Why China?

     When we first decided to add to our family through adoption, we didn't know where our child would come from, we just wanted a baby.
     We quickly learned domestic adoption wasn't for us. The majority of domestic adoptions in our country are open, in which the birthmother selects the adoptive parents for her baby.  There are many more couples hoping to adopt than mothers looking to give up their children.  This meant potentially we might never, ever be selected.  A birthmother might choose us and change her mind once her baby was born.  We would certainly understand and respect that decision, but it would break our hearts.
     Our social worker, Brian, said something that stuck with me.  When a baby is born in the United States he or she will be adopted, but that's not the case in other countries.  Children who aren't adopted from foreign orphanages eventually age out of the system, and more often than not, face a very bleak future.
     As we learned about the established international adoption programs we narrowed our choices down to two:  China and Guatemala.   Our last home study visit was completed on November 2, 2005.  We decided to reflect on things and let our agency know after the holidays which way to go.  Of course, unbeknownst to us, at that exact time a great slowdown in China adoptions was beginning.
     Steve immediately felt China was the right fit.  I decided to learn whatever I could about the program.  In doing so I  read a book and watched a DVD that changed my life and perspective forever:

 The Lost Daughters of China and Lisa Ling's documentary China's Lost Girls  helped explain the complex cultural traditions and political policy responsible for the large number of baby girls in China who need families.  The decision was obvious, our daughter would be born in China.