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The Joys and Sorrows of Foster Adoption – part 1

Arrival Day_Happy Family_002 For every joy we have experienced as foster/adoptive parents, there has been a sorrow experienced right along with it. In honor of National Adoption Month, I would be grateful for the opportunity to share our story with you. Let me catch you up to speed.

From the time my husband and I were engaged to be married, we wanted to adopt children who needed homes. We didn’t know how, what ages or when, but we knew why. We love children. And, because of the love God has poured out on us in His Son Jesus Christ, we are overflowing with love to give. God adopted us and calls us His children, even while we were yet His enemies. When we were completely unlovely and had nothing to offer Him, He set His love on us. He made us His own children. Amazing. Humbling. Everlasting.

We were so eager to adopt that we went to a few classes at our church even before we were married. Click here to read more about our engagement story. We quickly came to our senses and realized that planning a wedding in 2 months was enough to keep this couple busy! So, we waited…after we were married 2 years we stepped out and attended a meeting at our church for those who have adopted or were interested in adopting. It was packed!There were at least 50 people there. And, our interest was further heightened. But, we waited. A few months later we attended the meeting again. It seemed to be a divine appointment. It was a “pot luck”. We brought salad. The ONE other family in attendance, who happened to be the speakers, brought lasagne. Perfect! This was only the beginning. If you remember, the last time we came there were around 50 people. This time…us and the speaker. Hmmm….

Well, they were there, just for us. They went through an agency called Children’s Bureau for their foster/adoption. It was fast, and thorough, and organized. And, the social workers and employees were friendly and personable and very helpful. Sounded Perfect! And, their boys were adorable. And, their story clearly highlighted God’s Sovereignty in their lives. So, armed with this information, we moved forward, full speed ahead. This was around mid July 2011. We moved quickly. Our application was complete before attending the preliminary orientation. And, a little over two months later we were ready. We were certified by October 11th (2 days after our soon to be baby was born). On October 18th, we got the call. Would we like to open our home to a little baby? “He is a little over a week old.” My daughter was literally jumping up and down saying yes! yes! They said we had 5 minutes to decide. So, I called my husband, who quickly said yes. I called our matcher back and told him an enthusiastic yes! Everything was set in motion. A few minutes later, realizing that he forgot to tell us his name, our matcher called back. This baby’s name was Joseph. We like that name so much that our oldest son is named Joseph. 🙂 Now we would have two in our home. 🙂 They have come to be known “Big” and “Little” Joseph. 🙂

This was the first joy…a baby boy was coming into our home. Even though at this point there was a real possibility that he would go back with his mom. We were thrilled to be able to have him, even for a little while! This was also the first sorrow…while we were getting a sweet baby boy in our home, that night, another woman lost her sweet baby boy due to her choices in life that kept her from caring for him the way he needed to be. Our hearts grieved for her. We met her just a week later so she could visit her baby boy.

I will write more tomorrow, but, for now…if you have any interest in Foster Care or Foster/Adoption, please call Maria Otero at Children’s Bureau at (800) 730-3933. They have a great orientation where you can have your questions answered and your fears dispelled or confirmed. They will tell it like it is. When you call, let her know Robin and Diane sent you! 🙂

17 Responses

  1. Georgia says:

    Thank you, Diane! I am looking forward to hearing more of the story. 🙂 I also hope to adopt some day, when my husband and I are fully confident and on the same page. In the mean time, I love hearing about others experiences.

    • Diane says:

      You are so welcome Georgia! I hope the day comes when you can adopt as well! Will be praying for you! Blessings!

  2. Linda Loosli says:

    I have chills of joy and emotion reading this story. Thank you for sharing! XOXO

  3. Gabrielle says:

    Oh, how sweet & sad. It’s true–my little nephew was adopted out of DHS by my brother-in-law & sis-in-law. While we’re overjoyed to have him in our family, the circumstances of all of these situations are nothing short of tragic.

  4. Sheena says:

    I just commented on a friends post about wanting another baby and we can’t have anymore so I told my husband we should adopt. I have always talked about I would like to be a foster parent because I love children so much. I look forward to reading more of your story.

    • Diane says:

      Sheena, I am so glad you came across my post and took the time to read it. I would always encourage anyone with even a small desire to foster children to get your questions answered and take a step forward. The joys and sorrows are worth it when you look into the eyes of children who are such a joy! Thank you so much for taking the time to read and to comment! Blessings!

  5. You gave me goosebumps, I am so in awe by families like yours that can just give and give and give. Thank you for sharing.

    • Diane Marie Haller says:

      Thank you Britni! I am so thankful to say that we are blessed beyond measure and we have gotten so much more than what we give. 🙂 We are grateful to God for the life He has given us.

  6. Kristi says:

    Hi Diane, I don’t know you but one of my friends liked your post on Facebook and it came up on my wall. My husband and I have 2 young boys and I just talked to our social care worker who thinks we can be certified by December 1. (we are going through children’s bureau). I cried as I read your story, thinking about what little boy or girl and his or her mommy is hurting right now. In need of the love of Christ, Lord willing we can share that with them! There are so many joys and sorrows in our sin filled world, but as you choose to step out and love others intentionally as God leads it seems that they both multiply. But God is faithful! Thankful to read your post and the beginning of little joseph’s story.

    • Diane Marie Haller says:

      Hi Krisit! I am so glad to “meet you”! Thank you for taking the time to read my post and to comment. God is SO faithful! We are so grateful for little Joseph and that he is all ours now! 🙂 We can’t imagine life without him. We are still actively fostering and hoping to adopt another one or two to add to our older son and daughter. They are 19 and 16.

      I am so grateful to God to see other families like yours who are stepping out to love those who need us so much!!! I will keep you in prayer. So glad you are with Children’s Bureau! We are so grateful for that agency! They have been such blessing to us!

      Thank you again for stopping by and taking the time to comment! I am encouraged to know that you are also giving of yourselves in this way. Blessings to you!

  7. I am now following your blog via Bloglovin’ and can’t wait to finish your amazing story. Thank you so much for sharing!

    • Diane Marie Haller says:

      Lindsey, I am so glad to have you following along. God is so good to have allowed us to walk through this! Blessings to you!

  8. […] ← The Joys and Sorrows of Foster Adoption – part 1 […]

  9. Monica says:

    Diane,
    So great to hear your story and get an update. How wonderful it is that you are adopting and its awesome to see what God is doing in your lives!

    Monica

    • Diane Marie Haller says:

      Thank you Monica! We are so thrilled to have little Joseph in our lives. He is SUCH a joy!! Blessings to you! 🙂

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