It only seems to make sense that we should start this blog by answering the question that a lot of people are wondering… how exactly did you end up deciding to adopt from China?? So, here’s our journey in a nutshell.

Josh and I have been talking about adoption for most of our marriage, and both of us agreed it was something we’d maybe look into… someday. So, when we started our family we had Eden and figured we’d have another child in a few years. But when we started trying for another baby, we waited… and waited… and waited. After about a year, we consulted with a doctor and about a year after that, were referred to a Reproductive Endocrinologist, and really started on the fertility treatment roller coaster. We rode that for about a year and then were told that given our history, and progress to that point, our only option was IVF. We pretty quickly decided that IVF was not a good option for us and figured that we would try to put away our dream of being parents again and be satisfied with Eden, who was and is the light of our lives.

But the dream and wish just wouldn’t go away. 3 months after we stopped fertility treatments, I was finally able to articulate how I’d been feeling… like we were missing a member of our family, and that they were out there somewhere, we just had to find them. At the same time, I started seeing a really awesome counselor who was the mom of two boys adopted from Ethiopia. We had always thought that international adoption was totally out of the question based on the cost, but with her encouragement, I started doing my research and it became pretty clear that it was, theoretically, doable.

We settled pretty quickly on China for a few reasons. First, it’s a very long established program and it is a consistent process without a lot of guesswork. That was really important to us. Second, the level of care that Chinese orphans receive is better that what you see in many other countries, with some kids even placed in foster care. Third, comparatively speaking, it was a quick process, taking anywhere from 12-24 months, much shorter than most other countries. Since Eden is already 6, we are hoping for a relatively short process so we can have closer spacing for our kids. Fourth, the travel requirement is much more doable, with one 2 week trip required.

So, armed with that knowledge, we started looking for an agency and started working with Options for Families and Youth and our amazing social worker, Ginger, to do our home study and Chinese Children Adoption International (www.ccaifamily.org) for the rest of our placement. We are SO HAPPY with our choices and can’t say enough great things about them.

We are SO EXCITED to bring home our missing piece and to complete our family. We are so grateful for the support and enthusiasm of our family and friends in this whole process. It means a lot to us to have people in our corner cheering us on. We’ll keep you updated as things happen! Next up is applying to immigration, and we’re hoping to have all of our stuff done and submitted by the first on the year. We are also going to work on fundraising, because our adoption costs total about $30,000, which is a lot of money. We are planning to do a t-shirt sale, and a fundraiser with our church, and possibly a yard sale later on. We’re also looking into grants to offset some of the cost.

We’d appreciate your prayers and good mojo for everything to go smoothly and for us to stay motivated. This process is overwhelming, but we need to keep plowing through it so we can get P4 (our nickname for our new addition) home as soon as possible. We can’t wait to meet him or her!