The thoughts of adoption have been with TJ and I even since before we were married. The idea of bringing a child into our family that was not biologically ours was never a drastic idea for us, it always seemed right. This idea was kept at the back of our minds as we went through college, graduated and got settled in our first home. With each passing month, the idea slowly came back to the forefront.

The discussions between TJ and I became more frequent, as did the prayers. We both agreed and felt that when we did adopt, we wanted to adopt a child older than 3. This decision was mainly based on us watching Colton over the past few years, so innocent and dependent, yet full of personality and imagining all of the children just like him without homes.

After several months, we knew there was nothing more to discuss, but the next step was to take that leap from talking to doing.

From there came the research.

First we looked into domestic adoption in our state of Iowa because even in the United States there are so many children in need of homes. The point and goal of the foster care system is to reunite children with their biological parents or relatives and we learned that rarely does a child 3-4 years of age become available for adoption in Iowa. Even then, we would have to become foster parents and that route just didn’t feel right to us.

Next came the research into international adoption, which to us seemed out of the question in the beginning because of the staggering price involved. We are a 24 year old couple on a budget, with a five year old son, who just bought our first tiny home last year. We thought money was the only thing standing in our way… but we continued forward.

After researching different countries and local adoption agencies, we settled on an agency… and the Africa adoption program. Our agency goes through both Ghana and Uganda, so our child will come from either country.

It’s hard to imagine that he’s out there, somewhere, right now. Just the thought brings tears to my eyes. I wonder what he’s doing. I wonder what he’s thinking. I wonder what he’s feeling.

And 3 will become 4…. 

This was exciting/shocking/wonderful news for my family. I wanted to come up with a way to share it with them that would be just as exciting. I made these hollowed out eggs with the message for my three brothers on Easter..

Colton is and has been the only grandchild for five years on both sides of our family, so you can imagine how exciting the news was.

I know the adoption process is very hard and unpredictable, but we are ready for the journey. I am sure I will be sharing more about the process, especially after our homestudy next month. I appreciate all of the support from our family and friends and I am excited to share this news with my online friends as well…

I hope to learn and connect with others who’ve gone through this process before us and I’ll be here to document our journey for all those that will be after.

{Adoption Print: Red Letter Ink Etsy shop}