The Beginning

Greetings,
 My name is Katie. My husband, Eric, and I are going to adopt. We are just at the beginning. It's scary, overwhelming, and exciting all at once. We can't wait until it's over and we have our own family, but taking that first step, it feels like our feet are encased in cement...

A little about us.

My biggest reason for wanting to adopt? My Grandmother was an orphan. I never got the chance to meet her, but I've always felt very connected to her. I was named after her, and my mom says I am very much like her. My mom also tells me, all my grandma ever wanted was someone to bring her home. Parents to love her, and her siblings. She wanted a family.

This knowledge has always been with me, and it's been a driving force in my life. The first time I met Eric, when we just began tossing the idea of dating around, I made it very clear if he wouldn't adopt, we shouldn't start a relationship. (He was 18 at the time and I was 23) It was a condition of our relationship, though at the time, we didn't think I would have issues with my fertility. Though I had an inkling that there was something wrong.

Eric and I met in 2006. I had just come out of two very difficult relationships in a row, and was trying desperately to push him away. He also was fresh out of a relationship. We were each other's rebounds gone wrong. I really was just humoring a young, delusional kid who didn't know what he wanted ... or so I thought. I had no interest in staying with him, and was certain beyond a shadow of a doubt that he would only put up with my "crazy" for a few months. He sure showed me.

I remember we got into a fight about a month into our relationship. I secretly was thinking, "Good, now I can go back to my life of wallowing in my own self pity." I tried my best to ignore him, but he was persistent. Eventually he got me to talk to him about it. At the end of our fight he looked me square in the eye and said, "If we are still together in six months, I'm going to ask you to marry me."

Having my heart completely decimated not, but a few months earlier than this, I was freaking out inside. So, I did the one thing I knew would drive him away. I called his bluff and took him ring shopping that weekend. He was only 18, dreamer that he was, I knew if I showed him a gigantic diamond ring and focused solely on weddings for the next few weeks, he would certainly run in the opposite direction. Unbeknownst to me,  he picked out my engagement ring that weekend.

A few months later we purchased a house. I will be totally honest, I DO NOT suggest anyone move that quickly. My brother and I were in a very bad situation at a place we were renting, and we needed to get out. Eric was our saving grace.

Eric's persistence paid off, and I came to love the idea of staying with him forever. He was safe. My love for him, is like no other I have ever felt. We complete each other, and he is definitely my better half. I didn't get butterflies or feel the great lust I felt with others I had dated, I just felt safe and complete. That was enough for me, at that point in my life, passion was the least of my worries. However, I am very happily surprised to admit, that now, I do get butterflies when I'm with him. I am constantly amazed by his generosity and commitment to family. Eric is amazing.

Shortly after we were married, I went in to test my inkling about my fertility. I was officially diagnosed with Poly-Cyctic Ovarian Syndrome. We went back and forth between doctors and adopting after that. I finally got hooked up with the Pope Paul VI Institute, I couldn't be happier with the care I've received this far. I really suggest that anyone with fertility problems check them out. They really are amazing. I am still going through my treatments, and I am hoping that I am able to get pregnant again, (I've had one miscarriage, we've named that child Gabriel Leigh)

Despite how happy I am with my treatment and experience with PPVI, there is still a tug at my heart. There is a clarity around me and I really feel like God wants us to adopt. Maybe after adopting he will bless us with another biological child as well, but I know he wants us to adopt. God will give us the child or children he sees us worthy enough to be a parent for.

As for the adoption, we are currently planning on adopting from Ukraine. Right now we are shopping around for a home study, and figuring out where the money is going to come from. If any of you can find it in your heart to donate to our cause, I will be putting up a donation button soon. Thank you from the bottoms of our hearts, you don't know what it means to us. There really are no words that do justice to what we feel for your support.