Guest Blog: A Fairytale Beginning

Welcome back to The Naptime Bloggers!  We're so very happy to have you hear!  Lately, at least in my life (Lady Hurricane), a lot of people around me have been adopting.  This next story really captured my attention.  Not only because the mom has a way of pulling in people with her words, but also because of the incredible strength and amazing bond the family has.  I follow Lisa's blog about her family's adventures HERE, often and I hope you will go check out what she has to say too!

Lisa Sorenson is the author of The Far Side of Complexity, a blog that chronicles her family’s daily adventures in the great northwest. An advocate for children with disabilities, a large part of her writing focuses on the trials and triumphs associated with caring for her own handicapped daughter. When not tending to her children, Lisa performs with the Mid-Columbia Symphony and teaches private music lessons. She also enjoys traveling, reading, and listening to Beethoven’s 7th Symphony.

Enjoy.

 

One of the most common motifs in literature and cinema alike is that of rags to riches; stories that tell of a person rising from poverty to wealth. Indeed, those were the stories that captured my attention throughout my childhood years. Favorites included Cinderella, The Prince and the Pauper, and My Fair Lady (to name a few). Oh, and let's not forget Becky the scullery maid in A Little Princess. One of my absolute favorite literary moments is when she leaves her life of poverty and becomes a 'little princess' herself.

Those stories always resonated with me, though I am not quite sure why. As a child I wanted for nothing and had every opportunity afforded me. Yet I sill pondered what it would be like to experience such a dramatic change of fortune - or better yet - to be the cause of that change in the life of someone else.

So when my husband approached me with the idea of adopting I didn't give it a second thought. I responded with an immediate and absolute, "Yes!"

And that is where our adoption journey began.

Many were surprised when they heard we were adding to our family. We already had three biological daughters, the youngest of which was born with severe brain damage. As a result, she is what I like to call a forever-baby. She doesn't walk, talk, or even eat. Feeding tubes, shunts, and seizures are common topics of conversation in our house. To many, it appeared our plate was full. But what most don't realize is that while our life is a little different, it is also our normal.

So despite the shock and questions from onlookers, we started researching, knowing that somewhere out there was a child who belonged with us. It was such an interesting thought, to know that on some continent, in some country, was one child who was all alone, waiting. So I searched and searched until one day I saw this picture:

Her smile captivated me. And her eyes - so full of life and excitement, despite the unfavorable circumstance she was in. I knew immediately she was the one.

***

Three weeks ago we traveled to Ethiopia where Elsa, age 6, joined our family. We arrived at the orphanage with a new outfit to dress her in - including some silver sparkle shoes reminiscent of Cinderella's glass slippers. She literally left her 'rags' behind and came to the States to find a bedroom fit for a princess awaiting her. But rags to riches it isn't about monetary wealth. At least not in this case. For Elsa it means a home; it means safety; it means opportunities to develop talents; it means having a family to call her own.

When I look at Elsa, I see something special - a spark, a light, limitless potential. I see a child who was born into dire circumstances, but regardless, chose to smile. She has a fighting spirit and the courage to face the world with confidence. I have rarely seen such strength and strong sense-of-self in a person. As I think towards the future I am excited to see what it holds for my Ethiopian princess. Who will she become? What will she achieve? Something great awaits her, I just know it. Indeed, this fairy tale is going to end with a happily ever after.

 *** 

I really hope you enjoyed Lisa's guest blog today, and that you go check out her blog as well to follow more of her story!

Until next time!

-The Naptime Bloggers

National Adoption Month: How We Were Lead to Adopt our Boy

Welcome back to Sunday at The Naptime Bloggers!  We're really excited to introduce you to our next Guest Blogger, Jamie!  Yesterday, Saturday, was National Adoption Day, which is why we chose our next blogger!


Jamie is a licensed mental health therapist working as a full time mom right now. She has been married to her wonderful husband for 8 1/2 years. Her favorite hobby is running with her border collie (and now pushing a stroller).
They are featured today on their adoption agency website at HERE where there is a video from their first visit which can also be found HERE and a link to their personal blog is HERE!



I hope you watch the video from their first video, and definitely check out their blog!
Without further plugs and ado, here is their story...

Last year my husband and I were talking about our New Year's goals on New Year's Day, I said I had a desire to become a mom this year. We discussed the possibility of doing foster-adopt through DSHS as we wait for our referral from Ethiopia which we had started on.

On January 3rd, we got an e-mail from the coordinator from the Ethiopia program checking in. We called her back right away. During this conversation, we mentioned that we are thinking of adopting another child before we adopt from Ethiopia since it was going to be a 3 year process. We also spoke of how we were considering other countries as well. She was excited about this idea and mentioned some children that might be available form China and Taiwan and said we were the ideal couple that Taiwan looks for since we are young without children.

The next day, we received an e-mail with a referral for our son!

At first, I felt like I didn't want to read about him or look at the pictures because I didn't want to get too emotionally attached and excited too soon. I was sort of confused and shocked because I have been preparing for a African daughter and there was a picture of an Asian boy.

We talked to our small group about this referral and got some good feedback about becoming parents and trusting God and taking things one step at a time and to put faith in God.

After reflecting and crying for a couple days, we came to the conclusion that he was put before us for a reason. I sort of felt some relief that God chose him because of feeling so much pressure in the decisions that come with adoption such as which gender, country, age, family history and disabilities. This was all decided by God for us.

The hardest part was waiting and trusting God in this process. The first time the birth mother got our information, she didn't approve us. Which was a huge shock! So, my husband (who I learned will do anything for his son) and I flew to Taiwan hoping to meet her. Unfortunately we didn't get to meet her, but we did get two days with our son. We knew he belonged with us from the day we met him.

We had to wait in anticipation for two weeks for the birth mother's social worker to meet with the birth mother to show her pictures from our visit, letters from the doctor and our full homestudy. We got the news we were hoping for! The birthmother approved us!

5 months later after both governments got the paperwork they needed, we got to finally return to Taiwan to bring our son home!

The theme of trust has come into my life after going through this. Waiting was probably the most stressful time in my life. While in Taiwan both times, this is the verse that I focused on and now have it hanging in our son's room, "Trust The Lord with all of your heart, lean not on your own understanding, but in all of your ways follow him and He will make your path straight." Proverbs 3:5-6

Even though being a mom is not easy and is way more exhausting than I thought, I am so thankful for the son God gave us to care for and thank him every day for bringing us together.

I really hope you enjoyed this weeks blogs.  If you have an idea for a guest blog, please don't hesitate to contact us! Here's a link to our Facebook!  Also, I especially hope that you enjoyed our spotlight on National Adoption month!  Do you know of anything else that's coming up that you'd like to see us do a spotlight on?  Go ahead and comment, e-mail, or Facebook us!  We would love to hear your thoughts and opinions!

From all of us here at The Naptime Bloggers,

Have a wonderful Sunday!  See you tomorrow!