Our story! Part 1

Welcome!!! We are starting this blog to keep our friends and family up to date on our journey to adopt a child with special needs. We are SO excited about the road ahead and can't wait to get to our child. I want to take a second and start this out by sharing a little bit about us and our decision to adopt.

Who am I??

I am Danielle. My name means "God is my judge." Intimidating and freeing at the same time. ;)
I am a Jesus Freak and I can't imagine life without Him.

I am a wife to an amazing husband and father.

I am called "mom", "mama", and "mommy" at any given point in the day.

I have two amazing children and one we are in the process of praying home. 

I LOVE being a MOM!

A mom??

In just about every picture of me as a child I am carrying a baby. I babysat as soon as I was old enough. I worked with children at a Mother's Day Out program and as a nanny. I dreamed about the day I would have my own family. I prayed for my husband and my children when I was a teenager. Instead of career goal ... I just wanted to be a mom. 

I love kids. 

I'm not a perfect mom. I make plenty of mistakes and pray often to know how to be a better parent. But... I love being a parent. I love watching them grown and learn. I love slobbery kisses, hearing "I love you mom", and beautiful artwork only a mother could get. I don't live in fairy tale land. Being a mom is not all bliss. I have changed more diapers than I would like and I see no end in sight. I have had many sleepless nights and really wonder when I will ever catch up. I have been embarrassed as my child yelled out "Mommy, I have to go poop" while we were in a quiet store or restaurant or better yet "Mommy, why is her belly so big?" to the poor lady nearby who is clearly not pregnant. I have had my angel children flop in the floor kicking and screaming like it was the end of the world. There truly is never a dull moment as a parent. Just when you think you have it down ... they remind you how little you actually know. Is it all worth it? You bet!!!

Why am I adopting?

As a teen, I was privileged to get to go on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic. We stayed in an orphanage there. We spent every day playing with sweet orphan boys. They were so eager for love and attention. It was so hard to leave them. I didn't care about the mosquito net bedding or the many bites I had received. I didn't care that a tarantula had decided to crawl in my shower(oh yeh!). I didn't care that we couldn't flush tissue down the potty. I cared that I was leaving those innocent sweet faces who longed for love behind. I was going back to my cozy lifestyle as a spoiled teen but I wanted nothing more than to take them all home with me. From this point on, I knew I would adopt. 

After my daughter was born my husband and I checked into adopting. We didn't meet the requirements. So, we prayed, sponsored children, made sock dolls to send to some children with special needs, and learned as much about adoption as we could and ...we waited... for God's perfect timing. That wait wasn't without frustrations and tears. We wanted to speed it up but it just wasn't the right time. The desire has never waivered. We always knew it was in the future, we just didn't know when.

Why special needs?

God... He said so. To be honest I had never considered special needs before. I had no idea what that meant but it scared me. I didn't have the slightest idea how God would lead us on a road we would never have thought. Several months back He introduced me to an amazing blog. This mom is an incredible reflection of what it means to follow God whole hearted. Her and her husband are currently raising 7 children, 4 with special needs. They are praying and working hard to bring another who desperately needs rescuing home as well. Reading about her family was inspiring. Learning about the plight of orphans with special needs broke my heart. I began to ache over these children. As they say, God broke my heart for what breaks His. I began to research each diagnosis listed. My eyes began to open to a whole new world. Every question or fear I gave to God was replaced with answers and peace. I realized this was a serious possibility. So, I approached my husband....

Part 2 written by my amazing hubby - coming soon!