Mia Noelle

Our blessing began months ago when we got the call from Antioch that we were to pray over a mother who was choosing adoption and would consider choosing her child to bring into our home.... this was in April 2009

As many of our friends and family know adopting has been a long long journey for our family. Starting almost 4 1/2 years ago. We thought we would go internationally and pick up our baby girl come home and begin life... but with most things life wasn't that easy!! Many barriers blocked us from adopting internationally, many God stops happened along the way that we only look back on now and see. Amazing the story and amazing the journey that led us to October 6th 2009.

But that call in April came after a complete breakdown and shutdown in my heart. We had been through soo many almost placements, one mother who changed her mind last minute, and then revisiting the international scene yet again.. We had a match with a little boy in Thailand that had Downs Syndrome. He was almost 4 and was considered highly functioning and was the sweetest thing I had ever seen. He had some assistance that cut the cost down, we had done all of our documents and were ready for the last step (another) homestudy and off the papers would go and about 3 months later we would travel to pick up our little boy. Visiting in Oklahoma, I got the call that said with the economy his money was cut and we would need over $30K in one month to travel as he was ready. It was the hardest news to take in. We couldn't take that from our family and had no way to raise that much money so quickly that we had to walk away. Grieving that this adoption thing must not be what God had for us yet one more time- I thought we should walk away from it all. About one week later and feeling little more than still numb, we got the call from Antioch... and this little blessing would also have downs syndrome.

We knew we would adopt special needs mostly because of the huge blessings that our life has given to us. This need to have another child in our lives over the years turned more into a real calling to give life to a child who needed us!!

That's the condensed soup version of our journey and this blog is for little Mia's loving family that gave her and us the biggest gift they ever could have!! Thank you.