There is a story about a young boy who was tormenting his adopted brother, telling him that he wasn’t really a part of the family because their mom hadn’t actually given birth to him. The adopted brother retorts, “That’s ok. They got stuck with you, but they chose me.”

That is part of what makes adoption so special – these children who were once unwanted are brought into a loving family that has chosen them to be one of their own. What an incredible feeling that must be when the new family comes together for the first time.

Brent and Audrey Shook got to experience that with their new daughter, Lucy, when they met her for the first time.

The couple started dating in high school and Audrey knew even then that she wanted to adopt from China. She had also always had a special love for children with special needs, so when she first saw a video of Lucy, a 6-year-old with Down syndrome in China, she knew immediately that the little girl was meant to be part of their family.

The Shooks learned about Lucy through Great Wall China Adoption, an agency based in Austin, Texas, that works with the Chinese government to place children with their forever families.

One of the ways they do this is by bringing children from China to the United States to stay with foster families for four weeks in the hope that the children will find their permanent homes.

That was the original plan with the Shooks, but as soon as they saw Lucy they knew she was meant to be theirs.

“She’s beautiful and sweet and we just can’t wait for her to be ours,” said Audrey.

The family began the adoption process right away.

When it was time for them to meet their new daughter the Shooks waited anxiously at Houston’s Bush Airport for the plane to arrive that would bring all of the children to their foster homes.

Audrey spotted Lucy as soon as she walked into the room and rushed over to greet her, telling her, “Hi! I’m momma.”

She didn’t know how the little girl would respond, as it was sure to be an overwhelming time for her, but as soon as Lucy looked into her new mom’s loving eyes she knew she had found home.

“Momma,” she repeated back, making Audrey, as well as everyone else watching, dissolve into tears of joy.

The family couldn’t wait to bring Lucy home and begin their lives together.

“We don’t see it as we are going to help her,” Brent said, “we see it as she’s going to help us with our lives.”

 

 

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