March 14, 2019 China trip, Gotcha Day, March 2019 Feature - In China, prepping for China, Rebecca, travel tips, What To Expect 4 Comments

Dear Soon to Travel Adoptive Family, If I could go back now, these are the words that I’d whisper to my own pre-trip heart. My hope is that they’ll fall gently, offer a bucket of grace, excite your spirit, and speak to your heart. Before our first adoption trip, I was giddy with joy and …Read More

March 6, 2019 China trip, Gotcha Day, March 2019 Feature - In China, prepping for China, travel tips, What To Expect 0 Comments

I had read all our agency’s material, devoured everything I could find on NHBO that may prepare us, had my parents retell their stories of China over the course of adopting five times. I even dug deep in the recesses of my memory to relive every detail of my time in Beijing, Xi’an, Guangzhou and …Read More

May 3, 2018 attachment activities, China trip, congenital blindness, Family Stories, Gotcha Day, micropthalmia, older child adoption, Sensory System, sign language, vision issues, vision loss 5 Comments

In July of 2017, my husband and I adopted a 7 year old girl with micropthalmia. She was born blind. In Part 1 of this series, I talked about what it was like to meet Lydia as well as some of the activities we discovered to help with early bonding. Here is more of our …Read More

April 19, 2018 attachment activities, congenital blindness, Family Stories, Gotcha Day, micropthalmia, older child adoption, Sensory System, vision issues, vision loss 1 Comments

Lydia is our first adopted child. She is our first girl, and we had never before parented a seven year old. We didn’t have any experience working with visually impaired or even special needs children. We never dreamed we would have a child who was blind. But our hearts changed after learning about this precious, …Read More

February 26, 2018 a father's perspective, adopting as first time parents, adoption realities, albinism, China trip, Dads, Family Stories, Gotcha Day, Skin Conditions 17 Comments

Elsie and I had very different ways of preparing for our China adoption. She spent the better part of a year setting up a nursery in our home, buying clothes, and watching other “family day” videos on Youtube. She is an optimist and a planner, which makes her the perfect counterpart to a cynical procrastinator. …Read More

December 19, 2017 Attachment, attachment challenges, Childcare scenarios, China trip, cocooning, daycare, disruption, Gotcha Day, October 2017 Feature - Preparing for Adoption from the Experts, parent-to-child attachment, working mom 0 Comments

You’ve dreamt for this day for months, years even. You’ve planned for it, are going to travel halfway around the world for it, and have played it out in your mind a million times. And yet, the reality of becoming a family through adoption is undoubtedly different. As we have focused on Preparing for Adoption, …Read More

November 16, 2017 China trip, first weeks home, Gotcha Day, Newly Home, November 2017 Feature - Preparing for Adoption, Rebecca 6 Comments

When You Adopt, Expect… Your knees to be rubbed raw from time knelt in prayer. That every step of the way, God has something to say, if you’ll only still yourself to listen. That if He is asking you to wait, it is intentional. That your adoption story will be completely unique from everyone else’s, …Read More

November 14, 2017 adopting a boy, adoption realities, China trip, first year home, Gotcha Day, Newly Home 0 Comments

The day we met our son is a day that we still remember like it was yesterday, and yet sometimes forget because it’s hard to believe that he hasn’t been with us forever. The anticipation and excitement of that moment juxtaposed with the deep grief of him saying goodbye to all he knew, his safety …Read More

November 10, 2017 adopting a boy, Adopting Scenarios, Family Stories, first year home, Gotcha Day, Newly Home 3 Comments

One year. I still can’t believe it’s been an entire year since Brooks became ours… One year since a tiny, pale, very sick little boy reached for two strangers in a musty Chinese conference room. One year as a family of five. One year of learning and adapting and fighting for a little boy born …Read More

October 25, 2017 Agencies, China trip, choosing a China adoption agency, Gotcha Day, I'm Ready to Adopt, October 2017 Feature - Preparing for Adoption from the Experts, prepping for China, Stefanie, WACAP 0 Comments

You’ve dreamt for this day for months, years even. Planned for it, traveled halfway around the world for it and played it out in your mind a million times. And yet, the reality of becoming a family through adoption is undoubtedly different. What happens next depends much on how you, as the adoptive parent, process …Read More

October 17, 2017 Agencies, China trip, choosing a China adoption agency, Gotcha Day, I'm Ready to Adopt, Madison, October 2017 Feature - Preparing for Adoption from the Experts, prepping for China, Stefanie 0 Comments

You’ve dreamt for this day for months, years even. Planned for it, traveled halfway around the world for it and played it out in your mind a million times. And yet, the reality of becoming a family through adoption is undoubtedly different. What happens next depends much on how you, as the adoptive parent, process …Read More

October 12, 2017 Agencies, China trip, choosing a China adoption agency, Gotcha Day, I'm Ready to Adopt, Lifeline, October 2017 Feature - Preparing for Adoption from the Experts, prepping for China, Stefanie 0 Comments

You’ve dreamt for this day for months, years even. Planned for it, traveled halfway around the world for it and played it out in your mind a million times. And yet, the reality of becoming a family through adoption is undoubtedly different. What happens next depends much on how you, as the adoptive parent, process …Read More

August 21, 2017 China trip, Gotcha Day, siblings 10 Comments

Recently I came across a very simple, yet thought-provoking question online… “What is the saddest thing you’ve ever seen?” I paused and thought for a moment. A few things came to mind that I had seen on the news, but one of the saddest things that I have seen first hand was a Gotcha Day …Read More

July 27, 2017 adopting as first time parents, China trip, cl/cp, Craniofacial, Family Stories, first year home, Gotcha Day, infertility, July 2017 Feature - Craniofacial, Newly Home, referral, toddler adoption, waiting for referral, waiting to travel 3 Comments

We’re finally here, we’re already here. The road to this day, the first anniversary of Willa’s “Gotcha Day,” has been slow, and yet in other ways, I feel like I blinked, and here we are. I’m not exactly sure what meeting your adopted child feels like for many moms, the ones with a gaggle of …Read More

April 28, 2017 April 2017 Feature - Love Stories, Gotcha Day, orphanage visit, Rebecca 5 Comments

Dear Nanny, As soon as we walked away from our wildly brief time with you, I began to realize what I’d missed, what I’d failed to do. I didn’t say thank you as I wanted to. I saw you, spoke to you, took photos with you, but I know I didn’t truly look into your …Read More

April 10, 2017 April 2017 Feature - Love Stories, China trip, Gotcha Day, orphanage realities, Uncategorized 2 Comments

We are so quick to fill in the blanks, aren’t we? We get one part of a story, and we use our imagination to complete the rest. But it’s too simplistic to do that with the care of orphaned children halfway around the world… to see an image and create a tragic narrative, hear a …Read More

November 21, 2015 Desiree, Gotcha Day 0 Comments

I caught myself staring at my little Chinese boy tonight as he fell asleep in my arms. So much has changed in our three plus years together. He is a whopping five years old now, has gained 15 pounds and grown 10 inches among other things. Our life together is so normal now, it’s almost …Read More

October 23, 2015 China trip, disruption, Gotcha Day, Whitney 1 Comments

…………… Oh, I’ve heard a thousand stories of what they think you’re like but I’ve heard the tender whisper of love in the dead of night You tell me that you’re pleased and that I’m never alone …………… In the months preceding our travel to China for our daughter, I had a lot of fears …Read More

October 22, 2015 adopting two at once, adoption realities, China trip, disruption, Gotcha Day, guest post, older child adoption, orphanage behaviors 13 Comments

There’s been a rash of disruptions lately, both while still in China and shortly after the families are back in America. I’m not here to pass judgment on people, or talk about families who disrupt months or years into the process. I’m here to talk about the beginning, and to give some advice. Real advice. …Read More

October 21, 2015 adopting as a single mom, China trip, Desiree, Developmental System, Down syndrome, Gotcha Day, grandparent's perspective, October 2015 Feature - It Takes a Village 2 Comments

For every nuclear family that is forever changed through adoption, there are grandparents somewhere in the mix. Hopefully, they are the family foundation for which the adoption is built on, but generationally, there may be relational, cultural, racial or even spiritual issues that hinder healthy adoption support. Even the bureaucracy of adoption can overwhelm and …Read More

September 27, 2015 Carrie, China trip, Gotcha Day, Parenting Special Needs 2 Comments

I’m writing this to my fellow Jesus-followers who are adopting. I understand and respect that might not apply to everyone, but I have to take a moment to speak to those of you who share my fundamental faith.   “Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who …Read More

September 25, 2015 a father's perspective, Bryson, China trip, Dads, Gotcha Day 17 Comments

Bryson, dad to 3 year old Lydia and husband to Mandy, shared several months ago on the challenges of attachment. We loved his post so much we asked him to come back and contribute regularly. Today he shares with us a true labor of love, his documentary film of their adoption journey. I encourage you …Read More

August 31, 2015 China trip, Gotcha Day, July/August 2015 Feature - Going to China!, Stefanie 4 Comments

Today is the last day of August, which means it’s the end of our two-month feature, Going to China!, as well as our final post in the series. We’ve spent July and August covering everything from travel tips to orphanage behaviors – 23 posts in all. We hope it’s been a great resource, whether you …Read More

July 23, 2015 adopting two at once, adoption realities, China trip, Gotcha Day, July/August 2015 Feature - Going to China!, Rebecca 7 Comments

It’s the pinnacle of the adoption journey. We build a beautiful image of what gotcha day will be, and hold hard to that as we wait. Much preparation goes into readiness for caring for the child we’ve seen only in pictures. We study bonding techniques and possible reactions, and pack and repack little backpacks. But …Read More

July 22, 2015 China trip, Contributor Q and A, Gotcha Day, July/August 2015 Feature - Going to China! 0 Comments

In this edition of our Contributor Q and A, we share gotcha tips, feelings on orphanage visits and ideas on how to get through meetings and tours with transitioning kids.   What is one thing you were most glad you had along with you for gotcha?   Liberty: Snacks, bottle because he was super thirsty, …Read More

July 20, 2015 China trip, Gotcha Day, July/August 2015 Feature - Going to China! 2 Comments

It’s 3:00AM and I’m laying in bed staring up at the ceiling. My mind is reeling and way too excited to sleep. I am mentally checking off my list of every question that I could think of to ask the caregiver and going over each item I have laid out and prepared for this special …Read More