In honor of Ami’s recent Gotcha Day anniversary, I’d like to post our Memorial Box story of Ami’s adoption. It is so hard to summarize such a significant event by telling one short story, but I’ll try to keep this story in as small of a “nutshell” as possible.
In early 2004 we had three biological children and we were feeling quite comfortable with the size of our family and the busyness that it entailed. But somewhere back in the far reaches of our hearts and minds we were not 100% sure that this was it. So together Chris and I began praying and seeking God’s will for our family. We began to have thoughts of foster care, domestic adoption, and international adoption. It left us both with a feeling of vulnerability to ask God, “Do you want us to foster children? Do you want us to adopt?” It was such a humble feeling, yet strangely comforting to be so open and moldable before Him. We had so many fears about everything from money and how it would change our current lifestyle to how it would affect our children. Yet as we prayed God began to soften our fears as we gave our control over to Him. It’s laughable to me now to look back at our various fears. Oh how He has stretched and strengthened our faith!
After a year of praying and continuing to seek God’s will for our family we heard from Chris’ brother and sister-in-law that they had felt led to pursue an adoption of a baby in China. Over the past year we had shared together our consideration of adoption, but neither of us had felt confident in that decision at the time. As they shared their excitement with us about their decision, Chris and I felt totally convicted that this was our calling as well. It was instant, like a light bulb had gone on for both of us. This was what we had been praying about for a year, this was God’s direction for us, this was his calling!
We were so excited that God had brought both of our families to this point at the same time. Yet we so did not want to “steal the show” from Eric and Kate. This was to be their first child and we didn’t want to take anything away from their big news, yet we knew without a shadow of a doubt that this was from God. They were so very gracious, though, and were very excited along with us.
We independently settled on China, a baby girl, and the same agency. That was just the beginning of seeing God along our journeys. We pursued our paperwork without pressuring each other, yet we also prayed all along that God would see fit to allow us the privilege of traveling together to receive our girls.
Our wait to be matched with a child was a very tough one for this mama as the months stretched into over a year, but during that year we knew God was at work. A year and a half after we began the adoption process we received the most wonderful call from our agency. We had been matched with a 6.5 month old beautiful baby girl. She was so much younger than we had anticipated, but oh how happy we were. She was living in a rural orphanage in southern China waiting for a forever family.
Another very exciting phone call was received on that same day announcing that our 6 month old niece was matched with Eric and Kate! The girls were only one week apart in age and were in the SAME orphanage! But God. He had answered our prayers above and beyond what we had expected or imagined.
Here is Ami waiting for her Daddy and Mommy to come.
We traveled to China together two months later and we received the gift of another child in our family along with a very special niece. I have said many times that I cannot imagine having missed this “surprise pregnancy”. These were not our plans. But God. He knew how much of a blessing little Long Li Dan would be to our family. He knew as He knit her together in her China mommy’s womb. He knew.
During our long, long wait to receive our Ami Jo-Li, Chris wore a simple red thread bracelet that he had made. It was simply a reminder of what was to come, something to physically grasp while we waited to physically hold our China doll.
This photo was taken during our stay in Guangzhou. It was so sweet that Ami discovered this bracelet on her daddy’s wrist.
So all that to say (!) tonight we will place this simple bracelet in our Memorial Box as a simple reminder, as a standing stone, to the amazing adoption journey that lead us to Ami. Thank you Father for this most unexpected and excellent gift!
