consider the waiting boys in ANY country. Wow, are they precious!!!!

20 comments:

  1. i had no idea precious Corbin was adopted domestically! wow. i commend you guys for following where the Lord lead you - so many different countries! :))
    i myself have recently really been burdened for boys. orphaned, street kids, etc. when i was little i came up with bunches and bunches of baby names for my kids. mostly ALL of them were boys it seemed. i just couldn't come up with any girl names that i really liked except for a couple. hmmmm. i been realizing this heart for boys in Mali come alive within me the past couple of days (not that i don't have a heart for the girls of Mali, but it's different). not sure what that is all about, i'll just have to wait, and pray, and see, won't i? :D i've always been in love the idea of God giving me a tribe of 12 boys one day. :)

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  2. We get asked that question too.

    Washington State has a "6 is Enough" rule, so we were ruled out MANY years ago. :)


    Laurel

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  3. Amen! Boys really are so much fun! God has put your family together in such a beautiful way. What a blessing.

    Love,
    Sarah

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  4. An awesome family, indeed, and such a blessing to have a large family! I love to advocate for boys, too. How important it is for the boys to have a family to teach them about Jesus, and to be heads of their home. And our homes would NOT be the same without that crazy amount of testosterone now, would it?? :)

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  5. Thank you so much for sharing Corbin's story! How precious! And I'm so grateful that you are advocating for BOYS. They get overlooked so often but the truth is, boys are amazing and there are so many who need families NOW!!

    Love your heart, friend!!

    Oh, and I'd really love to know specifics about how you make every day life work at your house (sorry, maybe you've posted about this before and I missed it..??). How many bedrooms do you have...how do you plan meals...how often do you buy groceries, etc.! As our family continues to grow, I am in serious need of adjusting our way of doing things!

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  6. What an awesome testimony of the grace of God and your faithfulness to respond to His promptings! I so want to adopt again and love hearing how the Lord has brought other families together. Thank you for sharing!

    And when people asked us that same question of why we adopted internationally I responded that there are kids the world over that need a home. Our son was waiting for us in an orphanage in Kazakhstan. I don't know how God worked that out, but He did. It's an amazing adventure!

    Celee

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  7. Love hearing your beautiful story!! Warms my heart!

    I'm on board- lovin the boys!

    Thank you for sharing your update-now I have one for you!!
    I will try to find your e-mail and fill you in!!
    Blessings to the nations around your table ;-)
    Thank you Jesus!!

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  8. amen to the boys!!!!!!!!! that's one reason why noah is home-- i have such a heart for the boys in china:) love your story!!!

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  9. Beautiful!!! Corbin is such a blessing!!!! As all your kids! I've had a heart for domestic, I was disappointed when an adoption agency said to me after Jailyn came home - "Really... you want more? Why in the world?" I guess she said it right - it's not of this world, they are heaven sent!

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  10. I never planned to have so many different nations around my table as well, but I too love how the Lord has worked all that out for us. And a big yeah for boys, I love love love my boys! We are so blessed with our latest and newest almost 7 year old son. We LOVES having a family and being slobbered with loving!

    And while we are going back for a new daughter, my heart is with the boys left in China and around the world. Had not the Lord led us directly to this sweet cupcake we are getting (that is an amazing story in itself), we would be back for another boy instead!

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  11. thanks for sharing.

    CT has a 6 family size rule. I talked with an agency that is deperate for finding homes for infant African American babies in my state, but when they heard we had 8 children already, they said 'too many.' sigh. We are having our homestudy updated and don't know what God has planned...but we too know we are not done.

    xoxo
    Kimmie
    mama to 8
    one hoemmade and 7 adopted

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  12. Wow, what a story ~ and what a beautiful family. I agree, boys are a blessing, even if they are occasionally tiring. ;)
    Like Lori (who commented above) I'd love to know how you make daily life work. Somedays I struggle with just three. and yet I know that one day I pray we have five ~ or more...

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  13. What a beautiful adoption story - it must have been amazing!
    How I would love to sit at your dinner table - it would be wonderful to see the way God has created your beautiful family!
    God bless you
    Renata:)

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  14. I just love the name of your blog!
    I too have a boy, full Korean, but adopted domestically. I am in awe of his birthparents and what they did for him. And yes, boys are fun!
    I also have a girl adopted from China. She's sassy, fun, sweet, and has just enough spice to keep us on our toes.
    Congratulations on going back to China. Looking forward to seeing her.

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  15. Thanks for such a beautiful and heartfelt post!!!

    I love your family and I love your faith & commitment to following the Lord!

    :)

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  16. Wonderful post and such a beautiful son! There is nothing like experiencing the beauty of adoption with their birthfamily! Praying for your family as the Lord guides you to your next peanut!

    I do happen to know of an amazing little boy waiting in China that desperately needs his forever family. This is his second time on the shared sn's list. He is our son's best friend. I have wrestled with why we can't adopt him, too and have found peace that advocating for him is what the Lord has called us to do. I am terrified of the day we will meet this precious one that I am so deeply attached to and have to leave him behind...it honestly terrifies me! Anyways, he is a beautiful little boy who turned 4 in March. :)

    Blessings to your beautiful family!

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  17. I loved to read this. thanks for sharing it! I appreciate that you took the time to answer that-I get frustrated when we get asked the same, but you inspire me with your patience. :) YOu have a beautiful family and how exciting to just live by where the Lord leads. He is so good! darci

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