Adoption Button
Step right up Ladies and Gentlemen to my first ever Button Week. I am celebrating the arrival of four new buttons loading up on my sidebar. Every day a new blog about a new button. It is the most exciting thing since dark chocolate Cadbury eggs. Hallelujah!
Last night over dinner Chup and I were mapping out The Chief's existence. His schooling, his friends, his philosophical beliefs. Then, in a moment of silence I retreated.
"I just want him to be happy boy." I summed up, "I just want him to be . . . Jeremy."
Jeremy is Chup's younger brother whom I refer to as MD on my blog. He is about the most decent human I know. He has a heart of honey and a drippy sense of humor (not quite dry) mixed with an encompassing intellect. In his study as a pediatrician he's earned all sorts of national awards and accolades--a stand out among his peers. But mostly, he's just happy.
"I know, me too." Chup concurred.
As much as I like Jeremy (Chup sometimes gets skeptical of how much I like his brother) I love his wife, Becki, who I call Kentucky. In the recesses of my soul I have many times thought I was meant to marry Chup for the eternal companionship of my sister in law. She is the best of people. Not overly-saintly, just a little devilish and completely enlightened. I've told her everything about me and my life, and I've never once regretted it (except one small detail) because she has a stream of respect for the human experience.
A couple years after Jeremy and Becki were married they found out they were pregnant. In the spring Beck gave birth to a little boy Ethan (Phun) who grew up to be a sweet-hearted, curious-minded genius. His expanding brain holds a library of knowledge about various subjects. My favorite is classical music. You want "Flight of the Bumblebee"? Ethan will hum it for you and graciously add that it was Nikolai Rimsky-Korsak who wrote the piece. He is a product of steady, stable, loving parenting.
The story of their family is incredible. Among romance and adventure, there is also heartbreak and victory. Here is a small slice:
Shortly after giving birth to Ethan, Becki found out she had colon cancer.
The news devastated our family. She was too young and too healthy for cancer. In the next years that followed she fought cancer three times more and fell victim to the side effects of treatments. Though ultimately she beat cancer, it was concluded that she wouldn't be able to become pregnant again.
A couple weeks ago we celebrated Jeremy's birthday with dinner and cupcakes. After we dined, Becki and I sat on the couch talking about our lives.
"I want another child." She told me.
With the celebratory news of her triumph over cancer, and her ensuing health, she knew it was time to open her mother's heart. Ethan has persistently asked for a brother or sister for years. They had tried for adoption in the past, but their time hadn't come. Now, more than ever, they are ready to welcome another soul into their nest.
I want to help them grow their family, just about more than I want anything right now. I want Ethan to have a sibling. I want to see Jeremy help shape the character of a new little person. I want to see Beck with a baby in her arms, a symbol of triumph. But mostly, I want a baby to have them. I know that if I were in a position to selflessly give up my child for something better, there would be no question where my child would go.
I might even let them have The Chief for awhile, just until he knows all the composers of the Victorian age.
But that is a conversation for another dinnertime.
Please visit Jeremy and Becki's Adoption Blog, and get contact information, plus a link to their Lds Social Services profile by going here.
I am proudly putting their button on my blog, it looks like this:
(This is the only button I've ever seen that makes me emotional. White onesie. Gets me every time.)
I am also encouraging friends and family of Jeremy and Becki (or anyone interested) to put this adoption button on their blog/ website/ Facebook page/etc. Let's spread the word all over the world. I have seen miracles come from our internet community and I know it can happen again. You can find their button code by scrolling to the bottom of the page here.
To read a clever guest post Kentucky/Becki wrote for me about cancer treatments go here. To read some of my posts about this family you can read here, here, here and for a special treat, a movie I made with Phun about crackers here (scroll to bottom). Enjoy and THANK YOU!
Last night over dinner Chup and I were mapping out The Chief's existence. His schooling, his friends, his philosophical beliefs. Then, in a moment of silence I retreated.
"I just want him to be happy boy." I summed up, "I just want him to be . . . Jeremy."
Jeremy is Chup's younger brother whom I refer to as MD on my blog. He is about the most decent human I know. He has a heart of honey and a drippy sense of humor (not quite dry) mixed with an encompassing intellect. In his study as a pediatrician he's earned all sorts of national awards and accolades--a stand out among his peers. But mostly, he's just happy.
"I know, me too." Chup concurred.
As much as I like Jeremy (Chup sometimes gets skeptical of how much I like his brother) I love his wife, Becki, who I call Kentucky. In the recesses of my soul I have many times thought I was meant to marry Chup for the eternal companionship of my sister in law. She is the best of people. Not overly-saintly, just a little devilish and completely enlightened. I've told her everything about me and my life, and I've never once regretted it (except one small detail) because she has a stream of respect for the human experience.
A couple years after Jeremy and Becki were married they found out they were pregnant. In the spring Beck gave birth to a little boy Ethan (Phun) who grew up to be a sweet-hearted, curious-minded genius. His expanding brain holds a library of knowledge about various subjects. My favorite is classical music. You want "Flight of the Bumblebee"? Ethan will hum it for you and graciously add that it was Nikolai Rimsky-Korsak who wrote the piece. He is a product of steady, stable, loving parenting.
The story of their family is incredible. Among romance and adventure, there is also heartbreak and victory. Here is a small slice:
Shortly after giving birth to Ethan, Becki found out she had colon cancer.
The news devastated our family. She was too young and too healthy for cancer. In the next years that followed she fought cancer three times more and fell victim to the side effects of treatments. Though ultimately she beat cancer, it was concluded that she wouldn't be able to become pregnant again.
A couple weeks ago we celebrated Jeremy's birthday with dinner and cupcakes. After we dined, Becki and I sat on the couch talking about our lives.
"I want another child." She told me.
With the celebratory news of her triumph over cancer, and her ensuing health, she knew it was time to open her mother's heart. Ethan has persistently asked for a brother or sister for years. They had tried for adoption in the past, but their time hadn't come. Now, more than ever, they are ready to welcome another soul into their nest.
I want to help them grow their family, just about more than I want anything right now. I want Ethan to have a sibling. I want to see Jeremy help shape the character of a new little person. I want to see Beck with a baby in her arms, a symbol of triumph. But mostly, I want a baby to have them. I know that if I were in a position to selflessly give up my child for something better, there would be no question where my child would go.
I might even let them have The Chief for awhile, just until he knows all the composers of the Victorian age.
But that is a conversation for another dinnertime.
Please visit Jeremy and Becki's Adoption Blog, and get contact information, plus a link to their Lds Social Services profile by going here.
I am proudly putting their button on my blog, it looks like this:
(This is the only button I've ever seen that makes me emotional. White onesie. Gets me every time.)
I am also encouraging friends and family of Jeremy and Becki (or anyone interested) to put this adoption button on their blog/ website/ Facebook page/etc. Let's spread the word all over the world. I have seen miracles come from our internet community and I know it can happen again. You can find their button code by scrolling to the bottom of the page here.
To read a clever guest post Kentucky/Becki wrote for me about cancer treatments go here. To read some of my posts about this family you can read here, here, here and for a special treat, a movie I made with Phun about crackers here (scroll to bottom). Enjoy and THANK YOU!
