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A special thank you to Michael's family for sharing their story....At this
time, we need more families who would be open to boys with special needs.
Please contact your social worker if you will consider adding a son
to your family!
I believe that God had plans for Michael’s
adoption a long time before he was born. Adoption has always been engrained
into who I am. My dad married my mom when I was two and fought for parental
rights to adopt me soon after. My parents have always loved me unconditionally
and taught me what a blessing adoption is. If my father had not married
my mother and adopted me, I know that I would not be the person I am today.
Also, adoption may not have been such an easy decision for me.
When Bill and I were married, we both knew
that one day we wanted children. As time passed, our ideas of how that
family would be formed changed. My doctor recommended infertility tests
and possibly treatments. However, I felt that God had a different idea
for us, because of my family history I felt God nudging me toward adoption.
However, what would Bill think when I brought this up to him? We discussed
the pros and cons of treatments versus adoption. There were a lot of questions,
but God seemed to supply every answer. Bill also felt that God was
leading us to adopt, so we started the adoption process.
Our road to adopting Michael (Chinese name
Dang Anwei) started in March of 2006 and took two and a half years. It
was a rollercoaster ride of ups and downs. However, we fully know that
God has been with us at every turn and bump in the road. When one door
closed, He would open another one. When we doubted that we could come up
with the money to adopt, He provided. After waiting 2 years for a healthy
baby girl 0-12 months of age, He slowly changed our hearts. In His own
way over a few months, He softly spoke to me and Bill. I have to admit
that it took Bill a little while longer than it did me. One day we were
sitting in the living room, looking at medical files and pictures of multiple
children on our agency’s Child of Promise list. This is a list of children
that who have special needs that China is trying to match with families.
List after list, the girls had been adopted, but many boys still waited.
While we sat there, Bill said to me, “Why doesn’t anyone request the
boys?” It wasn’t that they didn’t want the boy. However, most people
were like us. They were told that only girls were adopted from China. They
had been preparing for a girl for years. It was at this point that we decided
to put our fate in God’s hands. We requested to be matched with both boys
and girls. If God wanted us to have a boy, we would… and He did. He
gave us a son with a cleft lip and a cleft palate. He gave us Michael.
We received the call that we were matched
with Michael in February of 2008 and we traveled in July. We toured Beijing.
Then, we flew to Taiyuan, Shanxi with two other families on July 14. That
afternoon would be the day that changed our lives forever. That is the
day that we first held Michael in our arms. It was one of the most wonderful
days of our lives. After flying to Guangzhou and receiving Michael’s passport,
we returned home.
After returning home, Michael saw many doctors
and specialists. His lip was repaired in China, but he had surgery to repair
his palate in September. He has recovered from the surgery beautifully.
He has started speaking and understands everything we say. He also started
daycare in October and has really flourished in that environment. He loves
it and cannot wait to go every morning.
We have now been home for approximately
one year. We are amazed everyday at how perfect God’s plan and timing
is. Michael is such a perfect fit for our family. By listening to God and
allowing him to guide our path and change our hearts, we were blessed with
the gift of being parents to a rambunctious, happy, and loving 2 year old
boy with special needs. We would not have it any other way.
