dbugsma

Blessings to you & your newest family member. May this Thanksgiving bring new special meaning to your family!

Congrats on your little bundle of love. Here's to many sleepless nights of sheer bliss. God bless!

C*o*N*g*R*a*T*s!!!! May your family of 4 live happily ever after.

Praise God!! God is GOOD!!! Hugs & lots of slobbery kisses from Virginia Love to you 3!!!

Wowwie! Congrats to the new parents & their baby boy!

Congrats to another God given miracle. Boys are just so precious. Enjoy all the blues, reds & greens, ! God bless your family & your adoption triad.

Wahoo!!! Way to go Chad & Sharon!!!! Bless abound to you, sweet Sally & her precious birthmom. Now get those pictures posted would ya?!

Congrats to the newest parents! Blessing to you & your new family members.

Best wishes to the new parents of the Summer Strollers!

Ok, it is actually a little calm around this house & I can really answer how Tim & I decided to 'go again'... I am the oldest of 3 & Tim is an only child. My dad is also an only child. I have watched my dad endure the death of both parents & Tim's dad pass. Tim & I both knew that when we ready to have children that would like to have 2. Well, after all the infertility stuff came & went & we decided to adopt. Shayla entered our lives & we were in total bliss. But her adoption was full of legal issues. So our decision to adopt a 2nd child was delayed. Our desire to have a 2nd child was so strong b/c we wanted Shayla to have a sibiling, we wanted her to have a sibling w/ a common bond, & we honestly felt like our famiy wasn't complete w/just one child. So 5 years past, & we knew it was time to start again. Were we scared? You bet! Were we excited about starting the roller coaster again? Absolutely!!! That began our quest for a 2nd child. In January 2005, we were seriously talking & praying about adoption, agencies, financing, etc. February sent in the inital inquiry & March our formal application. In May attended Parents for Tomorrow. Then in July we had a failed placement but in 2 short weeks we matched w/ another birthcouple. So in the span of 12 weeks we attended orientation, a match fail & had our son placed w/ us. Am I still in awe?? You bet! God has blessed us! Is it hard? Yes, it is different now w/ 2 children. I have posted about that on the PeaBiscuits thread. I hope that helps It really such a personal decision. best wishes.

Lisa, I don't have a lot of time at the moment, Shayla just got home from school & Hayden is about to wake from a nap....but I will write more later about what Tim & I discussed re: only vs. 2 children. Shayla & Hayden are 5 1/2 yrs apart & it is taking a good deal to get back in the baby swing again. Shayla has been SO very use to being the center of our world, ok the universe , since she was placed w/ us at age 3 days that it is taking time for adjusting. It isn't easy I won't sugar coat things. But I will say that Hayden is a blessing while Shayla cured my hunger, huge desire to be a mommy; Hayden is healing those horrible infertility pains that Tim & I had dealt to us. I know this isn't answering your questions directly, but I'll get back to you tonight or tomorrow. Momma jobs call, .

Congrats Angie & family!!! We'll anxiously await your story. A special gift from heaven above.

I used 8 1/2 x 11 paper as well. I picked good clear pictures & didn't use full pages of text. Page 1: 5x7 pic of Tim & myself & a box of text introducing us, a brief blip about our stuggle w/ infertility & knowledge of adoption since we already have a DD through adopdtion. I used very few stickers in our profile, mianly colored paper...the same 4 colors though out. I like the simple profile look. one that is almost professional. that is just my style. Pg 2: 3 pic of Tim & several boxes of text about him. Pg 3: same as above but about me Pg 4: one long vertical text box about our DD & 3 pic of her Pg 5: devoted to our families & 5 pictures little text box explaining that they understand adoption & excited about our ventures Pg 6: 4 pics of house, dog, us, &...(I'm drawing a blank) text box too Pg 7: some misc pic of us as a family & as a couple. Text box & we signed each letter. you will find what works for you. if you have questions call Abrazo. they proofed our text by fax & we had a couple of phone calls about the it before I was happy w/it. hope this helps.

Hi Alyssa, As the mom of 2 children through the blessing of adoption, I welcome you to this forum. I know w/out a doubt you will be give lots of support here. As for the desire to make an adoption plan, please contact Abrazo & talk w/ them. The ladies there can give you very sound advice about how to approach your mother. Does your mom know how open adoption works? And the beauty of it? The way Tim & I feel is that our children have more people love them & in todays world you can't have enough love for children. It takes work to make a plan work out & if you decide to make an adoption plan there are marvelous families at Abrazo who you can talk to & decide which family YOU want to raise your child. Hang in there & call Abrazo....they want the best for you & the child you are carrying. All my best to you. Keep us posted on your decisions & we are so glad you are out of harms way. Stay safe. God bless.

Suzy, I'll echo Toni & Laurie's response. But I'll throw my 2 cents in as well just because, I want to Before orientation we had most of our money figured, but once we were matched w/ our first match we scrambled to secure the remaining funds, b/c like when you build a house you always run into unexpected expenses & need more money....so be realistic & aim higher than you think on your budget. Homestudy....We had all of our paper work turned in for our homestudy prior but had not had any of the visits prior to orientation. I would just advise you to stay on top of the homestudy, if I had not ours wouldn't have gotten done or taken a lot longer. There were some papers missing from our doctors & no one was letting us know that. Also learn all about your states requirements. We live in Virginia & our orientation group has heard our woes about Virginia's wacko laws. Profile...we took our letter w/ us. I wasn't comfortable putting the profile together until Abrazo approved the letter & pictures. We also took a bunch of photos w/ us for them to look at advise us on which pictures were best. I am picky, ok anal, about pictures so before orientation we, rather I took a pile of pictures to use in the profile. I also used some that were a year old. Just go for things that descibe you & what you do. Get as clear as possible pictures. If you scrapbook that helps, b/c you know how to go for clear/crisp pictures. Or recruit a friend who is good photo taker. Finally, before I put the profile to together, I faxed a 'final rough' draft of our letter to Abrazo to read for more feed back. Ok, I've said way more than I needed, but hopefully that helps. Good luck & just know that you are entering a ride that will change your life FOREVER! Welcome aboard,

As one of those 'newbies', I urge you to stay around & post. I find great information in your post & get inspired by your relationship w/ your children. Please accept my warm fuzzies to stay around & keep us company, .

Congratulations on your daughter. Every good & perferct gift comes from above. Take time to savor the small joys of these early days. Welcome to the world Ms. Trinity!!

Great news! Congrats Jeff & Amy on your new bundle of 'pink'!!

Congrats to the new parents! Big hugs from Viginia.

Chad & Maralou, Congrats!! We want the details & story too. Another boy, yahoo!!!! Savory every minute you spend w/ your son's birthfamily. Hugs& Kisses.....

Congrats to Brenda & Mike.....the long journey well worth the wait! Enjoy yur time here in Texas!!!

Congrats Melinda & Albert! We'll look forward to deeing some pictures. Rest assured that little one will have you wrapped around her little finger. Congrats!

Congrats to one our first Pea parents!! Little did we know that weekend in May would change our lives so dramatically!! Love to Nita, Walker, baby Camille & the precious birthmommy. Hugs from Virginia!!

When we were ready to start our 2nd adoption, I did an internet search & came up w/ a list of agency in the Texas area. We don't live in Texas, but liked what we read about Abrazo & the counseling they do for the birthparents. THat is pretty much it in a nut shell...an internet search.

Congrats WindyCity! Once you have time to catch your breath fill us in on the 'rest of the story'. Best wishes & hugs to all members of the new family!