Our Decision to Adopt

August 6, 2000.
I'll never forget that day. It was sunny with patches of rain. I woke up knowing that this would be the day I would become Mrs. Jeremy Babel. Jeremy and I dated for over three years before we were married. Our wedding was spectacular and our marriage continues to be a source of strength and love for both of us. Jeremy and I always talked about having kids. I knew from day one that he would make an amazing father; after all he had a great example.

February 22, 2001
Out to eat at a Mexican restaurant we decided that we were going to "start trying." This always sounds so silly to me, but of course this was an exciting time in our lives. If any of you know me, you know that when I want something I want it now. Having children was going to be no different. I was told that I should have no problem getting pregnant, so of course I settled into the idea that I would soon be buying maternity clothes and knitting booties. Okay, you're right I don't knit, but I can shop.
After a few months of "trying" I decided to go into the Dr. I just didn't understand why this wasn't working according to my plan. After a consultation we decided that I should have surgery to correct a blocked fallopian tube. We figured that had to be the problem since I did have surgery on my ovary when I was in 8th grade (thank you cheerleading fall) so maybe there was scar tissue blocking the tubes. I had surgery in April of 2002 and during this operation the Dr. discovered that I have endometriosis. I didn't really understand what that meant but the Dr. soon started talking about aggressive fertility drugs. Jeremy and I went home in a daze. I couldn't believe that this was happening to me. I had wanted to be a mother from the time I could remember. It wasn't supposed to be this hard. After much thought we decided to go to a fertility clinic to see what they could do. After several months of IUIs combined with fertility drugs Jeremy and I knew this wasn't the road for us. So....

October of 2002
We decided to adopt. It was such an obvious choice for us. We began to see that God had plans for us that we didn't even know about. You see, up until this point in my life I had everything under control, my control. Having children is just a natural progression in life but it wasn't until this point in my life came and became a struggle for me that I recognize God's will for my life. I can’t say that I suffered much with infertility; we only did about 4 months of treatments. But I can say that because of this trial in my life I developed a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I can also say that the Lord is so good and I could have never seen the amazing blessings that he had in store for me if I hadn’t surrendered my life to Him.
As we learned more about adoption and the many choices we had, I became more involved at my church and joined a Bible study. God began to work on my heart in amazing ways. At first we wanted to adopt from Russia but felt it was too expensive. We made a plan to save for a Russian adoption and figured it would be at least a year before we could begin the process. We saved and saved and prayed and prayed. In July of 2003 we heard about Catholic Charities and their foster care program. I decided to call and see what they were all about. I was told that they were accepting families into their infant program, but we probably wouldn’t get picked. The woman said I could come to the informational meeting that was being held the following night anyway just to see. Jeremy and I went and filled out the form. We didn’t expect anything to come form it but the very next day we got a call that we could start the PRIDE training next month. We were so excited. God began opening doors. We have our reservations about domestic adoptions but felt that this is the way to go since we could afford it. Plus we really had a desire to be foster parents. So we went through the classes had our Home Study and we were ready to go on the list in September. We really didn’t think we would wait long for a referral. In November we got a call that a birth mother would be reviewing our file. We couldn’t even sleep. Later that week we found out she chose a different family. About this same time an opportunity came up for me to join my father on a mission trip to Honduras. He felt the Lord calling him to go and I was looking for ways to serve the Lord too. So in January of 2004 I arrived in Central America for the first time. Immediately it was clear to me that the Lord had plans for Jeremy and I. Over time our hearts had been changed. Where once we questioned our ability to parent a child of a different race, we were filled with the knowledge that God had a baby for us in Central America. The trip was eye opening in many ways, and was the beginning of many trips I would take to do mission work in Central America.

February 4, 2004
When I got home I told Jeremy that we should adopt from Central America. He said okay let's do it, get started. I was looking on-line at a photo listing of available children in other countries. I immediately went to Guatemala’s page and couldn’t get over the beauty in the children I saw. I found a baby girl that was just born that I thought was so beautiful. I decided to call the agency that was listing this child. They answered right away. I was told that the baby I was interested in was already matched, but a beautiful baby girl was just born February 1st and is available. She e-mailed me the pictures, and I knew right away that this was my baby. I e-mailed Jeremy and we accepted the referral of Paullet Mejia Car a.k.a Evi that night. In just 2 short months we went to visit her and three months after that we brought her home. Our lives will never be the same. The Lord answered our paryers in ways we couldn't even dream of. So now we have a beautiful daughter that we love so much and are ready for number 2.