Bryan and Laura's Adoption Story: Joy Mixed With Pain

Wrestling with the complexities of emotion in adoption is difficult. There is this immense joy in being a mother to a precious child while being ever mindful of the sacrifice and sorrow of the first mama who made it possible. In adoption, pain is always mixed with beauty and that's definitely the case for adoptive mamas considering the loss that their child's birth parents experience. Laura knows this complexity well. She's been journaling some letters/thoughts to her daughter's birth mom throughout their adoption journey about the joy mixed with pain. Bryan and Laura started with me in February, were home study ready in May, and were matched in August. I have loved watching them become parents...

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Eric and Madlen's Adoption Story: Wait With Purpose

Photo Credit for all pictures: KG Photography I got to know Eric and Madlen as a fellow adoptive family during their first adoption. I was excited to watch God work His beautiful ways in their second adoption journey and let me tell you- the two processes could not have been any more different! Their second adoption was painfully slow, involved some serious heartbreak, and was just flat out a really difficult wait. But just like He always is, God was working even when we couldn't understand what He was doing. They refused to give up. They clung to the truth that He is faithful and they kept praying for Him to bring their baby to them. He is always, always, always faithful! And now this...

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Saying Yes To God This Christmas (guest post)

I'm excited to introduce you to this beautiful lady with a huge heart! I met Audra three years ago to talk about life and adoption. At that time she and her husband had one little girl and were praying for God to add to their family. It was such a privilege to watch God shape their faith and lives in their first adoption story. Now, three years later, their family has: a 7 year old a 2 year old a 5 month old and God has recently stirred their hearts to adopt their daughter's sibling due in February. Yep. You read that right! This family has had their life radically turned upside down over the past three years. They know a thing or two about stepping out in faith to follow God's lead, even...

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One Birth Parent's Story: Jasmin

I'm so thankful for the birth moms and adoptees who have been bravely sharing their stories here in this space. This particular post featuring the thoughts of a birth mom (Jasmin) feels really special to me because I was the adoption consultant for the family who adopted Jasmin's daughter. Watching the adoptive family connect with Jasmin so quickly from their very first conversation and hearing them talk about how much they loved her and cared for her was really beautiful to watch. But it's even MORE beautiful to now hear from Jasmin about her love for them as well! (This picture captures the gift of open adoption so beautifully, doesn't it?) Q and A With Jasmin What do you wish everyone...

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Rick and Kim's Adoption Story: Depths of Love

I love this family. They have some of the biggest hearts I've ever seen and they live their lives for Christ and His kingdom, even when that means loving when it hurts. God has given Kim a beautiful gift for words and I've shared some of her writing here and here before. I'm so glad that she was eager to share now about their experiences in bringing their daughter home. Rick and Kim started back withme  on July 2015 on their fourth (yes FOURTH) adoption. I think you'll find yourself loving this family, too, as you read Kim's words: You would think we’d be comfortable and confident walking in to meet her. This would our fourth expectant Mom. But as we drove we talked hesitantly...

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Jason and Annie's Adoption Story: From Discouragement to Rejoicing

Jason and Annie reached out to one of my wonderful adoptive couples (David and Sarah) back in August of last year to talk about adoption. As they began to explore whether or not working with a consultant was a good fit for them, we chatted on the phone several times, and I even had the pleasure of talking with Annie's parents. Right away, I appreciated how seriously Jason and Annie were taking the decision to consider the best approach for their adoption journey; they didn't jump in blindly, but wisely learned as much as they could. We talked about the benefit to having a consultant there as your support, to pray for you and encourage you along the way. We discussed the strengths found...

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Luke and Janien's Adoption Story

Luke and Janien started with me in November of last year. From the very start, they were an absolutely pleasure to get to know. I pointed them towards an incredible home study provider in their area and little by little, they got everything together for their home study. Meanwhile, I was busy creating their profile. (Here's a picture from their profile. Aren't they so cute?) On May 11 their home study was approved and that very same day an attorney reached out about an expectant mama making an adoption plan. Luke and Janien quickly sent their packet to the attorney’s office and were able to have their profile presented! It’s pretty rare that an adoptive family gets chosen the very first...

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