My husband and I have been married 21 years this past June. We knew from early in our marriage that our children would be added to our family through adoption. Our son, Issac, was born in February of 1995, and it was one of the happiest days of my life. I was in the delivery room and he has been in our care from his first moment of life. Since then we have talked, prayed, discussed, disagreed, and talked some more about whether we would adopt another child.
For different reasons, we were not in agreement on the decision until this spring. After watching my cousin and her husband's journey to their little girl, Anna Mei, we were in agreement. We started our homestudy paperwork and began collecting information on placing agencies. We were very interested in the waiting special needs children because our son and many of our nieces and nephews would have been considered special needs children. We prayed about our decision and asked God to lead us.
On Friday, August 17, we opened a file and there she was. We looked into the eyes of our new daughter. There were two very special things that drew us to her. The first was her birthday. It was the day after I had received a Christmas CD titled "All I Really Want for Christmas" by Stephen Curtis Chapman. He is a contemporary Christian artist who has adopted three little girls from China and is an advocate for China's children. The gift was from my sister. She knew how I longed to adopt but also knew that due to circumstances from three years prior, my husband was reluctant to put his family's hearts out on the line.
In May of 2002, we had been contacted by a birthmother about adopting her unborn child. We said yes and two weeks later we were handed the little boy immediately after delivery. We provided complete care for him for the first five days of his life with no contact from either parent. Then on the fifth day, his birthparents decided they could not follow through with the adoption and we returned him to them. This was devastating, however God gave us an unexplainable "peace" through the whole process. On his first birthday, we put a stone in our landscaping with the word "peace" inscribed on it.
The second reason we were drawn to the little girl we call Cassi, was her assigned name from the agency. It was Salem and Salem means "peace." We know God led us to her through a series of events. We were so torn at the process of finding a child on a waiting list. How do you choose? We could have taken any one of them and been their parent. They are all precious and need a forever family. But God will lead and direct your path if you only ask and let Him. And He did.
We are so anxious about having a very special gift from God join our family. The reaction of our extended family, church family and friends has been such a blessing. They are almost as excited as we are. Issac, our "long awaited son," can't wait to be a big brother and we are anxiously waiting for our "peace."
