Building Beautiful Families

Every once in a while, a family comes along who completely steals your heart because they so reflect true love and grace. Melissa and John embody so many lovely, gracious traits, I was thrilled when they signed on with me in mid-August, following a few questions and discussions in  July.   They were seeking the Lord all the way with this adoption, which is an exciting thing in which to be a part. They joined CAC with an active Home Study, which meant they could immediately apply with our agencies. Somehow I was not surprised that just two and a half weeks after going active with us that they matched with a lovely young woman, "E," located in the state they visit several times a year. We cried together when they matched with E. As parents through adoption the first time, they knew, they appreciated the depth of the situation. E was in a hard place, and dealing with a lot on her plate. But they loved her unconditionally.  Following their match, they wrote her le...

Ashley and Jared are a lovely young couple whom I have completely enjoyed serving this year.  They joined CAC in mid July of this year, after being put on a disappointing 'wait list' with a small agency in their home state. Their original agency was in such a 'back log,' Ashley and Jared were on a wait list just to have a Home Study completed! (They were told it would be a 2 year+ overall wait time.) Despite having waited for over a year before they came to us, Ashley and Jared brought an amazingly positive attitude into the next step of their adoption journey. They jumped into our CAC process wholeheartedly and with enthusiasm. I connected them with a speedy (and excellent) Home Study provider in their area, who could complete their report in 6-8 weeks, and I set to work on creating their beautiful Family Profile book (this is one of my favorite parts of my job as an adoption consultant!) By September, they were certified, and ready to have their story presented ...

Gentle faith, bravery and perseverance are the wonderful characteristics of what guided this lovely couple's adoption journey.  These traits, and a strong faith in God also helped them adopt quickly -- in just five months after officially joining our CAC family. I had the joy of meeting Pam and Aaron way back in late January of last year, as they started researching adoption as a way to build their family. After reviewing all their options, they officially signed on with Christian Adoption Consultants in April, and started working on completing their home study certification. They persevered through all of the Home Study paper chase requirements, and were home study ready by late May.  In June, they were able to send their Family Profile books to the agencies with whom we work most closely. Pam and Aaron were brave and persistent -- answering a "yes," to the various adoption cases I shared with them. They trusted that the Lord would write their story and bring the...

fall CAC discount! I'm pleased to announce that  Christian Adoption Consultants is offering a 10% discount  on all of our full service domestic consulting packages .  Any new families who sign on will receive 10% off the full service package.  (This discount does not apply to the Do It Yourself Program and may not be combined with  any other discounts).  We only offer discounts like this only a few times a year - don't miss out! This discount is available today (October 13th) through Friday (October 16th). I'm eager to help you walk through the entire adoption process!  For a glimpse of other family's stories who took the step to adopt, click  here .

I have procrastinated on writing this special story, because the family involved is so very close to my heart. I met Kelly and Jeff just over a year ago, at the beginning of a new school year for us. They had just gone through something that no one should ever have to experience, the loss of three precious boys. An unbearable loss. Despite their deep grief, they so kindly welcomed us into a totally new school for our daughter. As The Lord saw fit, our two daughters, both named Elizabeth, became close friends, and Kelly and I had several close conversations..... At first, I did not even want to tell her that I worked as an adoption consultant, due to the extreme loss that they were walking through. (I so did not want to be perceived as that person who would presume to advise them to "just adopt." I just wanted Kelly to be my friend! So, I stayed quiet!) However, we attend a small school, and Kelly heard "through the grapevine," that I helped advise families thr...

It is always an honor to help friends become parents, and Merrilee and Jason were no exception.  My husband and I had met Jason over 10 years ago at church, when he was still a bachelor, and brother to  our Sunday School teachers, Josh and Kristy. Then the Lord graciously brought Merrilee into Jason's life, and they were married (and have the most beautiful wedding photos ever!) Merrilee and Jason discerned that adoption would be their path to parenthood, and called me early this year.  They signed on with Christian Adoption Consultants in late February, became Home Study approved in May, and started applying to our agency partners this summer. I have to commend Merrilee and Jason, because they went into their adoption journey with completely open hands for what the Lord might have waiting for them. They placed no parameters on what type of 'background' they desired in a child.... Their view was that they wanted to provide a family for a child who needed one, not th...

I love meeting my families in person!  Face to face and heart to heart.  We dream big together and trust that all things are possible. I first met with Patrick and Kimberly last summer as they started researching their options for building their family.  We enjoyed some great coffee and talked about adoption, and they promised to call in the new year. And so they did.  Patrick and Kimberly signed on with CAC early in January, and were home study-approved by mid-March.  I put the finishing touches on their gorgeous family profile book.  And they were ready to go!  They applied to our agencies, mailed their packets with lots of prayers, and the waiting game started! They didn't wait very long, as they presented their profile for consideration by a brave expectant mama in mid-April. That step of faith became a MATCH just a few days later. This brave young woman is also very compassionate and sweet, because as soon as she decided on Pat and Kim as ...

We were delighted to have one of our sweet CAC families, Mandy and Brandon return to adopt their third child earlier this year! They had worked with us three years ago to have their daughter Ava join their family in a whirlwind adoption.  Since then, they'd given birth to Matthew, and were now ready to add to their family again. When Mandy called, I was struck by her gentleness and the entire family's desire to bring a child into their family who would look a bit like their sweet Ava.  That said, they were placing no limitations on their adoption -- they had their hands open, willing to welcome any sweet little one of any gender or ethnicity into their home. I was also struck by Mandy's loving words about her daughter's first family and how she desired to have an open relationship with their next child's family as well. Mandy and Brandon officially signed back on with us in late February, and I got to work on building their beautiful family profile -- seri...

Jeanne Anne and Jared are a wonderful couple who reside in my beloved college hometown.....  so they had a special place in my heart as soon as they joined the CAC family.  And -- they have the most unique, beautiful love story -- having first met as counselors at a camp for sick kids.  Shortly after meeting, they realized that Jared's mom had been Jeanne Anne's own child life worker when Jeanne Anne herself had been ill as a child. This beautiful couple always knew that adoption would be the only way to grow their precious family. They joined Christian Adoption Consultants in mid- February, and gave me the wonderful task on assembling their beautiful photos into a Family Profile book for expectant parents to view.  By early March, they were both home study ready, and applying to adoption agencies. Although they are based in the southeast, they decided to apply to one of our West Coast agencies in mid-March, to cover all of their bases.  Just a few days aft...

Last month,  Christian Adoption Consultants  had 33 families grow through adoptions. 20 of our families were matched with a brave and courageous expectant mother and 13 babies were born into their adoptive families. That's over a baby a day! Over the last nine years, hundreds of families have chosen Christian Adoption Consultants to help them on their journey to adopt. Our passionate and Christ-centered approach offers support and guidance to adoptive couples.  Here's what Amanda said about why they chose CAC: What am I not thankful for? We initially chose to work with CAC because the average wait time for bringing home a baby seemed much shorter (and I'm not a very patient person). However, we quickly learned that working with CAC was like constantly having someone 'in our corner' fighting and advocating for us. Adoption is a complex journey to navigate by yourself and we always felt as though CAC was our GPS guiding us turn-by-turn. Our consultant wal...

So - you want to adopt, but don’t have millions or even thousands set aside to finance your parenting journey? I’ve seen many of our Christian Adoption Consultants couples work (yes, it is work, and you will need to work hard, and be creative), to raise the funds to adoptive both domestically and internationally.  Although there are many awesome grants available for adopting families, we also recommend that our families consider fundraising options as well. Because in many cases, through fundraising and online donations from friends and family members, plus adoption grants, couples have been able to raise the entire bulk of their adoption fees within a few days. More on that below. But - you do have to be bold and ask!  Remember that your friends really do care about you and want to be a part of your journey! While I can’t guarantee you the same results - here are a few best practices from the field…. from adoptive parents just like you, who don’t have oodles of...

What is the key reason that many people put off doing an adoption? The one factor that discourages many families from even investigating the possibilities? Sadly it's  Money.   However, there's hope, and some great resources available to you.   Check out this free webinar   on Wednesday, January 28 that could change your mind about being able to afford adoption.   And, if you are already in the process, and home study ready, this could help you as you try getting your funds together!