Finding Support

I have share many times how important it is to find a group of people to do life with, to support each other, to strengthen one another. A cord of three strands in not easily broken.


We have reached out to other adoptive families to offer and receive support and encouragement. These are families that understand the highs and lows. The struggles and the joys. I try gather this group together every month or so to fellowship and foster connections.

Our group is full of families that have children from all over the world. Ethiopia, Nepal, Korea, Haiti, Domestic, Russia...all precious in His sight.
We had a great time at a friend's family farm for a hay ride and egg hunt for Easter. The kids LOVED coloring the eggs. A highlight for them.

Precious families...all who have grown their family through adoption.

connecting with friends

This summer we were able to meet a lot of AGCI families while we gathered for the regional picnic here in our area. Even though we have a big adoption group here it was such a treat to meet some online friends face to face.



And I did what your mother would tell you NOT to do...I invited virtual strangers to our home for an overnight visit. =) It's hard to call the Pratt family strangers. We had emailed back and forth, talked on the phone, spent time getting to know each other via blogs and facebook. This was one of the families that got to spend time with our boys before we even traveled to bring them home. Actually they both "fell in love with our boys" and didn't even know they were siblings. They gave us pictures and filled us in on their visit with them way back last winter.

So...it truly was a treat to meet them in person. They drove over 10 hours to come and spend time here for the AGCI picnic. They brought their little Mekele home a few months before we did. And he is a cutie. Tyce sure took to being the "big brother" of the little guys that weekend. Now Tate...well...he wasn't so sure about having another baby around. He spent the weekend on a food strike and talked in a funny gruff voice the whole time they were here.

It will be fun to watch how God grows their family as they hope and plan to adopt again soon. We will be praying for them and supporting them as they continue to follow where God leads. Just have to say...there is just something SOOOOO special about connecting with other adoptive families. They feel like extended family to us.

Welcoming friends home from Africa

Oh how we love our airport moments. It is so fun to gather together and welcome home a family with their new child. What makes it extra fun is when it is a family that was there for your airport homecoming.

Friday night we piled the kids in the car and welcomed home my friend Amy (filled with praise). They brought home their little man from Ethiopia. Our boys were all from the same transition home (Hannah's Hope). What a little cutie pie.

We are so fortunate to live in an area that is abundant with adoptive families. Seriously...we have it good here. I met a new friend who is also with AGCI and she was there for her first airport homecoming. Alison shared how lucky we are to have all these families around. She said they have only found about 4 adoptive families in their area. It just takes one family to cause the ripple affect. It will keep growing...and if not...why not move here. (wink wink)

I love when the Ethiopian workers come out and talk with the kids. One man said he remembers when we came home and chatted with us for a while. He commented on how big the boys are growing and even remembered that our boys are from the southern region. He told us..."they grow them tall there in the south".

Looking forward to the next airport homecoming.

Gather together

Had a great time with some local families who are in the adoption world. I've shared before how important it is to find a group of other families that can understand your situation. Adoptive families not only share your passion and heart beat for orphans, they can relate. Relate to the difficult times of waiting, adjusting, parenting new additions...they can understand and be the support that you need.We have only gotten together a few times here in town but we already have about 15-20 families that are part of our group. Some of these families are just investigating adoption to see if it is right for them.

I loved to walk past groups of people and here bits and pieces of how they came to have a heart for adoption. Makes me smile.

We actually started to get rained out on this afternoon. It hasn't rained in weeks here and of course, the one day we have an outdoor party planned, it opens up and pours.


I think everyone was glad to have the sun come back out and shine down so the kids could play in the water.

Chuck was such a good man to stand and work the grill the whole time. When you are making 75 hot dogs, it takes awhile.


I loved watching these 3 boys play. Tyce has been longing for friends and this was so special for him to have fun with some new buddies.



Tate seemed happy enough as long as he had food with ketchup. He is doing better with larger crowds of people and seems to be able to handle short doses of stimulation.

We are also part of an African Fellowship in our larger city and have really enjoyed the fellowship there. This group here in our little town is not country specific, we have Ethiopian, South Korea, Nepal, domestic...all are welcome. Red and yellow, black and white...all precious in His sight.

I snapped these from the deck up high. Love that it shows we can host about 60 people and it doesn't feel too crowded. Guess that big yard is worth it. =)


Now...I'm just not sure where we will host all these families when the weather turns cool and we need to be indoors. But for now...I'm so glad we were able to gather together.

finding support through friendships

When we first started our journey to adopt I remember someone telling us that the adoption community will become your new family. That concept has stuck with me through out our process and I have come to completely agree. At first I couldn't see why our new adoption friends would be any different than our other circle of friends. We have a variety of circles that we socialize in and I wasn't sure this new group would be any different than our homeschooling friends or our church friends or work friends or neighbors. But somehow when you connect with another adoptive family you share a bond that unites you.

These are other people that understand the trials, the struggles, the waiting, the fund raising, the paperwork, the court process, the referral, the travel, the first few weeks home, the adjusting, the bonding and attaching, the idea of learning to parent new children from unique backgrounds, the sickness that the kids come home with, the milestones, the cocooning, the joys and blessings that it all brings. They have been through this before or possibly are preparing to encounter this themselves.

I have become a believer in doing life intentionally. I understand how important it is to find the support of other adoptive families. To invest in friendships with other adoptive moms. To carve out time to go for coffee with some gals and nurture that budding friendship that starts with the common passion for adoption and orphans.



Just in the last week or so, we held a picnic get together (that is where all these shots came from) with some other adoptive families here in our small town. It was a blast. I noticed a common theme that all of these families really long for this kind of connection. It didn't take much to organize it and there never is a time that everyone can make it. But even on short notice we had 7 families meet at the park for a summer evening of connection.

I also met up with some friends for coffee this week. We met late one evening and talked until they kicked us out of Starbucks and then we talked some more in the parking lot. I came away refreshed. I need to do this kind of thing more often. Rather than waiting for someone else to initiate it, I figured I might as well take the plunge. With in just about 3 miles of our home we have many adoptive families. Some from our agency, some not. Some from Ethiopia, some from Nepal. All eager to find families that "look like them" to do life with. We are very grateful for so many families to find support in.

I find it best not be an island. Friendship is important and rejuvenating. I look forward to continue these adoption friendships. I have these ideas that our kids will grow up knowing each other and finding that this is where their support comes from when they hit those teenage years and need others who understand their adoptive situation.