Subscribe today for more stories, tips, and updates.

Cincinnati Children's Blog
  • Subscribe
  • CincinnatiChildrens.org
  • Contact Us
  • Blog
  • Healthy Living
  • Rare and Complex Conditions
  • Safety and Prevention
  • Heart Conditions
  • Learning and Growing
  • Research and Discoveries
  • ?
  • Blog
  • Healthy Living
  • Rare and Complex Conditions
  • Safety and Prevention
  • Heart Conditions
  • Learning and Growing
  • Research and Discoveries
  • ?
  • Subscribe
  • CincinnatiChildrens.org
  • Contact Us
HOME/Share Your Story/How Our Lives are Fuller with Four International Adoptions

How Our Lives are Fuller with Four International Adoptions

November 30, 2017
0 Comments
By: Brooke Waller

My husband and I always knew we wanted to adopt. We affirmed this desire when we saw the need through our worldwide travels with the Navy. When we were on active duty, we visited Ugandan orphanages. Our hearts were opened to the kids we met, and we knew we wanted to grow our family through adoption.

Since then, we have adopted four children from Africa: Henry, 6; Teddy, 4; Joseph 4; and Rose, 2. Joseph and Rose are the most recent additions to our family. They came home from Uganda this past October and we are currently in the beautiful and messy stage of adapting to one another and becoming a family of six.

With this latest adoption, moving from two to four children has made our lives so much fuller, both literally and figuratively. My hands are full of the daily things, like water bottles, loveys, toys and little wiggly hands. And my heart is fuller with the laughter, love and joy that they bring to our lives.  Our lives are so much fuller, in fact, that I’d like to share more information for anyone who may be considering international adoption:

How Our Lives Are Fuller after Four International Adoptions

  1. Preparing siblings

    We had a long wait before we were able to bring Joseph and Rose home. The upside of this was that we had time to prepare Henry and Teddy to be big brothers. Our lives were made fuller by spending time with other families who had younger siblings. We wanted them to see good examples of how older siblings treat their younger ones. And the extra time paid off – they are awesome big brothers and love helping out.

  2. Learning to love each other

    Naturally, our lives were made fuller by the additional children to love in our house. I think this is the easiest part about adopting children – learning how to love and adore each other. Children are naturally full of love, and it’s what that they want most. The challenge is discerning how they want to be loved. Do they want one-on-one time with Dad? A big hug? A special note in their lunch? Paying attention to the uniqueness of each child is a lifelong responsibility yet it is an honor.  Especially with our adopted children it is likely that no one has sought to specifically meet their physical, emotional and spiritual needs.  In our house, we have seen that even after just a week, Rose knew how to comfort her brother by patting his back and saying “its okay” after a minor tumble. She had been cared for so she knew how to care for others.

  3. Adapting to each other’s cultures

    There are both challenges and awesome moments in taking the time to learn each other’s cultures. We have been fortunate that all of our children were familiar with the English language when they came home. But it’s the things that you don’t think about – the things that you can’t prepare for – that take some extra adjusting and time. When Joseph first came home, he thought that when the mail carrier started his motor that he was there to steal our car. We are helping him adjust to what different noises are, and to know that he is safe. There are also the fun adjustments. Seeing them experience new things like big TVs alongside the highway (billboards) and sliced hot dog buns (who sliced them?!?) are so much fun. Joseph thinks that every pond we go by is an oasis in the desert. Mommy look, water!

  4. Finding time to fit it all in

    Our days are fuller with meals, daily schedules and school. It is a constant race, yet we wouldn’t have it any other way. Sometimes our lives are too full to clean up the messes that we make and it’s a sprint to just get everyone to bed at night. We go to bed really, really tired. But it’s a good tired. We’ll eventually find our pace and it’s a good challenge to have our family in one place. And we feel fortunate that our community has supported us in ways we can never repay. Not everyone is called to adopt, yet everyone can support adoption. Cook a meal, mow the grass, watch the dog, or send a nice note. The Cincinnati Children’s International Adoption Center was a big part of our support team as we brought our children home.

  5. Traveling and doctors’ appointments

    The best part about traveling to doctors’ appointments is that spending time away makes home feel more like home. We work with the International Adoption Center at Cincinnati Children’s, which is a 12-hour drive from our house. When we first adopted Henry, we realized that we knew nothing about his health history. So we tapped into their expertise, and continue to, with each adoption because they specialize in looking for unique diseases years before they present. 

    They are familiar with the diseases that are typical in other countries, and know how to screen for and treat them. They caught Joseph’s sickle cell disease and we are currently working on a plan of care for him. We come home from these doctors’ visits feeling satisfied, knowing that it was time well spent away from home.

International adoption is not simple. It’s not straight forward, but at the end of the process is a magnificent reward. Our lives are fuller because of the additional four lives in our home. And maybe, just maybe, in the future we’ll have room for more.  

To learn more about our International Adoption Center, please visit our website or call 513-636-2877 .

Subscribe today for more stories, tips, and updates.

Related Articles

Healing the World: The Stolz’s International Adoption Story
Healing the World: The Stolz’s International Adoption Story
International Adoption: You Don’t Have to Do It Alone
International Adoption: You Don’t Have to Do It Alone
Adopting a Child from China and Finding a ‘New Normal’
Adopting a Child from China and Finding a ‘New Normal’
TAGS:
  • international adoption

About the author: Brooke Waller

Brooke Waller is a 2002 graduate of the United States Naval Academy and has Masters degree from University of Maryland in Diplomatic History in 2003. Ms. Waller served six years of active duty with the U.S. Navy before working five years at Procter and Gamble. She now enjoys her time as a Mom with four fast-moving children. #mommywithoutborders

Write A Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

No Comments Yet

Topics

  • Cancer and Blood Diseases
  • Child Development and Behavior
  • Childhood Obesity
  • Chronic Care Networks
  • Cincinnati Walks for Kids
  • Featured Faces
  • Fetal Conditions
  • Fitness and Nutrition
  • Food Allergies
  • Ghana 2012
  • Health Care Public Policy
  • Health Care Quality
  • Health Care Reform
  • Healthy Living
  • Heart Conditions
  • Hospital Operations
  • How We Do It
  • Learning and Growing
  • Meet The Team
  • Nurses Week 2012
  • Patient Family Experience
  • Patient Flow
  • Patient Safety
  • Patient Stories
  • Pin of the Week
  • Radiology
  • Rare and Complex Conditions
  • Research
  • Research and Discoveries
  • Safety and Prevention
  • Share Your Story
  • Technology
  • Uncategorized
  • Vaccines
  • Volunteerism
  • What Makes Us Different
  • What's New
See All Topics
See Less Topics

Subscribe

Never miss a post! Sign up to get new blog updates delivered to your email.

Popular Posts

  • 6 Questions to Ask When Your Child Complains of Chest Pain 2k views
  • Caring for the Caregivers of Children with Congenital Heart Disease  1.7k views
  • Febrile Seizures: Why They Happen and What to Do 823 views
  • Bedwetting Solutions: Tips for Helping Your Child Overcome It 806 views
  • Laryngomalacia: Is My Child’s Noisy Breathing Serious? 772 views
  • Stuttering In Young Kids: When To Be Concerned 760 views
About

The Cincinnati Children’s blog features thoughts and perspectives from our experts on all things pediatric health. This blog does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Learn More »

Contact Us
  • 3333 Burnet Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45229-3026
  • 1-513-636-4200 | 1-800-344-2462
  • TTY: 1-513-636-4900
  • socialmedia@cchmc.org
Connect With Us
  • Subscribe
  • CincinnatiChildrens.org
  • Contact Us

© 2009-2022 Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center