A New Daughter {Real Families, Real Stories}

Real Families, Real Stories

My husband and I had four children of our own, and had never considered adoption. Actually, we had decided we were done trying to have children. However, God had another idea. In June of 2011, I went to visit a cousin of mine who was dying from cancer. Her name was Kathy, and she was an amazing woman who fostered and then adopted 5 children with special needs, all on her own. As I sat and talked with her she confided in me that she did not have peace about where one of her children, a 7-year-old girl with Down syndrome, was going to live after she passed away. The other four had homes already. I decided to pray for Kathy and her daughter that night before I went to bed. In the middle of the night I awoke with the strongest feeling that I should be willing to adopt her daughter.

I told Kathy of this the next morning, and she was thrilled. I returned home and my husband and I discussed it for the next week and a half. Finally, we agreed it was the right thing to do, and I called Kathy to give her the news. She died two days later.

We brought Alyssa home on July 6th, after her mother's funeral. The adoption process was long, although about as smooth as could be hoped for. Our adoption became final on May 21, 2012. Our children, then ages 3, 6, 8, and 9, only had one week to prepare for a new member to join the family. They have come to love and except Allie as one of their own. We never expected this drastic change in our lives, but I know God was working through it all. It is changing us in ways we don't even know yet. Allie was given up for adoption shortly after she was born because she was diagnosed with Down syndrome. My children found it sad that her mother didn't keep her, but they realize that she wouldn't be with us otherwise, and for that they are thankful.