Madison's adoption story

Journey to Madison
By Brenda

In November of 2000 my husband David died of a massive heart attack. His death left a huge, gaping hole in my life. I wondered what the rest of my life would be like without him. Some six months later a co-worker was beginning the paperwork for an adoption. In the course of lunchtime conversation she casually mentioned that singles could do this, too. That was enough to start me on the road to my wonderful daughter, Madison who has filled that void in my life.

The paperwork took up much of the summer. Then the waiting began. There were things happening in Vietnam and rumors were flying of Vietnam closing to U.S. adoptions. Then the heartbreak of 9/11 and I selfishly worried if it would have any effect on my flying to Vietnam for Maddie.

I anxiously watched for a FedEx envelope to be waiting on my doorstep each day as I pulled into the driveway. Two days after Christmas I received a phone call from the agency. Four babies had just been released for adoption. I was in line. Did I want to go forward without the pictures they usually provide? Of course I did. Through tears I listened to my instructions about flying to Vietnam in three weeks to file the paperwork. The trip was a thirty-three hour ordeal. I arrived in Ho Chi Minh City after midnight and set my alarm to rise at six. We were going to the orphanage to meet the babies.

My first memory of her is of a tiny person with a round little head covered with dark fuzz. She studied the fan rotating overhead and me equally seriously. All too soon the hour was up, the babies returned, and we went to file our paperwork. Then home again to begin the wait for the pick-up trip.



I was accompanied on that trip by a close family friend. Ho Chi Minh City was amazing. The sights, sounds, and smells all foreign from anything I had ever seen. The people were so very kind. Many came up to us on the street and in stores asking if we were taking the baby to America. When we replied, yes, we invariably got a GOOD! We collected jewelry, embroidered goods, and maps from these people who were so poor, but wanted this child to have some remembrances of her birth country.

We had a wonderful couple facilitating our trip. They made sure paperwork was accurate, our responses were pat for the officials, and that we found the best restaurants and shops. It was two wonderful weeks, but we were ready to come home. The airport in Harrisburg was swarming with family and friends. The house equally full when we arrived. All were ready and waiting to welcome this new little person to our circle.

I can no longer remember life before Madison. She has brought indescribable joy to my life. She has grown into an intriguing combination of a tomboy who loves to be active and a “girly-girl” who loves dressing up like a princess and wearing swirly dresses. Thank goodness she is still a snuggler who likes nothing better than to cuddle with Mom while she drinks her morning juice. Her limitless energy tests my endurance but every day spent with this miracle of a daughter is a gift I will never take for granted.

Mongolian Spots

I would guess that most of our kiddos have mongolian spots somewhere on their bodies. With Braeden starting preschool soon, I wanted to provide his teachers with information about his spots since they can easily be mistaken for bruises.

Brenda, a member of our group and my Mother-in-law, was actually questioned about Madison's spots during a summer camp. The counselor asked Madison what happened and Madison said that her cat did it. When Brenda went to pick-up Madison, the counselor then asked Brenda about the spots. Brenda then explained that it was not the cat, but that they were mongolian spots.

There have been incidents though where the school, camp, etc have called Children's Protective Services before asking the parents about the area of concern. Luckily, nobody in our group has had this happen to them.

I am one who always errs on the side of caution, so here is a copy of what I am sending to Braeden's preschool:

To whom it may concern:

Braeden xxxxxxx who is of Mayan Indian and Hispanic descent has Mongolian spots on his body. The spots on Braeden appear at the base of his spine and down into the buttock area.

Because there have been cases where these spots were mistaken for bruises and action was taken against the parents, I am making you aware of these spots now. His pediatrician is aware of the Mongolian spots and has made note of their location in Braeden’s records. Mogolian spots are simply birthmarks and pose no threat to Braeden.

I have attached some more information about Mongolian spots that I hope you will share with your staff. If you have any further questions, please let me know.

Thank you,

Kendra xxxxxx

Here is the link to the "additional information" that I am sending them.

Feel free to use any or all of what I wrote!!

Pics

Some pics from our last event:

(Sorry, I didn't get everyone's kiddos)

Adan's Long Journey Home

(The following is the story for the little cutie in the post below this one)

By Adan's proud Mommy, Amy:

Our adoption story begins four years ago, in 2004, when we decided that we wanted to start our family. Due to medical issues we decided that adoption would be the best option for children. We knew no matter how children became part of our family they would be all loved the same. We began the process by participating in the Pennsylvania’s SWAN program which places children out of the foster care system. We took months of classes and went through several interviews for potential matches in children, but nothing ever materialized. After a year of disappointment we decided to move on to other possibilities.

The following November, Norm and I attended a marriage conference through our church where we had the opportunity to speak with a lady who held international adoption close to her heart because she had two children from China. We had never considered international adoption until now but it was something that intrigued us. After much soul searching we decided that this would be the best option to start our family.

We started the process right before Christmas 2005. On February 3, 2006 we got our first referral which was a three week old little boy. We were elated as was our family. We named our little boy Ian. Over Easter 2006 we took our first trip to Guatemala to meet our son. Wow, what an awesome experience. After returning to the states we counted the days to exit PGN so we could return and bring our son home, but God had other plans. In August of 2006 it was determined that our son was not developing and had suffered brain damage at birth. Our Guatemalan attorney, adoption agency, and local pediatrician strongly encouraged us to end the adoption. This was the most agonizing decision we ever had to make. This situation was not going to stop us from our life long desire to be parents.

On December 1, 2006, I received a call at work from our adoption agency stating they found a pregnant birth mom who was going to give her child up for adoption and we were placed with her when the time came. Later that day she gave birth and we were given the honor of naming this child. Our son, Adan William was born! Things were progressing well and we at least knew what to expect with the process. Easter 2007 we returned to Guatemala to meet our son. This was a wonderful experience, but it was so painful to leave.

We entered PGN May 18, 2007. We were trying to stay positive, but we understood this was the long step in the process. Long was the understatement of the year. We finished 2007 and started 2008 in PGN. When we got the much anticipated call January 8, 2008 that we were out of PGN we couldn’t believe it. We thought travel was right around the corner. Week by week passed and no birth certificate. Later we found out our birth certificate was coming from Mixco which was notorious for taking longer to issue paperwork. After several weeks in Mixco we received a privos for the way my name was written on a document and Mixco requested the form be corrected and re-issued by PGN. We were assured that this was nothing to worry about and it was a simple piece of paper. Our file was taken back to PGN and the new form was requested. More weeks passed and it started to seem like we were moving backwards. After eight months in PGN, there we were again. In the meantime, the Guatemalan government was falling apart and new regulations on adoptions were being formed every day. PGN closed down and they implemented birth mom interviews. Since we were back in PGN we had to also abide by these new rules. More weeks passed and Adan was already 17 months old. Finally, on June 20, 2008, over one year of our original entry date to PGN, we were released the second time. Back to Mixco!

Our attorney traveled to Mixco on a regular basis checking to see if they would issue Adan’s birth certificate. Not only would they not give him the paperwork, they won’t even talk to him on most occasions. This continued another three weeks before we got the call.

On July 15, 2008 at 8:13 pm we got the call we have been waiting for for almost four years. Adan was finally coming home. Our attorney had the birth certificate and all we had to do now was get Adan’s passport which was done the following day, and the final DNA check. We are currently waiting for the Orange Slip which will give us authorization from the US Embassy for DNA. Once that is completed and returned all we need it PINK!!!

This has been an ongoing journey which we will not soon forget. We are both anticipating how it will feel to land in Guatemala to pick up our son forever!

Little cutie

How cute is he??

I am so happy to say that he is finally coming HOME!! I am so thrilled for his family.

I asked his Mom to tell us all about him. Check back soon!

Hello everyone! We're really looking forward to seeing everyone at the July 19th picnic! If you did not receive the invitation or were not part of the distribution to receive it, please e-mail us at circleoffamilies@yahoo.com. We can send you all the details. If you are coming, there are water games planned. Bring a change of clothes for the kids! See you there!

York Unity March

The York Unity March will be held on Thursday, July 17th at 10am. This will be a giant step toward bringing awareness to the importance of diversity, equality, and non-violence in our community. The day begins with motivation speeches on acceptance, tolerance and kindness by the area's leading experts in the field. The one mile walk with follow after that.

Care to join us.... Email Kendra or use the email address on the sidebar for more info.