The world of adoption

I recently was asked to write a guest post on this blog about our adoption process. 2 years ago I would never have thought that I would be knowledgable about international adoption. When we began our journey to Ukraine in April 2008, we were opened up to the world of adoption. I began following blogs, forums, and went on adoption chats. I met so many amazing people and have read through their incredible experiences with adoption.

One thing I hadn't anticipated was the bonding friendships that I have made with several of these strong women. One such woman, Valerie, has been with me throughout our whole adoption journey. I am blessed that she only lives 20 minutes away from me. She is the one who introduced me to Keith. She adopted a little boy, Evan, who was cribbound in the same room as Keith in a small orphanage in Artemovsk, Ukraine. Her friendship has changed our lives. I have no doubt that God intended for me to know Valerie and for her to guide us to our son, and indirectly to find our daughter, Kristina, as well. You will never find a more generous person than Valerie. She has 5 children and is embarking upon another adoption in Bulgaria to bring 3 very special children home to her family. With all of this paperwork and stress associated with dealing with a Hague country, today she made an entire Thanksgiving dinner for my family. She said she wanted to be sure that we would get a real Thanksgiving meal because she didn't know if we would have one since we're arriving in FL on Thanksgiving Day. What a sweetheart! I am thankful for our adoption of Keith & Kristina -  for the blessings that they are in our lives - and I am grateful for the friendships that I now have because of this adoption.