Plan A, Adoption

Let's go ahead and take care of the elephant in the room.... You know, the one that seems to suddenly appear the moment I spill the beans that we have adopted all three of our kids.  It happens all the time with new friends or acquaintances who don't yet know our story.

 I  understand your shock.  Only moments earlier you commented that my son has his Mama's blue eyes or that my daughter's fair skin and stick straight brown hair so closely resemble her Daddy's. We physically look like we "belong together".  We relate to one another as though we have been together since the start.  That is simply not the case because my kids are adopted.  So adoption must have been Plan B, right?  Wrong.  Cue the elephant. 

Adoption for us was Plan A.  Yes, you heard that correctly, Plan A.  We have no idea if we would have struggled through the heavy darkness of infertility as so many do.  God got a hold of our hearts before we "decided" it was time to start a family and the sweet word "adoption" is what he constantly whispered to us.

My husband and I married at 21 with the distant dream of children somewhere in the far off future, not giving it a second thought that "children" would come to us any other way than biologically.  In the early years of our marriage God got a hold of our hearts and messed with us.  He opened our eyes to the broken and hurting- those without a voice or hope of a future.  Little souls without a family to provide for their most basic needs let alone beyond. The need was real and right out our front door. Our hearts broke- ached... what could we do?

Piece by piece God placed the idea of adoption in our hearts and minds.  He aligned one thing after another and before we even realized it adoption had become our plan A.

 Adoption isn't all glitter and sunshine.  It's hard and lonely in it's own way.  We were met with  concern from those we loved and understandably so.  There are so many what if's, unknowns, and a harsh sense of reality and loss of the control. What we were about to do was messy, and it wasn't even our mess.

Early on in the process I mourned the idea of missing "the normals" that most soon-to-be Mom's get to experience.....the baby announcement, the gender reveal, the shower, the months of preparation, the kick of a baby, or seeing the outcome of a mini-me...   Was I entitled to those things?  Would not having them leave me with a feeling of regret down the road?  

As I struggled and wrestled with these thoughts little by little I realized these seemingly "big" concerns began to fade away.  I was filled with peace and then excitement.   His ways are higher than mine.  Always.  No matter what.  I was saying yes to what God had put before me.

Now, almost 3 years later  I look back with a thankful, grateful, awe filled heart.  He did immesurably more than we could have asked or imagined.  From the way he aligned things, to our children that are undoubtably ours, to the impact and growth we have seen in ourselves and others.  His name is lifted high through it all.

This is not to say adoption should be everyone's Plan A although for us it was.  What it really comes down to is bringing your hopes and dreams before the Lord with a willing heart....willing to allow Him to interrupt your plans and willing to allow in the uncomfortable.  God can do great things with something as simple as that.  It's up to you if you'll let Him.

Ephesians 3:20 " Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,"

* For the juicy details of our adoption process check out our Adoption Blog by clinking on this LINK

* To watch the video of how God was at work far before we were WATCH HERE

* To listen to our story of how God aligned it all and answered prayer LISTEN here to the Mother's Day Message I had the opportunity to share (scroll down and select Mom, Mommy, Mother on 5/12/13)