Our Household’s Adoption Odyssey

This November my older son turned 18 years outdated. It was a milestone for all of us — particularly contemplating that, 20 years in the past, I wasn’t certain if I might ever be a mother.

My husband and I obtained married in October 2000. Two years later, we felt it was time to have a child. What we had as a substitute was disappointment, frustration, an ectopic being pregnant, and a miscarriage. Our infertility specialist couldn’t clarify why we couldn’t have a child. After a 12 months and half with no solutions, I had had sufficient.

We attended an data session on worldwide adoption. The audio system talked about the completely different international locations that had been open to adoption by dad and mom within the U.S. After they spoke about Guatemala, one thing clicked. And so my husband and I started our adoption odyssey.

Navigating a Mountain of Paperwork

To be authorized for adoption, we wanted letters of suggestions from shut mates, employment histories, and bodily clearances from our docs. We would have liked financial institution statements and copies of tax varieties. We needed to write our autobiographies and speak about what sort of dad and mom we wished to be. We had interviews with social staff. We obtained fingerprinted for legal background checks. And simply once we thought we had been performed, all of the paperwork needed to be translated into Spanish. The file, at one level, was about 5 inches thick.

Then, on November 10, 2004, I obtained an e-mail at work saying, “Meet Child Pownall!” I known as my husband, who additionally works at Independence Blue Cross, and advised him to return as much as my desk. We opened the e-mail’s attachment and noticed a photograph of the little boy who would grow to be our son. Parenthood was lastly occurring!

Ready for the Name

The subsequent eight months had been a mixture of pleasure and anxiousness. First, we turned to online support groups to assist us get by means of it; then we began our personal assist group. This allowed us to make real-life, private connections with different households from our adoption company who had been additionally ready for “the decision” to carry house their kids.

When that decision lastly got here and we flew to Guatemala Metropolis, 4 different households from our assist group had been additionally there, so we did all the things collectively. We ate breakfast within the morning, swam within the resort pool with the children within the afternoon, and discovered learn how to change diapers, burp infants, and wash onesies in a resort sink.

We traveled to Antigua — the previous capital of Guatemala — and had been amazed by the structure of the centuries-old metropolis and by the wild parrots that lived in its gardens. My Spanish improved immensely, because of the very affected person resort staff who helped me as I stumbled by means of their language. Being in another country, surrounded by our group of mates, was a beautiful approach to begin motherhood.

After about three weeks, our paperwork was finalized, and we got here house to the U.S. with our son.

Adopting Our Second Son

About three years later we determined to undertake once more. This time we selected to undertake by means of the U.S. foster care system. The hefty paperwork requirement was about the identical, minus the translations.

Our second son got here to us as a four-year-old — which, as we quickly discovered, may be very completely different than adopting an toddler. Though he may stroll, speak, and feed himself, he additionally had reminiscences of his foster household. He was visibly confused about shifting between households. He bonded in a short time to my husband however didn’t simply join with me. That made me very unhappy.

A New Set of Parenting Challenges

Trying again, I wasn’t as ready as I ought to have been for the emotional impact of adoption for our youthful son. He had skilled deep losses that he was struggling to course of.

The strategies we had used to nurture and create stability for our older son didn’t work for our youthful son as a result of they had been at two completely different developmental stages. Our youthful son would inform us he missed his grandma and older sister and ask us when he may see them. That made me really feel like a failure as his mother. My husband felt responsible as a result of he had a powerful bond with our new son that I couldn’t replicate. These tensions affected our older son, too.

Fortunately, the adoption community is full of resources — as a result of whereas adoption is a superb factor, it could additionally set off intense feelings in each kids and adults.

It took us some time, however with the assistance of some therapists, the 4 of us discovered learn how to construct belief, and we now perform effectively as a household.

Parenting Adopted Versus Organic Youngsters

There have been some bumps within the highway alongside the best way. However my mates who’ve their very own organic kids have all the time assured us that these bumps are a part of parenting any baby.

In fact, our children have more complex questions about issues like their beginning dad and mom and their racial and ethnic identities. However as a household, we even have loads of “regular” child struggles with homework, mates, and fights over who will get the Xbox…and shortly, who will get to make use of the automobile.

Adoption Has Been a Present

I’m grateful for the various communities that supported us on our journey to grow to be a household. Our employer’s adoption go away coverage allowed us to take day off to bond with our youngsters, they usually supplied a beneficiant stipend that helped cowl a few of our adoption prices.

We’re nonetheless mates with the adoptive dad and mom from our assist group. Our boys have grown up collectively understanding different households that in some methods are similar to theirs — however in different methods, confirmed them how fantastically various a household could be. Lecturers, steering counselors, social staff, and therapists had been instrumental in serving to us develop and reinforce the bonds of security and belief which might be needed for sturdy households.

And, most of all, we’ve to thank our sons’ beginning dad and mom, who made unbelievable sacrifices and entrusted us to boost their kids. All these individuals are the explanations that my husband and I are capable of name ourselves dad and mom.