Kids part 1

( inspired by the RW and Kylie duet )
Because we want the kids to be alright.
You can not change the whole world, but you can try and change the world for one person.

As mentioned before we started our first adoption procedure (in 2000) to be able to be a family.
The years before were filled with medical procedures, but we did go to one information meeting about adoption during that time.

I do believe and think, we both always wanted children in our lives.

So when starting a family did not happen in a 'relatively easy' way we had to decide what to do to have this wished-for family.

Of course, like most prospective parents, we would have liked a child (children) with our genetic material, looks, behaviour etc. (at least, most of it ;-) But far more important was (and still is) raising a child, loving him/her,educating him/her, sharing our general hopes, beliefs, lives and - when the time has arrived - letting go.

Here a (very) short summary of what happens in general terms around the choices one has to make.
Firstly there is the VIA (vereniging interlandelijke adoptie) course, which seems to be designed to warn prospective adoptive parents off at first....

Then later you can put that more into perspective and realize it is a bit of reality check for yourself and to arm you both against some negative feelings about adoption in the media.

After this course you go on to choose the agency that you want to use for adoption.
In our case Wereldkinderen, in Den Haag, started in 1971 consisting of volunteers and professional people and having 2 goals: Project Help and Adoption if all else has been tried.

With them you narrow your choice down to a continent and eventually a country.
To do this you have to make what we call "a shopping list" (wensen & grenzen): what do you think you can handle (limits) and what would you really like and prefer (wishes).

To be very clear we have always chosen Africa, this comes from a deep 'gut feeling' (buikgevoel)
the whole process, to my mind is impossible to rationalize.

We adopt and are not ashamed of it nor proud of it!

Which meant for us we did not feel the need to have a child which had the same colour of skin as us. And adopting means per definition that your child has a different genetic make-up and cultural and social background. (Which both us already had a little bit more being from different countries).

So we arrived to our first choice Africa!

And, due to our wishes and circumstances, to Ethiopia to adopt our first child from.

I want to end with mentioning the nice video of Life is good! Playmakers that is added at the bottom of the pages.

Happy Watching.

(more in Kids part 2)