Bringing Little Sister Home
Donation protected
From Cassidy and Amanda:
Our Dear Family and Friends,
Amanda and I have always had a special place in our hearts for adoptive families, and have discussed “what could be” since we were dating. We’ve always marveled at the idea of providing love, structure, safety and opportunity for a child whose story may not have involved these precious and sacred things.
When we were pregnant with Jane (3yo -- our youngest) we decided that due to Amanda's consistent health related pregnancy difficulties, and the evident worsening circumstances with Jane’s complications, we were done having babies -- we were at peace with this! However, the lord had other ideas.. Just minutes after Jane was born, as the NICU team was trying to stabilize her, Amanda had the strongest impression that our family simply was not complete. She even partially expressed these thoughts to me, literally as Jane was trying to find her first breaths.
Since that day, we’ve wrestled with the idea of expanding our family. How? ...Amanda’s body cannot hold up? What? ...these promptings and impressions would come and go, but their persistence was ever so consistent. Who? ...we’ve always slightly toyed with the idea of adopting an infant … When? ...we’re getting older, and our lives are hectic! At long last, we decided this past year that we needed to ponder deeply, pray with great intent, and finally come to a final decision..
In going through this process over several months, we experienced some of the most unforseen experiences that we ever could have imagined. The process began with a half hearted decision to be finished having babies, but it became clear that we needed to put much more effort into finding answers, as we were still emotionally unsettled. As we continued to navigate the pursuit of answers, we were seemingly being blessed with new knowledge and new people in our lives which allowed for broadened perspective and realities.
One experience in particular, was our precious friends for whom Amanda had the opportunity to assist in caring for their special children, and in turn (our little family) gained a newfound perspective on “what could be”. The kind of “what could be” that allowed for a very clear and sacred knowledge that we have the capacity to love, unconditionally, with all our heart, mind, and soul, regardless of blood, regardless of status, regardless of ability, and regardless of circumstances. In the midst of these experiences, we were seemingly prompted… more so “carried”, nearly immediately, into the opportunity of a lifetime.. Of an eternity..
We are in the process of adopting the most precious little girl. She currently resides (in wait for us) in an orphanage in the province of Sichuan in China. She is 3 years old, and she has Down Syndrome. She was born in June of 2014, and matter of factly, the same month we lost (what would have been) our third child. We “committed” to her the week of Thanksgiving, and got our Pre-Approval from China to move forward with the adoption on December 1st. We already have a connection with her that is undeniable and quite prominent in our home.
We have a lengthy journey ahead that includes an arduous amount of paperwork and home study processes as well as a financial commitment that will certainly test us. International adoption is a long and cumbersome process, but we know we will be lifted up and blessed with the ability to endure in order to bring this little one home at long last. We have a goal to bring her home to her forever family before Christmas of 2018 and appreciate everyone's support from the bottom of our hearts!
“I don’t care what your problem is, where you came from, what your background is, what your beliefs are, man LOVE conquers all.” -Dabo Sweeney
Without further ado... meet our sweet “Little Sister”.
https://youtu.be/WVFM7oTfoj8
Our Dear Family and Friends,
Amanda and I have always had a special place in our hearts for adoptive families, and have discussed “what could be” since we were dating. We’ve always marveled at the idea of providing love, structure, safety and opportunity for a child whose story may not have involved these precious and sacred things.
When we were pregnant with Jane (3yo -- our youngest) we decided that due to Amanda's consistent health related pregnancy difficulties, and the evident worsening circumstances with Jane’s complications, we were done having babies -- we were at peace with this! However, the lord had other ideas.. Just minutes after Jane was born, as the NICU team was trying to stabilize her, Amanda had the strongest impression that our family simply was not complete. She even partially expressed these thoughts to me, literally as Jane was trying to find her first breaths.
Since that day, we’ve wrestled with the idea of expanding our family. How? ...Amanda’s body cannot hold up? What? ...these promptings and impressions would come and go, but their persistence was ever so consistent. Who? ...we’ve always slightly toyed with the idea of adopting an infant … When? ...we’re getting older, and our lives are hectic! At long last, we decided this past year that we needed to ponder deeply, pray with great intent, and finally come to a final decision..
In going through this process over several months, we experienced some of the most unforseen experiences that we ever could have imagined. The process began with a half hearted decision to be finished having babies, but it became clear that we needed to put much more effort into finding answers, as we were still emotionally unsettled. As we continued to navigate the pursuit of answers, we were seemingly being blessed with new knowledge and new people in our lives which allowed for broadened perspective and realities.
One experience in particular, was our precious friends for whom Amanda had the opportunity to assist in caring for their special children, and in turn (our little family) gained a newfound perspective on “what could be”. The kind of “what could be” that allowed for a very clear and sacred knowledge that we have the capacity to love, unconditionally, with all our heart, mind, and soul, regardless of blood, regardless of status, regardless of ability, and regardless of circumstances. In the midst of these experiences, we were seemingly prompted… more so “carried”, nearly immediately, into the opportunity of a lifetime.. Of an eternity..
We are in the process of adopting the most precious little girl. She currently resides (in wait for us) in an orphanage in the province of Sichuan in China. She is 3 years old, and she has Down Syndrome. She was born in June of 2014, and matter of factly, the same month we lost (what would have been) our third child. We “committed” to her the week of Thanksgiving, and got our Pre-Approval from China to move forward with the adoption on December 1st. We already have a connection with her that is undeniable and quite prominent in our home.
We have a lengthy journey ahead that includes an arduous amount of paperwork and home study processes as well as a financial commitment that will certainly test us. International adoption is a long and cumbersome process, but we know we will be lifted up and blessed with the ability to endure in order to bring this little one home at long last. We have a goal to bring her home to her forever family before Christmas of 2018 and appreciate everyone's support from the bottom of our hearts!
“I don’t care what your problem is, where you came from, what your background is, what your beliefs are, man LOVE conquers all.” -Dabo Sweeney
Without further ado... meet our sweet “Little Sister”.
https://youtu.be/WVFM7oTfoj8
Organizer and beneficiary
Parker Swonson
Organizer
Farmington, UT
Amanda Hilton
Beneficiary
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