The other day I told someone that when you start the adoption process, it's almost like finding out you're pregnant! Maybe you've thought about adopting, maybe you had a plan about when you might start the process, but when you actually make that first call or sign that first piece of paper. It's real! It's miraculous! You become pregnant! And the timing or the way it happens might take you by surprise... just like taking a pregnancy test. There's a baby being formed, there's a child waiting for you and the timing couldn't be more perfect.
I have been going crazy over here with excitement over the news that some of my dearest friends Katie and Nick have just found out that they are "pregnant"! After having one biological child and experiencing the pain and grief of two miscarriages, they will bring home a second child through adoption. Something they've wanted to do for a long time now! I've always admired Katie's honesty and bravery. She's never afraid to be vulnerable. She invites people in to walk through the hard places with her. She doesn't pretend that she's perfect! She doesn't pretend she's ok if she's not. She is so strong! Katie and Nick were our rocks when we were fighting to bring Arthur home. They rejoiced with us when we received good news, they wept with us when we were discouraged, and they continue to support and encourage us. I cannot wait to do the same for them as they begin this exciting journey!!!
We couldn't be happier to share 20% of Love is Waiting sales with them for the next TWO weeks! Go shop!!
Read more below and follow along with the Welch family at welchpress.tumblr.com
"Nick and I have both wanted to adopt from a young age. I've always pictured my family being a large multi-racial family. It's my dream. My calling, I believe. I always hoped the man I married would feel the same way.
When Nick was young, he watched a family friend adopt 2 children from China. It inspired him, even at a young age, with the dream of someday adopting children. When we first got married, we decided we wanted to start a family through adoption. We watched a few of our closest friends start their families that way, and that made it seem less intimidating. When we began to pursue adoption, we found out we were pregnant with our first son, Judah. We were thrilled, and knew that adoption would be on our hearts forever, so we decided that maybe we'd have a couple biological kids, then adopt a few more. When Judah was 13 months old, we got pregnant again. Our plan was going just like we'd thought. When I was almost 15 weeks pregnant, I went into labor and delivered a tiny sweet baby that we named Emmanuel. This was confusing and extremely difficult for our family to walk through. Knowing that God had a perfect plan for our family, even if we didnt understand it, we marched on. We ended up pregnant again, and lost our little baby Hope at only 6 weeks. After that, a greiving process set in, but we took comfort in knowing that Emmanuel and Hope were with God, and that God knows what He is after. His plan is better than ours even when it feels horrible and out of control. The first thing that both Nick and I thought about when we lost Hope was adoption. Our heart has always been heavy for adoption. It's been a long time dream of both of ours and now felt like the time. We spend a month praying hard and seeking God's direction for our family. At the end of the month, we were both totally confident that He was leading us toward adoption now. We couldn't be more excited. Now the fun part, coming up with more money than I make in a year to pay for this crazy process. We trust that God's heart is for adoption and that He's bigger than $35,000, even thought it's SO scary. We trust Him. It was inspiring watching you and Aaron fight for Arthur. Watching you walk off the plane that December was one of the best moments of my life. The fact that we had invested in that process, and that our community had invested in it, makes the goodness in it even more beautiful. We all were fighting for Arthur. We fought for him in prayer and to raise awareness and support. We wanted him home with you guys so badly. The community aspect of adoption is glorious. I love it. I can't wait to walk into our home with our new son or daughter and be able to say that we couldn't have done it without the Lord putting a community of people around us, supporting this calling to care for the orphans of the world. Even if its just one."
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