Josh and Kristin
Some define ‘journey’ as a process. Others define it as a passage from one place to another. For us both are true; adoption is an amazing process that took us from being “Josh & Kristin” to being “A FAMILY”!
How true and definitive it is that international adoption is a journey as well…a breathtaking, amazing, and sometimes wearisome journey, but one that is ultimately worth every step on the path taken!
Our adoption journey began in December of 2004 with informational and awareness meetings followed by the oh-so-nerve-racking home study meetings and visit (our house was never so clean!). Our dossier was prepared in lightening speed and we followed the directions so precisely as not to make any errors. One would have thought we were preparing documents for the President of the United States!!! The groundwork was laid; we were now ready for a referral!!!!
Our referral journey was long and arduous. We’d experienced two referrals and two losses. We’d begun to question if this was the right path for us. Was God telling us something??? With the guidance and encouragement from family, friends, and AAI, we soldiered on for a third referral. Jan, our consultant and calming force throughout, called one summer day in June with happy news! “Kristin, we’ve got happy news! How about TWIN GIRLS???” Prayers were answered that day!!!
Leah Dulce Elizabeth and Logan Angela Christine were born on June 14, 2005 in Jutiapia, Guatemala, and they were our daughters immediately! Our emotional adoption journey began well before that birthday and continued until they came home nearly 10 months later! The path to building our family was simply amazing and most of the time unpredictable. We are continuing to expand our adoptive family by developing a deep and profound relationship with our daughters’ foster family in Guatemala. We will carry on this familial relationship with photos, letters, and one day with visits. We cherish the many wonderful friendships we are beginning to form with other families that we have met throughout our adoption journey. Leah and Logan are blessed to have a circle of friends that were born in Guatemala and now live with their forever families in the United States.
Without the support, encouragement, education, and pure professionalism from AAI, this journey would never have been able to have been completed. We are proud to be a part of the AAI family!
