I have been asked to write an article about Adoption.
November is National Adoption Month, and Sunday, November 14th, 2021, is orphan Sunday.
For us, it is about love. We wanted to love. It was always our first choice to build our family. God has been so faithful and patient to lead us right where we needed to be and when. He provided when we both could not see any way over and over.
We could never have imagined the deep life lessons we have learned along the way. It is a VERY broken, messy, challenging, wonderful, joy-filled, and amazing walk. Jim and I are both so glad that we did not let fear get in the way when it indeed could have overtaken us.
It is a mindset that we have chosen to celebrate the victories, see the milestones, be a part of the wonderful change, and all the beauty over just the HARDS.
I do not want to lead you to believe that we have not cried a river, been on our knees longer than what we can physically take, and given it all with little to spare. It is not all easy, neat, and contained, but that has been a part of that mindset of 'in it to win it' that we have adopted within ourselves.
We also see differences as perfect beauty. The word of God is very clear that he has a plan and a purpose for each of us and that we are all made in His image. We look at Jesus every time we look at each of our children.
It is SUCH an honor to be their parents. The older they get, the more those ugly roots of rejection, grief, belonging, self-worth, and the rest try to overtake them. The fight is so real! I am thankful that God has given us His Holy Spirit to make the fight fairer.
We have several superpowers we parent. In all the ways that we are different, we are very much the same.
We are thankful for resources in our medical choices that have led us to a quality life for them. Our recent life-changing surgery for Hannah has shown me that truly all things are possible. She was born with Larsen Syndrome. She has many twisted and different parts. This year we underwent two major leg surgeries where Dr. Feldman, Dr. Huser, and the team made knee sockets and tendons for Hannah that were not there. Her knees were repositioned and placed in a more correct position. The list of what happened is long. It was a total of 77 days in another state ( at the Paley Institute in West Palm Beach, Florida) away from home,16 hours of surgery, a lot of money, and 12 days in the hospital. We have had more than 300 hours of PT.
God did it ALL in the most beautiful ways imaginable. It was just a little over two years ago that our family was in China in awe over how masterfully and perfectly God created our seven-year-old, fifth, brilliant and beautiful daughter. She was wheeled into our room. I could not believe that she was to be ours. She was on track for living her life bent over in the sitting position while standing and in a wheelchair. I am so glad to be a witness to God's plan for her life. She asked her guide to ask her new parents if "she would ever walk." Today she walks, runs, rides her bike, and is living her dream.
Adoption is life-changing. If you have any questions about how to afford adoption or complex medical change, adopting older children, Cerebral Palsy, Hemiplegia, Larsen Syndrome, Arthrogryposis, Premature birth, emotional challenges, amniotic banding, the amazing Feldman team or anything else, I would love to take your call.
Adoption is a worthy journey that will make a difference for your children, "but the greatest difference will be within yourself!"
You can read more about Hannah’s medical journey here.
Tammy
Hannah's Mom
