National Adoption DayToday marks a special day in National Adoption Month: National Adoption Day!

National Adoption Day was founded in thanks to the grassroots efforts of adoption professionals, adoptive families, law firms, state foster care agencies, child advocates and courts! Each November, National Adoption Day – always held the Saturday before Thanksgiving – is celebrated when courts and professionals make a special push to get children (especially those in foster care) home before the holidays by finalizing their adoptions!

This November, we had the pleasure of following Jonathan and Teresa as they finalized the adoption of their son Morgan, born in April. We met them at the courthouse, where they were joined by both sets of their parents, their home study worker and their pastor. Afterward, more than 20 friends and family members met up for a celebratory lunch.

Teresa, who organizes enrichment programs for children, and Jonathan, a coach and teacher, have been happily married for ten years. The couple tried to have children for several years before deciding to pursue adoption, but Jonathan says, “The decision was easy.”

Like most couples, they were nervous about the adoption process, but they both agree that the adoption process was easier than fertility treatments. In January, the couple matched in an identified adoption with a pregnant woman who they found through a friend. But after they’d had the baby for two days, the woman decided she wanted to parent.

“It was horrible at the time,” Teresa says. “But if we hadn’t gone through that, we wouldn’t have had Morgan. You see the plan later, but then, it was the worst thing ever.”

But just a few months later, in April, Jonathan and Teresa got the call they’d been waiting for. A little boy had been born, only a few hours away from their home, and he was theirs. When the couple arrived at the hospital, Morgan’s birth mother had already been discharged, but they were able to meet her a few days later. Although she requested a closed adoption, Teresa and Jonathan are grateful for the time they got to spend with her.

“She has a very neat spirit about her,” Jonathan says. “You could tell she had a really great heart. She knew she was making a good decision… And it was a comfort that he was going to be safe, loved and healthy and have opportunities… We told her we’d keep her in our hearts and prayers… The humbling part for us was that she was thanking us.”

Now, the couple is enjoying their new family. “I don’t know if it sounds cliché or not,” Jonathan says. “But I feel like we’re more complete.”

Check back in a couple weeks for the rest of Jonathan, Teresa and Morgan’s Adoption Story!

Congratulations Jonathan and Teresa! Wishing you a happy National Adoption Day and Month from the American Adoptions family to yours!