The Purple Form

For us, it didn't take long to learn that adoption was going to be the way our family grew. It really wasn't ever a second choice, but rather the next step. After all, I was adopted & had cousins that were adopted. It wasn't a big deal. We chose international adoption & picked our agency & started on the stacks & stacks of forms.

We both recall filling out the medical check list. In fact, ours was purple. I remember looking over the different medical conditions, being certain that some of them were too scary or detailed for us to consider. After checking "no" to the majority (and by majority, I mean all but 2!) of the conditions, we sent that purple form in & didn't think about it again.

Well, didn't think about it until our social worker called & said, "We have a little boy we'd like you to consider." (Boys were still few & far between from China at that time.) I remember saying, "What's his special need?" Our social worker said he was missing part of his arm & admonished us to NOT look at his referral photos until we'd looked at his medical information. She told us that we wouldn't be able to say 'no' to his smile.

Our doctor, a family friend, didn't see any red flags & even sent the medical information to a specialist. We were ready to move forward. "Yes," I told our social worker. "We want Zi Jian to be our son!" We left for China a few days after Thanksgiving & first held, kissed & loved on our son on Dec. 12...my dad's birthday. Micah wasn't thrilled with the his new mommy, but has since changed his mind.

That year we arrived home with Micah on Christmas Eve. He's the BEST stocking stuffer we've ever received! : ) Micah's missing hand doesn't slow him down from anything. He plays soccer, he does well in school, he loves that he's from China. He's a fabulous big brother & enjoys being with his family.

 

Our sweet, reserved son is perfect. Perfect because he was created by the Lord...perfect with one hand. He can run, jump, climb, play...just like a boy should. So, for us, checking 2 boxes as "yes" on our medical check list was what we needed to do. A heart baby wasn't for us, a visually impaired child would have better opportunities with another family. A 13 mo. old boy from Jiangxi province with a limb difference was the match for us.

Are you considering the special needs on a purple (or any other color!) medical check list? Are you wondering if you won't be matched if you don't check at least 1/2 of those boxes in the "yes" column? Let me tell you...check one, check 15, check none, check them all. Check the one/ones that YOU are comfortable with. And then, sit back & enjoy the journey. Even the days that drag on forever & ever & ever while you wait to see the blessing God places in your arms.

Sheri is a stay-at-home mom who works 3 mornings a week. She is married to David, a fun-loving cabinet designer. They wrote for almost a year before ever talking on the phone or meeting in person & have been married for just over 12 yrs. Micah, days away from being 9, was born in China & came home at 13 mos. Adria, recently 7, was born in Vietnam & joined her family when she was 2 1/2. They live in the mid-west & like rooting for the NE Cornhuskers, Seattle Seahawks & St. Louis Cardinals. You can read about daily life, limb differences, adoption & various other things at their blog www.quiriechronicles.blogspot.com