In the June 16, 2007 issue of “Church News” is an adoption story that touched my heart. The Ozair and Rosicler Ribeiro family of Brazil already had three biological children when Ozair, a fireman, helped rescue a premature infant boy who’d been abandoned in a sewage ditch. The baby spent 45 days in the hospital, and Ozair visited him every day and very quickly, he fell in love with the tiny baby. He and his wife, new converts, adopted the infant and named him William. This child, whom they considered an angel straight from Heaven, ultimately paved the way for many, many more adopted children to join the family.

While the Ribeiros had never intended to have such a large family, the... more

In a previous post, I wrote about meshing the China my mind imagined and the real China I’ve come to know and love. I struggled with the poverty I witnessed in our daughter’s home province, but determined that I would do something to help.

When the time came for us to visit Haiti, I found nothing could have adequately prepared me. As I had done while waiting to travel to China, I read books about Haiti’s history and culture, studied the language, familiarized myself with the art and music, and studied up on the political situation. I went from having only a vague idea of where Haiti was to... more

When our family vacations, we typically either pay through the nose for large family suites at hotels, or we book two rooms (always hoping for adjacent rooms but rarely getting them) and deal with the inconvenience of having our family and belongings split up.

Last week, however, we stayed in a rental vacation home for the first time while vacationing with my parents and my sisters’ families in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It was a fantastic experience and is an option that could be a lifesaver for large families like ours. Here are some of the benefits we noted:

1. COST: Where we usually spend around $200 per night for two hotel rooms or a large suite,... more

In my last post, I wrote about “comedienne” Chelsea Handler’s comments about Angelina Jolie’s adoptions – specifically why she chose to adopt internationally, and why she changed her Vietnamese son’s name to Pax. (Did ya notice how I put “comedienne” in quotes? Yeah. That’s because she’s not so funny.)

Anyway, for some time now, I’ve been wanting to write about the pros and cons of changing an adopted child’s name, and Ms. Handler’s criticism of Angelina’s decision to do just that gave me some food for thought.

I think I probably fall into the majority camp because I can see both sides of the argument and have done it both ways. Frankly, I’m still sorta wishy-washy about... more

Adopting internationally has changed me in ways I hadn’t anticipated. When we first decided to adopt from China, I had a very limited understanding of how everything would work and how I would be affected. Understandably, I suppose, I thought only about the child we would be adopting and how blessed our family would be with her presence. What I didn’t think about is how China would get under my skin and become a part of my life in so many ways. During the wait, I began to educate myself about China’s history and government, in particular, and started to dapple with learning Mandarin. Over time, I came to know much more about China’s politics, culture, government and history than the average... more

Did you happen to catch tonight’s “Late Show with Jay Leno?” If you did, then you probably caught guest Chelsea Handler’s comments about Angelina Jolie and her adoptions, not to mention her [obnoxious] racist innuendo about Asians being bad drivers and Vietnamese being good at doing nails.

If you didn’t see it, I’ll summarize and give you my take, ‘cause that’s what I get paid to do. ;)

First, Chelsea criticized Angelina for “going overseas” to adopt when there are so many kids in American who need to be adopted. She asked what was wrong with the kids in America that so many felt they need to look for children elsewhere.

Second, she criticized Angelina for changing... more

I came across this Townhall.com article today and it got me thinking about our presidential candidates and what stance they might have on adoption. I’ve been focused on other issues that matter to me, like affordable health insurance, abortion, humane immigration reform, stem cell research, etc. But it dawned on me that in spite of the fact that I eat, sleep and breathe adoption on a daily basis, I really have no idea how any of the candidates view adoption. I determined that I really should be researching something so important to my family!

Part... more

I-600A – Advance Processing for Orphan Petition

If you’re in the middle of an international adoption paperchase and haven’t yet filed your I-600A, now is the time to get that puppy sent in! On July 30th, fees will increase from $545 to a whopping $750, and biometrics fees will increase by $10 per person from $70 to $80.

The silver lining in all of this is that the new fees will allow for one free extension of your I-600A. If you’re adopting from China for example,... more

In part one, I talked about how hurtful it can be to have adoption nay-sayers in your life, and in part two, I discussed ways we can remind ourselves that we’re doing the right thing, even in the face of negativity.

This section is all about talking through those unsolicited, negative comments!

If you’re like me, you’ve gotten fairly good at sizing up people’s comments on the fly. I’ve found that the vast majority of offensive comments/questions come from ignorance (e.g., “Do you have any kids of your own? Do you know anything about their real... more

In part one, I talked about how troubling it can be when others view adoption negatively and choose to tell us about it. Negative comments are hard to take from any source, but at least for me, are particularly hurtful when they come from people at church. In this post, I’ll discuss some ways we can get past our hurt feelings, and in part three, ways we can talk – amicably – with those who offend.

One fabulous reminder I got from a friend is that “inspiration is vertical, not horizontal.” ;) When others try to impart their “wisdom” to us, we can take comfort in knowing that they are not privy to the promptings... more