A is for ADOPTION

Today, on the first day of the A to Z challenge, the letter is A. I couldn't think of a better topic for the letter A than a topic that we are so passionate about. Over the past couple years, we have hear all sorts of questions and comments. Ones like.....

"Why didn't you have your own kids?"

or

"Those kids of yours are so blessed!"

or

"How much did they cost?"

or 

"You know, after you adopt, you are gonna get pregnant."

or 

"What happened to their real mom?"

or

"Are you worried what kind of problems they are gonna have as they grow up?"

or

"At least you didn't have to go through hours of pushing and being uncomfortable for 9 months. All you had to do was pick them up!"

or how about

"I don't get how anyone could just give up a baby."

People do mean well, I will give them that. However, these are things that a lot if not all adoptive parents cringe at hearing. So, let me just clear them up real quick....

1. Why didn't we have our own kids?? Adoption has been something that we always talked about doing in our lives. It was never a "plan B" for us. Plus, our kids ARE OUR OWN!!!

2. Our kids are so blessed!.....WE are the ones who are so blessed. God picked me and Will to parent these babies. There are so many days where I look at their cute little faces and wonder what I ever did to deserve them. A lot of days I feel unworthy to be a mommy. But, God chose us and for that, I am so very thankful. Lina'e and Kagon teach us to love life. Therefore, we are the blessed ones.

3. How much did our kids cost? You cannot put a price on a child and the blessings that they bring into your lives. End of story. 

4. You are gonna get pregnant after we adopt!....Um....still waiting on that. Some days, I ache to carry a child in my womb. To experience a baby's first kick or their hiccups or to hear their heartbeat. So no, that isn't how it works. 

5. What happened to their real mom? Am I invisible? Can you not see me? I am their real mom. Yes, I know what you mean when you ask that, but maybe use better words.

6. Are we worried what kind of problems they will have as they grow up? I don't know, are you worried about the problems your children will have as they grow up? As a parent, the future of your child is always unknown. Yes, my children went through some rough things in the womb but when we started praying for children, we vowed to love every single part of them, their best and their worst, their accomplishments and their struggles. So no, we are not worried.  

7. At least you didn't go through hard labor and pushing and being uncomfortable for 9 months. All you had to do was pick them up!....No, I didn't carry them for 9 months. And no, I didn't go through hard labor for hours. BUT, we waited years to have children. We prayed prayer after prayer that God would bring children into our lives. We went through homestudy's, fingerprinting, background checks, and court hearings. Little do you know, that comment is so hurtful. And yes, we did pick them up. But we experienced watching a birth mother cry as she handed her child over. We watched our son go through weeks of withdrawals, crying an uncontrollable cry that you cannot do anything about. We had to learn the ins and outs of a heart monitor and oxygen for our little girl. So yes, we picked them up. But we didn't JUST pick them up.

8. I don't know how anybody could just give up a baby.....My babies were not given up. Their birth mothers acknowledged that they could not provide the life that they thought their baby deserved, so they allowed someone else to step in and love those babies and promise them the best life possible. The decisions that our birth mothers made were simply selfless. We have our differences, but we will always be grateful for them and the blessings they put in our life.


So there ya have it. The life of Adoption. What a roller coaster of a journey, but the end of that journey is worth it. We are so blessed beyond measure!