Latest Update: November 19, 2011
(Please use "Our Journey" scroll section on the right side for other dates.)

Our Adoption Story.

March 2010 In March of 2010 Mike and I decided that we were ready to start another incredible journey to bring a third child into our home. We started the paper chase adopt a little boy from China. After months of home study visits, doctor exams, pulling financial records, trips to the Secretary of State, picture taking, and two trips to New York City to the Chinese Embassy we finally had our dossier together. We sent it off to our adoption agency and they sent it to the China Center of Adoption Affairs on September 9, 2010 (which is also Mike and Connor‚¬ birthday).

October 20, 2010 - We received the referral of Ming Jun, a 3-year-old boy with a cleft lip and palate from Gaoming SWI on October 20th which we accepted immediately. We fell in love right away with the pictures of this precious boy and more so as we saw more pictures of him from other parents who had been back to the orphanage over the past year. We decided to name our son, Aaron. We were so excited to bring this sweet boy home and happily started the countdown to the next steps that would lead to our trip to China and our boy in our arms.

October 27, 2010 - We received Preapproval (PA) for Ming Jun!

December 6, 2010 - It was a Monday night and I was looking at the Love Without Boundaries blog and saw Aaron (aka "Artie") there( http://www.lwbstories.com/?p=6090). I was thrilled to see the pictures and read the write up but I was concerned with the fact that the write up said that Aaron was available for adoption. I emailed our adoption agency and they weren't concerned at all and said everything was alright. But I still felt uncomfortable about it so I sent LWB an email saying that "Artie" did indeed have a family on the way for him and stating how excited I was to see pictures and read the write up about my little boy (I used his Chinese name, Ming Jun, in the email).

December 7, 2010 - On Tuesday, I received an email back from LWB stating that I was mistaken and the little boy, Artie, was not my Ming Jun. I just couldn't believe it. I have studied Aaron's picture and know every detail and I would have bet my life that the boy on their blog was the same boy in our referral pictures and all the pictures we received since we got the referral. Also I had seen pictures of what I believed were all the 3 year old boys at Gaoming (which is a small orphanage) through the orphanage yahoo group and I only saw one boy that looked like the referral picture that I have. So I emailed our referral picture to LWB and told them how I was feeling. I was starting to panic and asked our agency if there had ever been an error with a referral where the wrong picture was attached. They said no way...China would never make a mistake like that and never had. I then heard from an adoptive parent I had been in touch with through email (who had connections at LWB) that there was a little boy listed on the shared list currently from Gaoming with this same referral picture. You can imagine how nervous we were then. We are in love with Aaron and became very concerned that something was not right. I immediately called the other director of our adoption agency and told her the whole story. She said she’d see what she could find out (of course it was evening by then).

December 8, 2010 - So on Wednesday, LWB and my agency talked back and forth all day. By the end of the day they had come up with two possibilities 1. Aaron had a twin brother at the orphanage or 2. the photos of the two boys were pictures of the same child and the files were of two different children (which would then mean...whose file did we have). We went to bed that night knowing that our agency was going to be in touch with China to try and figure the whole thing out.

December 9, 2010 - So Thursday morning, while I was sitting in Sears Portrait Studio, with Connor and Annelise, Mike called me and said he had spoken with our agency...the file we had was not Aaron, it was another little boy. Well, that was a moment I will never forget as I sat there in the quiet waiting room with other parents and their little ones with tears streaming down my cheeks and my children were wondering why Mommy was crying in public like that (they don't often see me cry). I reassured them and told the photographer I had to leave. Mike said the agency had emailed the correct pictures of the boy in our file. So I came home to see which child our paperwork said we were adopting. It was another little boy I have seen in several photos and whose crib is next to Aaron's. The agency called me and I told the director we are in love with Aaron. My kids are calling him their brother, his picture is up throughout our house, his grandparents have been showing off photos of their new grandson. So I asked her if we could lock Aaron's file instead. She said of course they would try. The agency has been great and so sympathetic. They cannot believe this has happened. In the 1600 adoptions they have done this has NEVER happened, nor had they ever heard of it happening. Only God!!! Then came a pivotal moment ….the director asked me if we would consider taking both boys. I almost laughed out loud at her. I said to her I would in a heartbeat but I could not see my husband agreeing to bring home two boys (unless they were biologically related). But I said I would certainly mention it to him.

Mike was upset and feeling bad about choosing between the boys. He said it felt like "Sophie's Choice" to him. So I told him the agency said we could bring them both home. I waited for him to laugh at me now as if I were joking and to brush it off as if it weren't an option BUT instead he started asking questions about how it would work. It was a busy day, Mike was working in the office and the kids and I went to Yankee Candle with my dad (a trip we planned before all of this). Mike and I touched base a few times still talking about the possibility of bringing two boys home and we talked to the agency a little more about our options and at the end of the day, my husband said to me, "Let's bring them both home"! We called the agency and told them that we would like to try to bring both boys home! They told us we might have to wait for December 20th when Aaron was put on the Special Focus list (since that is the only way to adopt two non-related children at once right now). So I prayed and put all my trust in God and He gave Mike and I an incredible peace while we waited to find out what was going to happen.

December 13, 2010 - We received our Letter of Acceptance (LOA) for Ming Jun.

December 18, 2010 - A fellow adoptive mom that I met in cyberworld was in China to adopt her new son. Her daughter is from the same orphanage as Aaron and Ming Jun. We had talked after we received our referral and she said she was going back to Gaoming SWI for a visit on their trip to China. She was going to take pictures of Aaron for me while she was there but then with this whole thing I told her briefly what was going on right before she left. On Dec. 18th she sent me an email. She sent many pictures of the two boys (Aaron and Ming Jun) holding hands together. That started the tears flowing. Then I read this message from her (see below) and I was sobbing.

"I had to mention to the head nanny that you guys were thinking about bringing both boys home, otherwise they wouldn't have let me take pictures of both of them. I can't tell you how super happy she was that they might not be split up! The head nanny knew about the mistake with the picture and the referral and was very sorry . . . but so so so happy when we said that the boys *might* be adopted into the same family. She said they are best friends, and even referred to them as big brother and little brother.

They pulled them both out of the cribs so I could snap pictures. . . they started to hold hands, and then the nannies sang a little children's song. The boys started to dance around in a circle, still holding hands! It was definitely one of the most adorable things I have ever seen. They continued to sway in a circle, and never let go of each other's hands. :)"

I am still in awe over this! Now we felt that these two boys were REALLY meant to be together and both Mike and I were really hoping that the whole thing was going to work out to keep them together. We found more pictures of Ming Jun from the yahoo group and we decided to name him Ryan. We were totally falling in love with BOTH boys!

December 21, 2010 - Our agency China representatives were travelling and no one seemed certain when they would be back to get some resolution to our situation. On Dec. 21st, I decided to send my agency and email to just check in. I got an email back saying that Aaron's file was locked by our agency and that our agency representative was sending in our Letter of Intent! HOORAY!!!! We were so excited!!! What an amazing Christmas present!!! We surprised my mother-in-law with the news by giving her a picture of the two boys. When she said, “Which boy is it? Mike said, Both! It was great! She and my sister-in-law were so surprised and my parents were there to share in telling this exciting news! ! We are over the moon!

December 28, 2010 - This morning we received Preapproval (PA) for Aaron and we already have our Letter of Acceptance (LOA) for Ryan!! It has just been so amazing to us how God has orchestrated this whole thing to keep these two precious children together and that this mistake with the referral was really no mistake at all! We are in totally amazement over the whole thing and we feel so incredibly blessed that these two boys who have slept next to one another since they were infants, who had their lip surgeries done at the same time, and who have such a special bond will now be brothers forever!