My kitchen was a chaotic deafening hurricane.  Six people in my little kitchen eating breakfast, finishing lunch-packing, and the decibel level quickly rising to unbearable levels.  Two of my boys were both yelling for the sake of making noise, my toddler was whining for juice, my preschooler was singing, and my oldest was trying to [...]

My friends tried to explain some things to me- really, they did. But, like many other experiences in parenting, you just don’t understand until you’ve experienced it. Parenting adopted and fostered children is different. Not too difficult, just different. In fact, it’s very rewarding. But there are so many things I wish someone would have [...]

I’ll never forget the day those big brown eyes stared at me. Those tiny fingers and toes that fit perfectly on his three pound yellow body that was swaddled in a light blue receiving blanket. He was so small , much smaller than I thought he’d be. And I was incredibly nervous– unsure if I [...]

This wasn’t the way it was supposed to go. It was supposed to go something like this: High school sweethearts get married. Work hard, buy a cute house. Have one girl and one boy, 2 years apart. Do the kid sport and school thing in a Chevy Suburban truck. Send darling children off to college. Retire at 50 [...]

Idealize (Def:  to attribute ideal characteristics to) Ideal (Def: existing as a mental image or in fancy or imagination only) Christmas, Birthdays, Vacations and other special events are prime targets for any idealist. Marriage and motherhood too, especially if you are single and have no kids. I’ve learned through experience the dangers of idealizing; envisioning [...]

When God called us to adopt, we had one week to prepare our home for a new little baby.  We didn’t know much about the birth mom, her care for her unborn baby or any of her medical history.  As we sat at the table with our other eight children, we asked them and ourselves [...]

About 8 years ago, the adoption discussion began in our home.  We collected information, went to information meetings and gathered information from people about their adoption experiences – information overload.   We discussed and discussed and … ugh… discussed.  I distinctly remember riding in the car and my husband saying, “Why don’t you just fill out [...]

A month after welcoming our toddler son home, I sobbed to my Bible Study sisters, “We prayed for this for the past year.  Remember?  We really wanted this adoption to happen!” Did I regret adopting again or not expect the difficulty?  Absolutely not. It’s similar to childbirth.  You know it’s going to hurt for a [...]