Family is ... Adoption

If this video doesn't inspire you to DO something about the children in the world without a home, I'm not sure what would.

Click here to see how LOVE is really all you need to make a family.

30 famous people who are adopted

1. Maya Angelou (poet and author)

“Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, and penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.” – Maya Angelou

2. Augustus Caesar (emperor of Rome)

3. Truman Capote (author)

4. Kristin Chenoweth (actress)

5. Eric Clapton (singer)

6. President Bill Clinton

“Perhaps there is no greater miracle than finding a loving home for a child who needs one.” – President Bill Clinton

7. Nat King Cole (singer)

8. Ted Danson (actor, adoptive father)

9. President Gerald Ford

10. Jamie Foxx (singer, actor)

11. Newt Gingrich (politician)

12. Faith Hill (singer)

“I have a lot of respect for my birth mother…I know she must have had a lot of love for me to want to give me what she felt was a better chance.” – Faith Hill

13. Scott Hamilton (professional skater)

14. John Hancock (U.S. Founding Father)

15. Steve Jobs (co-founder of Apple)

16. Eartha Kitt (singer, actress)

17. John Lennon (singer)

18. Art Linkletter (TV personality)

19. Nelson Mandela (human rights activist)

“There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.” – Nelson Mandela

20. Tim McGraw (singer)

21. Sarah McLachlan (singer)

22. Marilyn Monroe (actress)

23. Michael Oher (professional football, story inspired The Blind Side)

“It’s true that we can’t help the circumstances we’re born into and some of us start out in a much tougher place than other people. But just because we started there doesn’t mean we have to end there.” – Michael Oher

24. Edgar Allen Poe (author)

25. Priscilla Presley (actress)

26. First Lady Nancy Reagan

27. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt

28. Babe Ruth (professional baseball player)

29. Dave Thomas (founder of Wendy’s, children’s advocate)

“Everyone’s got to be for a child to have a home and love. I mean, I don’t know anyone who would be against that.” – Dave Thomas

30. Leo Tolstoy (author)

*** I am continuing to update this page regularly on my main blog page. Click here to see if I have added any new people to the list.

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P.S. We'd like to add our favorite adoptees in our house: Superman, Kun Fu Panda, Jesus, Moses, and the girls on Despicable Me! Others include: George Washington Carver, John James Audubon and Aristotle. 

Download the FREE 15-page guide on Understanding Adoption and the Orphan Crisis 

Adoption Congratulations

On February 24, our friends Kristen and Aaron welcomed their third adopted miracle: Caleb James joined their family weighing in at 5 lbs 8 oz and 19 inches long. Aaron and Kristen were friends of ours in Rochester and are two amazing people. I am so excited for them that adoption has blessed their lives yet again!

If at first you don't succeed ...

Before trying to have kids, I'd never failed at anything. Though I still believe in planning and hard work, it was something else that brought me my two beautiful boys.

By: Emily Liebert

To read this article in its entirety, click here.

My parents always told me that I could accomplish whatever I put my mind to as long as I worked hard enough. Surprisingly, I listened. So when my husband and I decided, after two years of marriage, that we were ready to have kids, it never occurred to us that we couldn't make it happen. Sure, we'd heard stories from friends and family about how it took so-and-so a year to conceive. But, obviously, that wouldn't be us.

Three months later, when I held my positive pregnancy test in the air like a badge of honor, neither my husband nor I were particularly surprised. Immediately, we told everyone in our family, and I called my OB/GYN to make what I assumed would be the first of many appointments over the next nine months. The following morning, just for kicks, I took the second test from the box. I figured a little confirmation never hurt. Only this time, the test read: NOT PREGNANT. Huh? It felt like an affront. How dare the pregnancy test speak to me that way! Clearly, it was wrong.

Only it wasn't. And that was my introduction to the "chemical pregnancy"—a term applied when a woman miscarries less than a week or so after a missed menstrual cycle. Naturally, my husband and I were discouraged, but we were not defeated. Sure enough, three months later I got pregnant for the second time. But, again, I had a chemical pregnancy. I started to get anxious.

After seven months of Clomid with no results, I decided I needed something stronger, better, something that would work. Enter the IUI. A dozen of them, to be precise. And still, NOT PREGNANT. Why was this happening to me? I was working hard at it! According to my parents, that was the secret.

In the meantime, it seemed like everyone I knew was calling me with the "exciting news" that they were expecting. Everywhere I looked—on the street, on TV, even at my own family gatherings—all I saw were women with swollen bellies. I was a failure; something I'd never been before.

We turned to IVF. Three rounds. Roughly 200 shots. The result? One more chemical pregnancy. I hit an all-time low.

A Change of Plans
That's when a flash of inspiration hit. Adoption! Why hadn't I thought of it before? My husband and I wanted to start a family. It didn't matter to us whether or not the child was genetically related. I almost felt silly for having wasted so much time and money pursuing fertility treatments and hyping myself on hormones for so long. I started to research adoption agencies that day.

In April 2009, we attended an information session at our chosen agency. Squeezing each other's hands through the various speeches, we knew our prayers were finally going to be answered. For the next four months, we worked feverishly to fill out stacks of forms, collect character letters from friends and colleagues, and complete our home visit, among the many requirements in the adoption process. We were trying to sprint, knowing full well that we were running a marathon. By August, we were finally dubbed an "approved and waiting family." They told us 15 months was the average wait time. Of course, we hoped it would be shorter, but were comforted by the fact that the result could be nothing but positive.

Two Curve Balls
Two months went by and we heard nothing from our agency. We went about our lives as usual until the morning of October 15, 2009. As I lay in bed, waiting for my husband to get out of the shower and head to work, so I could do the same, the phone rang. I picked up and heard my OB/GYN's urgent voice: "Emily, my colleague delivered a baby yesterday. The mother wants to place her child with a loving family. If you and Lewis want the opportunity to adopt him, come to the hospital right now."

Suddenly, our marathon turned into the sprint we'd unknowingly been preparing for. Four days later, we took home our son Jaxsyn. One week after that, I got pregnant the old-fashioned way with our son Hugo. Two boys, nine-and-a-half months apart. I dare you to try to make it happen!

If we've learned anything from this experience, it's that you can work hard, you can set forth a plan, and you can hope that it will produce the desired outcome. The thing is, life throws curve balls. In our case, two. The most wonderful curve balls we've ever fielded. EMILY LIEBERT is the author of Facebook Fairytales and the novel You Knew Me When. She lives with her family in Westport, Connecticut.

Our story (with three more kids)

I keep having people post this story on my facebook and blog. Like us, this couple was infertile. They adopted. Then they got pregnant. Exactly our story. Only they adopted triplets. And got pregnant with twins. Can I imagine this? No. It literally gives me heart palpitations to think about it. Click here to read this story for yourself.

 

Flashing back to our adoption day

Quite a few people sent me a link to this video about a couple who adopts a son after nine years of infertility. It caused me to wee-wind to our own adoption of Isaac over five years ago.

While my husband and I, obviously, aren't Asian, I found this couple to be incredibly similar to us. In fact, going and getting their son reminded me a lot of how we went to get Isaac.

We got the call that Isaac was on his way at about 1pm. By 3pm we were on the road to make the ten hour drive from Eglin Air Force Base to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Halfway there, we got a phone call. It was Isaac's birthmom Bri. She used the words, and I'll never forget them, "You have a son." It was the first time I had ever heard anyone else say out loud, that I had a child.

We walked into the hospital at night, just like this couple, hours after his birth. They carried an empty car seat. So symbolic of this infertility journey we both travelled.

And then, the moment we got to see our son for the very first time. They found words. I really don't have any.

Adoption: the Owens Family

A little information on why we are wanting to adopt. We have been blessed to have three wonderful boys (Jaxon, 8, Riley, 6, & Mason 2), and are thankful for them everyday. We have always loved the idea of adoption and often discussed early in our relationship (11 years ago when we were just engaged) that we would like to adopt a child if we were able, even if we had children of our own. After we had Mason we thought our family was complete, but we both felt God pulling us to give more. As much as we want a little girl, we feel like we would also be doing what God wants us to do by giving a child in need a family that will love and care for them unconditionally. With a loving extended family and three big brothers to help keep her safe, we know that she would be in a place God would want her. Please pray for us and pass the word to all those you know. Word of mouth is a great tool, and the power of prayer has the ability to move mountains. Thank you for joining us on this journey, and God bless!

 

For more information on this family and how you can help, visit their Facebook page by clicking here.

Adoption: the Standridge Family

 

 

By the eve of our fourth wedding anniversary we had been wanting to have a baby without success. My husband asked me what I would like for our anniversary and I sheepishly answered, “A baby.” He gently told me he couldn't promise me that, but that we'd have a nice celebration of four happy years.

An anniversary wish impossible for my husband to promise was not impossible for God! The next day we heard that after waiting four months with an adoption agency, we had been chosen to parent a baby due to be born in two weeks! Miraculously, we were the expectant couple's second choice of a family to parent their son. The first family selected had decided that adoption was not God's plan for them and said no to the adoption match.

Although we were his birth parents' second choice, we were God's first choice for Erik. If we had become pregnant one of the months and years we hoped and prayed to, we would not have pursued adoption. We wanted a baby, we thought we couldn't have one, God placed adoption on our hearts, and then came Erik. Simple? Not really. Impossible? Not for God.

When Erik was four months old, after four years of infertility, we discovered we were expecting! Our second son Andrew was born one year and four days after his big brother Erik.

Erik is now six years old, Andrew is five, and our “later in life surprise” Jenna just turned one year old. Although you hear about it often, it is really not common for couples who have adopted because of infertility to then conceive and have other children. But God's plan will not be thwarted and His ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:9). Praise Him!

 

Adoption: Aaron and Kristen

It's absolutely amazing how God places people in our lives at just the right times and just the right places.  We met John and Wendi when they were going through infertility.  We had always thought we would adopt, but had never actually walked along with another couple going through infertility.  A couple years later, we found ourselves working through our own infertility and reaching out to John and Wendy for their thoughts on domestic adoption.  We had been starting to work with a local adoption agency which, while a fabulous agency, just wasn't feeling right for us.  I will never forget Wendy telling me that they had looked at Bethany at one time, and she and John felt that it was a very reputable agency.

Fast forward another 8 months (and working with Bethany), and I was at work when my husband called to tell me a baby boy had been born that morning and his parents wanted us to adopt him.  Little did we know how different our lives would become in that one phone call.  The love and total awe we have for the fact that Noah is our son are beyond any words that I have.  It was truly love at first sight, and we couldn't ask for a more perfect fit for our family!  We are blessed way beyond anything we deserve or ever imagined. 

Two years later we were matched with a young lady who was having a little girl.  I was in the delivery room that June morning when Lillian was born.  There are no words to explain how humbling it was to watch Jamie (Lillian's birthmom) give birth to her daughter and hand her to me.  I still cry even writing about it :)  The true love it took for Jamie to carry Lillian and give birth to her and then to make a plan for us to raise her...  I am am speechless!

And now we find ourselves getting ready to start waiting for a third baby to join our family.  Even after being blown away by God's goodness through our first two adoptions, I find myself nervous and anxious about how this third baby will fit into our family.  And then I spend time with my two kids and remember that we have been truly blessed through adoption beyond anything we ever imagined or dreamed. 

Adoption: Jody Cantrell Dyer

 

What follows is an excerpt from the book The Eye of Adoption.

 

Kerri and I sat, she in her wheelchair, I in the hospital’s hardwood rocker, between the single bed and the window. I had opened the blinds earlier so sunlight could warm Room 32.

 

The metal-molded window framed a mundane view. Three floors below the window, a long sloped sidewalk sat parallel to a two way street. Across the street, trucks and cars dotted a charcoal parking lot. A graveled afterthought of a parking area lay above the more formal spaces. I saw no people. The only life and movement came from a row of trees planted equidistantly along the sidewalk. The scene looked uninteresting and ordinary. But the events inside the building supported by the parking spots, street, and sidewalk were extraordinary.

 

Kerri and I faced one another in front of that bright hospital window on that beautiful May morning and talked for a long time. Isolated and insulated by the hospital, I felt secure as I observed my son and his birthmother together. I also felt compelled to witness to Kerri, remembering that Mark said I was the closest thing to Jesus that Kerri knew. I could have seized that moment to share scripture with the frail girl in front of me, but I thought, Who am I to tell this angel about sacrifice? She loves Scotty, unconditionally, infinitely, by nature’s default. She has given up a life with him, for him. She is the closest thing to Jesus I have ever known.

 

I cannot remember what we said to one another but I do remember that, as I watched Kerri hold, talk to, and kiss Scotty, I thought of the hymn lyrics, “There’s a sweet, sweet spirit in this place.” Those moments with Kerri were a sacred privilege.

Jody Cantrell Dyer is an adoptive mother, teacher, and author in East Tennessee, USA. In her novel, The Eye of Adoption: the true story of my turbulent wait for a baby, Dyer directly addresses the sorrows of infertility and the demands of adoption while consistently word-weaving a life-rope of assurance, optimism, and humor for her readers.

The Eye of Adoption is available on Amazon.com and through Jody’s website: www.jodydyer.com. Free Kindle downloads are available November 15-17!

Read Jody’s blog, Theories: Size 12, Musings from a Mountain Mama at www.jodydyer.blogspot.com. 

Email Jody at jdyer415@yahoo.com.

Adoption: The Connor Family

 

 

John and I married in November of 2003. After a little over a year of marriage, we began trying to having a baby. Seven months went by with no pregnancy. Then John joined the military which led to a 14 month geographic separation since I was also in the military and unable to be stationed near him. We hadn't been able to try for the full year, so finding out whether there was a problem had to wait until we could be reunited. Once we were back together we began trying again, but still no baby came. After going through all the infertility testing, the doctor told us our only chance of getting pregnant was IVF with ICSI (you can read more here). I wanted to pursue adoption right away, but John wanted to try treatment first, so we decided to do two rounds of treatment and then move on if it was unsuccessful. Our first cycle resulted in pregnancy, but ended in miscarriage at 10 weeks. Our second cycle was negative. Nothing about that cycle went well. God had given us a clear no.

We took some time to mourn this loss and let go of the dream of having a biological child together as God prepared us for the next step. What many people don't realize is that there are losses associated with infertility that adoption doesn't solve: creating a child together; announcing your pregnancy to your husband, friends, and family; the experience of pregnancy and childbirth; breastfeeding (I know adoptive breastfeeding is possible with hormones); and parenting a child from birth (possible only with domestic infant adoption). These are very real losses that must be dealt with and accepted before you can move forward with adoption with an open heart. What I realized is that for me the pain of seeing a pregnant women was less about the experience of pregnancy and more about the child that would come. I wanted to be a parent more than I want to be pregnant.  What I wanted most was to be a mom. I see adoption as an alternate path to parenthood, but one that is equally as good as parenting a biological child. It is not second best. I wrote about our journey to deciding to adopt here.

Initially, we thought we would pursue domestic infant adoption, but the Lord directed a change in course and led us to adopt from South Korea through a little girl that needed a family. You can see from our picture that the little girl did not become part of our family (praise God she was able to stay with her mom!), but we were now on the path that led us to both of our sons. We brought our first son Joshua JoonSeo home on September 3rd, 2011, almost seven years from when we first started trying to have children. It was a long and difficult wait, but Joshua was so worth it. I seriously can't believe I get to be mom to such an amazing little boy. He is so full of life and joy.

We had moved to Arizona three months before bringing Joshua home. Because AZ requires home studies to be certified by the court, we had to completely re-do ours. It was a little frustrating at the time since we were so close to having Joshua home. But it turned out to be a huge blessing because just four months after Joshua came home, we received a phone call from our new adoption agency asking us if we were interested in adopting another little boy. She had a referral for a little boy, but no family that was paperwork ready except us. He was born right when I was doing all the paperwork for our home study! Our second son Jonah RiYoon came home just over a month ago on October 1st, 2013.

Psalm 130:5 says, "I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope." His word says the Lord "settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children" (Psalm 113:9). There was a time when I doubted whether I would ever become a mom, but ultimately I decided to believe God is who He says he is and does what He says He will do and He did.

Through adoption, the Lord has made me a joyful mother of children.

Adoption: Debbie Michaels

Debbie and her son Roma, adopted from Russia 11 years ago.

What is the first step in the process of adoption?

As an adoptive mother for over eleven years now, I remember my first unexpected step very vividly!  Already the proud and very comfortable mother of three older children, I was NOT interested in taking any steps that might disrupt my status quo.

God obviously had other plans for me!

In a rare moment of heightened awareness of God, my heart heard one troubling, unwelcome word—"adoption."  The relentlessly  recurring theme of "adoption" would soon morph into "adoption of an older Russian boy."  

"But God," I would argue, "haven't You noticed I have three kids already?" "But God, don't you see how busy I am?"  "But God, I don't want to."

Tiny, reluctant steps eventually led us to Russia two years later, in 2002, to bring home seven-year-old Roma, a child who had been relinquished to an orphanage at the same time God had first whispered "adoption" to my heart. It didn't take long for us to recognize that God had Hand-picked this funny boy especially for our family. I am so grateful that we didn't miss out on the wonders and the glory God had in store for us!

Last fall I published But the Greatest of These is Love about our journey of following God to adoption. I learned God's will for our lives is infinitely richer than the safe, comfortable lives we plan for ourselves. My prayer is that our story makes Him visible.

All profits go to orphan care. Free download through Amazon, Nov 22-24.

Adoption: the Kahler Family

Deanna: "I'll never forget the day our daughter was born. It was winter and there was fresh coating of snow on the grass and trees. As my husband and I gazed out into our backyard that morning while eating breakfast, we were filled with many emotions - hope, fear, excitement, anticipation and a touch of sadness. We wondered, Was our dream to become parents finally going to come true? After two miscarriages and more than two years waiting to adopt, it was sometimes hard to imagine finally having a child. We also knew that our daughter's birth mom would be experiencing many emotions as well, and didn't know for sure if she would ultimately decide to parent or not. We were putting our hearts on the line. But we knew it was worth the risk.
 

Later that afternoon as we held our daughter for the first time, it was a overwhelming experience. She was so beautiful and precious. And although we knew the adoption wasn't a sure thing, we loved her immediately and knew that our lives would be forever changed just by meeting her. Our lives did indeed change. We did become her parents. She has amazed us, blessed us and enriched our lives with her enthusiastic personality, her zest for life and her compassion. We love her with all our hearts and feel lucky everyday for the wonderful gift of adoption. All of the pain and struggles we went through finally led us to our precious daughter -- the child who was meant to be with us all along."

For more information about Deanna, please visit www.deannakahler.com. You can also read about her journey to motherhood in her book, "From Pain to Parenthood." 

Adoption: the Lipscomb Family

  

We started our journey together from very different places. I grew up in the Netherlands and he grew up in the United States. When I was twenty-two, we both found ourselves in Canada doing relief work and desiring to serve the community. Needless to say, we fell in love and made every effort to end up together.

After a year of mostly being apart, writing letters back and forth, endless chat conversations and paperwork a mile thick filed with the government, I was able to move to America and marry the man of my dreams!

After moving, we found a wonderful church together and got plugged in while Thomas finished up school. After finishing, Thomas was offered a job as a graphic designer at the church and I have been working as a K-1 teacher at a private school.

We bought our first home in 2011 with a big backyard in a quiet, friendly neighborhood. We love animals and rescued a cat as well as a puppy from local shelters.

We always wanted children and did not wait before we started trying. It was exciting, fun and for a while was “our little secret”! We talked about adopting very early on in our marriage and knew that even if we would have gotten pregnant right away, we would adopt.

Now we’re four years down the road, still unable able to conceive, and have finally put down our plan for God’s plan and decided: We’re adopting a baby!
I have to say that it’s a little overwhelming to think of all the things that need to happen before we will hold our little one in our arms but we know that it will be worth it! God has been brought us together despite the immigration and a long distance relationship and we know with Him, we can overcome this as well.

So, why are we telling you guys all of this? Because we know that we can’t do this alone. But, we also know that great things can happen when a community comes together! So far we’ve experienced amazing things but we are still far off from being able to hold our little one in our arms.

So how can you help? Here are a few ways you can be a part of our journey:

• Pray that we can raise the money to bring our baby home, for a birth mother to select us as parents for her child, for patience during this journey and wisdom to be great parents.
• Donate through GoFundMe.com/LipscombAdoption
• Purchase any product from our website today! I make handmade jewelry and my husband is also offering services. All profits will go towards funding our adoption.
• Like us on Facebook, heart my Etsy shop, pin us on Pinterest, or even BETTER – tell your friends about us!

When we began we needed 2000 people to donate $20.00, now we only need 1850 more people to join us in our journey! Will you make your donation today?

Etsy shop: lousje.etsy.com

fb: www.facebook.com/Lousjedesigns

Instagram: @marlouspot

Blog: www.lousjedesigns.com

Adoption: the Rabens Family

This is our story of God's unique plan for our family. 

Clay and I were told that we might have difficulty conceiving a biological child. Once we decided to start trying though, I had a dream that I was pregnant. I woke up and immediately took a pregnancy test and was shocked that it was positive.  

I had bleeding throughout the pregnancy, but overall felt great. I loved being pregnant.  

To make a long story short, my delivery did not go well at all. It seemed like anything that could go wrong did. I eventually had to have an emergency c-section. Click here to read the complete story of Madison's birth and see pictures. Although the day Madison was born was one of the happiest of my life, it was also one of the saddest because that is the day that I had to have an emergency hysterectomy. I spent 3 days in the ICU and was not able to hold my sweet baby girl. 

Clay and I always knew that we wanted more children and just prayed that God would reveal His plan for our family. We have always been open to adoption and had planned on adopting even before we knew that I was no longer going to be able to carry children of my own. When we moved to Florida, we discovered an Adoption Center right around the corner from our house. We contacted them and began the adoption process. Later we found out that we began the process almost to the day that Jocelyn was born.  

After waiting six months, we got a phone call from the adoption agency on a Thursday asking us if we would like to submit our information to a birth family that had a 6 month old baby girl. I called Clay and we decided that we would submit our information and prayed that God's will would be done for this little girl. We got a phone call the following morning telling us that the birth family selected us and would like to meet us on Sunday. 

We met Ms. Keisha (Jocelyn's birthmother), Grandma Cathy (Jocelyn's birth grandmother) and Brittani Ann (Jocelyn's half sister). The birth family signed the adoption papers that day and after waiting the 72 waiting period, we got to bring Jocelyn home that Thursday.  

We now have two beautiful girls that are only a year and two weeks apart in age.  They are best friends and sisters forever.  Click here to read a letter that Jocelyn's birthmother wrote us following our meeting.  God has blessed our family through the miracle of birth and adoption. We can't imagine our family without both of our precious girls. One grew in my tummy and one grew in my heart. 

Thank you Lord for your perfect plan for our family.

Adoption: the Adams Family

Ashley 20, Justin 19 and adopted children: Amber 21, Robin 20, Katie 18, Robert 17 Iwryn 16, Misty 14 

(We are currently trying to adopt Harmoni 2 & Zeekey 5 months)

This is our family now. We adopted 6 siblings six years ago. With our 2 biological children, that gives us 8! It has always been the dream of my husband and myself to adopt.  I love my life now. It is so joyful and fun!

Adoption: the Meyer Family

Bethany: My boys are my miracles. We "adopted" them sometime during the summer of 2003 and they were born the next April. Technically, my boys aren't adopted. Another couple donated them, as embryos, to my clinic's embryo donation program. After four years of failed infertility treatments and desperately wanting to be parents, my husband and I were starting to research adoption agencies. However, I still hadn't given up the dream of being pregnant. During our last IVF cycle with our genetic embryos I had heard from my nurse that they offered an embryo donation program and asked if I was interested in pursuing this option if this last transfer failed. The day after we received the negative results from my pregnancy test I called the nurse in charge of the donation program. I went to the office later that day and picked up the profiles of embryos that were available, quickly researched them, picked a first and second option and called in with my choice. My first choice had just been taken by another couple, but my second choice was still available. Within a month I was ready for my first transfer. That transfer failed, but I had one more chance left - 4 embryos left, which only 2 survived the thaw - the 2 that would become my twin boys. I called them "my miracles" earlier, but they are truly God's miracles. He had beautifully orchestrated every detail in my journey to become of mom. I cannot look at my boys without being eternally grateful to the One who gave them to me.