A Journey Into Adoption

John and I have decided to start the journey into adoption. How did we come to this decision? It actually is more complicated than I thought it would be. To tell you the truth, I kind of just thought that working in ministry would be enough to complete me and fullfill me for the rest of my life. Firefighter Ministries, the fire department, and all of my political work keeps both John and I busy. We have had a great life together these past 10 years. We have been able to do so much and travel to so many places.

On Mother's Day of this year (2005), our pastor announced that a couple from our church would be hosting children from Russia for a three week camp. These would be older children, 7-12, that were looking for 'forever families.' We were both so moved by this, that we decided right away that we wanted to participate. This hosting possibility opened the door to adoption. Well, we had a lot of problems with the agency that was sponsering the hosting program and decided to not participate. It was such a tough decision because we didn't want to let a child down. But, we didn't want to fall in love with a child and have a difficult adoption process with the a good possibility of not ending up with that child.

My sister Elizabeth and I were doing a lot of research into international adoption. She eventually wants to adopt too. Well during my research I found another local agency and I called them right away. They were so wonderful and so professional. I went and picked up their packet. After discussing it with John we decided we would go through this agency. We also decided to adopt from China.

China........so why China? My father and his family is from China, so I grew up with that heritage. I love the culture and I think it would be so neat to bring an Asian child into a home that has Asian ties. John and I would also already have our cultural experience that is required during our home study. We have talked to many friends, family members, and mentors and everyone agrees an Asian baby would be perfect for us.

So