MarceloandClaudia

Alright, well I have not been there, done that, but since the beginning of this journey my feelings have changed and grown so much. When I first inquired about Abrazo, I wasn't so sure about open adoption. I was more open about it than Marcelo. He had all the "normal" fears. Also, he wasn't so sure about adopting out of the white/hispanic population either. As we both talked about how we felt and what brought us to this point in our lives, God definately worked through our hearts. After orientation, everything changed! We decided that if this was the route intended for us and our family, then we had to open our minds and hearts for whatever was to come our way. Boy, have we come a long way in such a short time. I believe in realism, but also that with the right frame of mind and an open heart, love can conquer our fears. Of course, we still have those little fears that creep up at the most inoportune times, but that's normal. We are human and embrace the fact that life is not perfect. If it were, it would be so boring. Learning new things and new ways to become a better person to others has been the best lesson life could offer. Look at us now. We are adopting because it's what we feel is the right thing for us and for our family. Not because we cannot conceive "normally", but because we would like to have a family with meaning. We have come to this point in our lives after great hurt and we are still standing. Marcelo was just saying last night that the minute we lay our eyes on Dante, we will just mealt. This won't happen just because he's a baby and part of our family, but because this is something we have waited for and prepared for in our hearts. I think looking at Dante that first time will be much like the minute I started to walk down the wedding aisle. So much had happened in life up to that point and I knew I had found my Prince Charming. It was a sigh of relief and excitement for what God had in store for us! Can't wait. Claudia

One thing I will highly recommend is put a lot of time and effort into your profile. This is what the birhtparents will look at first! It's just like the importance of a first impression. Use things that represent you. We used bright colors with stickers and cute stuff. I purchased most of the supplies at Hobby Lobby using scrap book material. I will say... the supplies can get a bit expensive, but definately worth it. Also, include pictures that show your loving side with lots of smiles! If family and relationships are big, include pictures that convey that message to them. Remember, that this is the first thing they see and they use the profile to decide if they would like to proceed with a phone call. Good luck, Claudia

Michelle and Dan, Congratulations! Marcelo and I just love the name Bella. We have already chosen 2 baby names we really love. And, guess what... for a girl Isabella Sophia (for short Bella which means beautiful in Spanish). She would be named after a good friend of the Paredes family. The woman is Russian and named Bella. Sophia would be after Marcelo's late grand-mother. For a boy we like the name Dante Christian. Again, we are so happy for all those new additions. Claudia

Steve and Laura, We are so happy for your family. Congratulations. Laura, you are an awesome mom and a great friend. Thanks for everything and remember, we too are here for you! Your friends, Marcelo and Claudia

Melissa, I think your ideas are awesome. Maybe I'll have a garage sale as well to earn a little for the baby fund. Claudia

Congratulations on your new arrival Dandy Dozen Storkjackers. Let us know who you are! Claudia

Hi, I'm from Cloud Nine and in Angie's orientation group. Our belief is that baptism is a sign and seal of being a child of God. I would like to baptize the baby in the first 3 months. My mom and dad baptized all 5 of their children shortly after birth. My mom believed that if anything would have happened to us, that we would be sealed by the grace of God. It's more like a symbolic thing. Like someone else said, I guess it depends on your personal beliefs and how the church would handle it. Claudia

Elaine and Mickey, I know it's you two.... Congratulations! We love you guys and only wish you the best! I can't wait to see pictures of your bundle of joy. Like Laura said, if you need anything, remember we are here for you. Your friends, Marcelo and Claudia

Congratulations Cloud Nine! Awesome. See you did it, and in no time at all! I have a feeling it was Mickey and Elaine, but I'll have to wait until I get home because I'm at work and I don't have their phone number here at work with me. And if it's not, Congratulations to whomever it is. We love you all and are so happy for you. Marcelo and Claudia

Congratulations Mike and Stacey on your new arrival. God bless your new family! Claudia

Shannon and KMTM, It's so nice to hear that we feel the same in a lot of ways about our relationship with GOD. I agree with both of you. As I am finding out, many people are very weak or need a lot of education when it comes to adoption. I can't say too much about anyone else because Marcelo and I had many fears at the beginning of this journey that could have easily closed our door to it if we had let it. I was just telling him over lunch about my post and how we had to just stare FEAR in the face and say no to it!!!! Claudia

Elizabeth, Thanks for bringing this subject to light. Just yesterday, my mother, two brothers Marcelo and I were discussing our beliefs of how God works in our lives. I believe that the holy spirit works through us to help us discern right from wrong. I call it my gut instinct. Whenever, I am challenged by an ethical or just plain hard decision, I rely on using my heart, mind and gut instinct (the holy spirit). I know bad things happen to good people and sometimes, as hard as it may be, we just have to accept it! We can't lose sight of FAITH that tomorrow will be better! One thing I believe very strongly is that God gives us tools to use through out life and it is our duty to figure out not only how to use them, but to use them as intended. That's the hard part. I have to trust in the Lord that my intentions are healthy loving ones. My gut instinct tells me Marcelo and I are doing the right thing. I think for everyone, it's a personal matter. I think we all know not everyone was meant to adopt! Take Care and keeping stirring up those tough questions, Claudia

Lisa, Thank you for your words of TRUTH. Marcelo and I new early on that being able to have a "normal" pregnancy would be challenging. I don't know if you would call it a second choice, but we immediately spoke of adoption. Not as a "second" choice, but of something we would love to be able to do. I don't think we thought of it as a second or third choice. We could have gone through invitro, but did not feel that was the right thing for us to do at the time. I can't imagine not going through this awesome adoption process. It's bittersweet but such a beautiful thing! I guess it just depends on how you view life and what is really important. Is it bearing a child or raising and loving one! Thanks again for raising such an interesting topic. Claudia

Congratulations and have a memorable Resurrection Sunday! Claudia

Michelle and Mike, Congratulations on sending your inquiry in. We sent ours in and heard from Abrazo 2 days later. They are awesome. We attended March 2005 orientation and had a great time. Welcome. Claudia

Congratulations on submitting your application. Please let us know how it is all going. I get so excited to find out how everyone is doing. Good luck, Claudia

Marcelo and I are "Parents In Waiting", so we do not have as much experience as the rest of you. I do have some things I would like to share that have helped me through life so far. I know we all have our stories and have gone through some rough ups and downs (some more difficult than others). One thing that I have realized is that all the downs I have experienced on my own and now together with Marcelo have made both of us better people. We are able to empathize with others trials and be more helpful and generous to those in need. When you have gone through these losses, you come out more humble (atleast we have). The most important thing is do your BEST to learn something from the experience and pass it on. Since we are parents in waiting and our Birhtmother is 5 mo. along, we have a wait ahead of us. That is alright though. It is giving us time to prepare emotionally, spirtitually and physically for the baby. Yes, we have fears of the risks involved, but have come to an understanding. This understanding is to change the things we can and let God take care of the rest. That means, trusting in our Birthmother that she is making what she determines as the right decision for her and the baby, that Abrazo will do their part and that we will prepare accordingly. Too many times, we think we are in control, but we are not. I believe God gives us the tools to fulfill our dreams and it is up to us to choose the right tools to make it work. We could easily get caught up in the legalities etc., but after attending orientation and educating ourselves on the risks, we are still forging ahead. What would be worse? Opening our hearts and minds to adoption 100% or never being able to experience being parents? Hurt will always be around due to sin in the world. It's our job to make this place a better one, so keep on going!!! Pursue your hopes and dreams!!!!!! Blessing to everyone, Claudia

Elaine, You are one of a kind. I truly enjoyed reading your story. Thank you... and thank you for being so easy to get to know. I appreciate that. I hope this is just the beginning of a long and lasting unbreakable friendship for us. Say hi to Mickey. Marcelo and I wish you the best life offers! Claudia

I'm not sure if there is a topic of this nature already, but I thought it would be nice to write freely about who we are. I think it is difficult to separate ourselves from who we are and what our goals are (besides adoption) when we are in the midst of finding our new addition to the family. It's really easy to make this the reason we exist, but I think we'd all agree that having a balance is the key to personal success and happiness. To begin: I am a 30 year old hispanic woman. I am a registered nurse practicing in a Plastic Surgeon's office/surgery center. I work for a cosmetic surgeon and we offer office based surgery. I admit, recover and follow up with the patients undergoing surgical procedures. In May 2005, I will complete 7 years as an R.N. I first began my career in a local hospital where I worked for 4.5 years as a Labor and Delivery nurse, as well as Postpartum, Newborn Nursery and the Operating and Recovery Room nurse assisting with cesarean sections and tubal ligations. It was quite an exciting time in my life. I then went on to pursue another avenue of nursing (so I could take a breather from the chaos of working in a hospital) which was Case Management. I only was able to do that for 1 year due to the fact that my love is working with patients and not doing paper work. Now, I have the ideal job with great hours, a wonderful staff and a low stress level. I have been married for almost 4 years. Marriage has been very good to us. I enjoy taking walks in our neighborhood, playing with my pets and hanging out with friends, family and my husband. We both attend a local church that I have been a lifetime member of and my husband a member since we got married. I hope to continue to exceed personal goals, but set family goals as well. I just can't stress how important it has been to remain an individual in some sense. I hope that this will spark something in other Forum members to continue to think about yourselves in some small way too! Thanks and can't wait to hear your story! Claudia

Marcelo and I submitted our inquiry application on 1/31/05, received a phone call from Abrazo on 2/2/05 stating it was received and that the full application would be sent out ASAP. I received it on 2/5/05 and sent it back on 2/7/05. Glad to help, Claudia

Marcelo and I purchased our first home in July 2004. That was expensive and scary. We've known we wanted to adopt for a long time, but just did not feel it was the right time financially and emotionally. Now that we are settled in our home and our jobs allow for more family time, we are ready to adopt. The financial aspect of it was very stressful to think about because you have to budget for the expenses of a child as well as the fee for adoption. We decided that a child was more important to us than any material good. We already took out a loan for the adoption expenses. It will be paid over 5 years (hopefully sooner). By that time, we'll be ready to adopt again. We thought of taking money from our credit cards, but that would make it to easy not to pay it back quickly. We determined that if we were going to do this, we had to prepare. We know we may have a wait ahead of us, but we prefer relieve the stress of determining where the money would come from at the last minute. We would much rather enjoy the ride and prepare our hearts and home for our little one to come. Glad to share, Claudia

My husband and I just joined the Forum today. We feel very blessed to be able to be part of such a special group. Thank you for sharing such personal experiences. It's nice to know that there is an abundance of babies. We pray that everyone searching will find "their" match. We can't wait for ours. Marcelo and Claudia

Since I'm a beginner, I just got my infertility letter last month. I called my Dr. who treated me for my last 2 ectopic pregnancies. Since he knows my medical history well, he didn't take long to write a letter regarding my infertility. I just picked it up at the office and included it with our inquiry to Abrazo. Glad to reply, Claudia

I know this is a bit outdated. My husband and I are new to this whole process. We are undergoing a home study right now in Texas that is costing us $600. They quoted us this fee stating that it was a bit lower due to the fact that we do not have any children or any other family members in the home. Hope this can help someone. Claudia