Haiti Adoption Anyone?

Okay, so y'all know I'm a HUGE adoption advocate. Many of you are victims to my tireless efforts of convincing you to join me in the adoption process. Here I go again!

We still have 17 months to go 'till our China adoption goes through... I CAN'T EVEN DESCRIBE how exciting it's getting! I can't wait for our little Chinese girl/girls to join us. We've been talking about it to the boys, and I think they are barely starting to grasp that they'll have a Chinese little sister.

So, my favorite adoption agency, http://www.chinesechildren.org/ (CCAI), just announced they are now including Haiti in addition to Chinese adoption. Read the letter: HERE

Anyway, if you thought Chinese baby girls were the only cuties, check these angels out:
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A group of girls from Haiti.

And, unlike most adoption countries, as soon as you get approved, you pick the child, and then wait for the 22 months of paperwork to go through.

Also, with Haiti adoption, you can adopt more than one at under the same paperwork! This is amazing! Look at these little twins, adorable! Wouldn't it be amazing if someone reading this post ends up adopting these very boys? What a story that would be...

The bonus? If I read correctly, you can visit your child up to three times a year while you wait. How soul-gratifying is that? And not to make light of a serious subject, but Haiti is next to the Caribbean.

A brother and sister team. How precious is this? To be able to save not just one, but two at the same time. And how neat it will be for them to have each other as they grow up.

Look at this huge smile! Even when Tim and I just were dating we both had interest in adoption. We both had friends that had an 'international' family picture. For me, that family was Gabe Hampton's from my mission in Taiwan.

His mom, who had foster-to-adopted 12 children, casually wrote to him from the US "Maybe while we are in Taiwan to pick you up, we could bring home a child?" I used to pick his brain over and over on how his mom did it. I still think of the vast amount of love in this woman's heart, of whom I've never met.

And I loved the logistics on how she made them all feel unique, no matter their background. One neat thing he said she did-- each of the kids rotated nights where they got to stay up late with mom and dad and have personal time with them, doing whatever the child wanted to do. He also described things like having two washer/dryer sets. And the conquering-all-odds stories. They still burn in my heart.

Many of the children had been kicked out of prior foster homes b/c they were too much of a challenge. One with deteriorating knees, that would never be able to walk again, one fiery red-headed girl, all of diverse circumstance and cultural backgrounds. The best part was the the change she instilled in what could have been hopelessness. He talked about how the older children set the example for the younger ones. And if I remember correctly, many of the older children ended up going on missions. Overall, through pure love, consistent love, each of the children made dramatic changes, she had never turned a single one of them away. And the social worker kept calling her when they'd come across one that wouldn't otherwise find a home.

I believe she got the Mother of the Year award on year.

Anyway...

This little buddy's name is Livenson. Cute name, no?

And sweet little Francia.

For more pictures of these angels waiting for your family (watch out for my sly persuasion), click HERE.

Or for overall info, visit their site: http://www.haitiadoption.org/

I'm dying for your comments on this post... type away!