I thought that I would make another list tonight, because I really enjoyed listing my Top Ten favorite things about foster care. Tonight's topic is more specific: adoption days! I'm listing my five favorite things about adoption days as a tribute to my five siblings that my parents have adopted.
4. You get to dress up and look good, but the attention isn't on you. Everyone likes attention, right? Hey, I love being the center of attention much more than a lot of people, but I absolutely love being out of the spotlight on adoption days. I get to put on a nice dress, but I don't have to worry about standing tall and proud or anything because I know that no one is looking at me. The rest of my siblings look super fancy too, whether they're wearing a cute little suit, or pink puffy dresses (the latter being the choice of wardrobe for the twins on their adoption day).
3. You get a great story to tell, because everyone is going to ask you about the adoption after the fact. As everyone knows, I love talking about my family, and foster care, and I probably give way too many details in every story I tell (my mom always says that she doesn't need to know what color socks people were wearing, and could I please get to the point... the hazards of being a writer I guess!). But friends and family who couldn't be with us at the courthouse usually haven't experienced an adoption firsthand before, so I make it my mission to share all of the details about the special day. Plus, you get a ton of great pictures to go along with the story.
2. You get to thank all of the amazing people who have made the adoption possible. From caseworkers, to drivers, to the security guard who tells you when it's time to go into the courtroom (okay, might have exaggerated a little on that last one), there's no shortage of tears from my mom when she goes around thanking everyone for all of their help. And of course that leads to us kids making fun of her for always crying, which is probably the main reason why I cry about everything now. Lesson learned -- don't make fun of people for anything because karma will get ya back! Anyway, even though we tease my mom, it really is nice to be able to say thanks to everyone, because we wouldn't have made it to each adoption without all of the people from C.P.S. and D.S.S. getting us there. These people placed each child in our home, pushed all of the paperwork through, and advocated for us in court if needed. We owe them a lot.
And of course, the biggest and most important reason why I love adoption days would be....
1. You get an official new member of your family and you know that they'll never be taken away from you. Once that adoption is finalized, there is absolutely no chance that the system can remove the child from your home. You know that this child is going to be your son, daughter, sister, or brother for the rest of your lives (even if they grow up to hate being part of a family.... they can't erase the last name or the fact that they're a Krigsman). These kids become my siblings forever, and nothing can change that after those adoption papers are signed. It's the greatest feeling in the world to know that an adoption means that you have a bigger forever family.
What's your favorite thing about an adoption day? Share with me in the comments! Remember, you can leave the email field blank and even remain "anonymous" if you want, so don't be afraid to speak your mind! I'd love to hear some other opinions!
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Taylor