A Daddy's Perspective

I asked Shawn to write a little blog post, and well, let's just say writing is not at the top of his favorite things to do....nor is it at the top of his list of strengths (which is a very long list by the way)....BUT his heart is always there...like when he was writing his autobiography for our home study and he said "My closet friend" instead of "closest." So glad I caught that one before we turned it in....hehe!

So, he agreed to answer some questions and let me type his answers here :) Marriage is all about compromise, right?

Did you ever see yourself adopting not 1, not 2, but 3 children with special needs?
No, the thought never crossed my mind. I never thought I'd be going down this road.

What changed your mind?
I felt like we were falling into a slump of just going through the motions. We were living for ourselves and I knew there was more to life than the life we were living. I realized how many orphans were waiting for parents and when I saw all the faces looking back at me, that's when part of me knew we could help one...and eventually two...and then three.

Both of us had worries about adopting children with special needs. Both of us had excuses and reasons we should just let other people worry about the orphan crisis. What ultimately helped you move past those worries and decide to take the leap of faith?
I asked God for a clear sign to show us this was the path He had chosen for us. One day at church during worship, a beautiful girl with Down Syndrome looked back at me and smiled and in that moment I knew that was my sign. Was I still a little nervous about moving forward? Yes, but I had peace about this path. I knew the right choice was to move forward with adoption.

What do you want to say to people who don't understand why you'd choose adoption as your first choice?
None of your business. Could we have our own biological children? Probably. But I wanted to make a difference for children already in this world who didn't have parents. I also had selfish motives for adopting....I got into it to help them, but in the end they've shown me more love than I could have ever imagined. I look at life differently now thanks to my girls.

What worries about parenting 3 girls do you have?
Boys. Other kids teasing. Other people's intentions. All the typical things a father would be nervous about....but even worse!

What do you enjoy most about being a daddy to your girls?
The little things. Dancing in the mall, smiles when I come home from work, their excitement when they see me after a long day of work. My perspective on life has changed since becoming a father. The things I thought were most important in life before children are things that don't matter anymore.

If you could tell Zofia something right now, what would you tell her? 
You're going to love it here! You have a wonderful family waiting for you and you have no idea what you're getting yourself into! You'll never have to worry about not being loved because you will be loved forever. No matter what, you will always know what it feels like to be loved.

Name 3 of your wife's most charming traits oops, how did that question get in there?? :)

See why I love him so much? :)