China
Guatemala
Russia
Vietnam
Brazil
India
It's hard
to believe as I am writing this, we finally have Hallee! She is now eleven
months old and learns something new every day. Hallee is a true blessing sent
from God. She had no trouble adjusting to us. She is happy, healthy, and
beautiful. Hallee is from Guangxi Province in China.
We considered adoption for about three years before we came to know and love FTIA. We knew we wanted to adopt, but we didn't know what type of adoption, which agency, and how we could afford to pay for it. We went to many different adoption meetings before choosing FTIA. In fact, if you told me three years ago my husband, our daughter Ashlee, and I would go to China to get a baby, I'd say you were crazy. Every meeting that we attended held by different agencies had something missing. They were either cold and unfriendly, disorganized, unprofessional, or didn't really seem to care about children and placing them with loving families. As a last resort, an ad in the local newspaper caught my eye—it said "Adoption . . . The Right Way." The article went on to explain that there would be a free informational meeting about international adoption at a local church. We had been praying for God to show us what agency to choose, and as soon as I read the ad, I just had a feeling this would be the one. The meeting was on Tuesday, September 28, 1999, at 7:00 p.m.
When my husband, our daughter Ashlee (then eleven) and I arrived, I really didn't know what to expect. Keith Wallace introduced himself and began talking about FTIA and the different countries they work with. I have to tell you that as soon as he began speaking I knew there was something different about him. He seemed to be informed, honest, and most important, he had a real passion for helping children. He even introduced families who had already been through the process. The children were all gorgeous and each family spoke very, very highly of FTIA. I knew instantly after this meeting that China was the country for us and that FTIA would be the agency.
I
can honestly tell you we did not have an adoption fund or one penny set aside
for adoption. I really didn't care because we knew God would make a way! After
leaving the meeting, we went home and began working on our application. We
waited until my husband got his paycheck and mailed in the application and two
hundred dollars. We then began working on our dossier (the paperwork—and lots
of it). This took us a while and we made some mistakes. Finally, six months
later (March 2000), we completed our dossier. Now came the waiting game. We
thought our baby would be assigned to us in November.
Well, November came and went, and no referral. We found out things were now taking a little longer. We finally got our referral and picture on January 22, 2001. I must say the wait was long and hard, but when we saw this baby girl who had waited her whole life in an orphanage for us, I felt very guilty. Gong Nian Qian was a beautiful, healthy baby living at Pingnan County Welfare Children's Institute. We couldn't wait to go get her.
We then began getting ready for the trip and because most of the fees are due at the end, we were able to take out a loan at our bank. Another miracle. We left Indiana on Friday, March 9, 2001. Our daughter Ashlee (11) came with us. We finally got Hallee Brooke Nian English at the White Swan Hotel on Sunday, March 11, 2001. Her nanny put her in my arms and she didn't even cry. She was even prettier than her picture. She instantly bonded with the three of us. She never had a chance to cry. We would swarm her if it looked like she might cry. Now different people have different theories about letting a baby cry. We feel you can't hold, love, nurture, cuddle, spoil, or pick up a baby too much. I stay home with Hallee and would not have adopted her otherwise. She is amazing. We love both of our girls so much. After going through the process with FTIA, would we do it again? Yes, a million times yes! As soon as we are financially able, we will adopt a second time. I encourage anyone considering adoption to at least talk to FTIA and feel free to call us as well.
God bless,
Tim, Brandi, Ashlee & Hallee
(812) 825-3720
