Urge to Action!

You may have heard that Ethiopian adoption is under serious attack and threat for future adoptions. Some sources are saying the Ethiopian government will slash international adoptions by 90%! This is unfathomable in a country where there are 5,000,000 [5 MILLION!] orphans. I know many of you have followed our journey for a long time...this isn't a statistic or disconnected global event. This is personal for us. We plead with you to join us in acting on behalf of those who do not have a voice. We have many friends who are currently in the adoption process, so our prayers and hands are called to ACT for our kids and other children desperately needing a home.

In the same breath, God is not surprised by this [temporary?] decision by the Ethiopian government. God is always and forever in control. He loves these children more than we do. He has created them to be in a loving home. Simultaneously, we know that we are his representatives to speak on their behalf and advocate for them. Please join us in acting for children like Judah and Addise...

Joint Council: Campaign for Ethiopian Children
What You Can Do:

1) SIGN the petition to the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Meles Zenawi – and pass it on!
http://www.gopetition.com/petition/43714.html. It takes less than 1 minute to fill out!

2) Have you adopted from Ethiopia? Please SEND up to 3 photos and 50 words or less with what you would like the Ministry to know about your child to advocate@jointcouncil.org by Sunday, March 12, 2011 to be included. Please note that sending photos and stories gives Joint Council unrestricted right to use the information you provide.

3) SHARE…Please send this Call to Action to family members, other adoptive parents, and everyone you know! Post, forward and share your adoption stories via Facebook, Twitter, and blogs.

Finally, we ask you to PRAY for government officials, wrongs to be made right, and mostly for the children and families directly involved.

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April L. Diaz

April has been a visionary activist her entire life. She has made it her mission to lead high performing teams and develop leaders in the margins of society while caring for our bodies, mind, and spirit. Secretly, she’s a mix of a total girly girl and a tomboy, and is still crazy about her high school sweetheart, Brian. Together, they co-parent 3 fabulous kiddos and live in Orange County, CA.

Reality Check

One of my blogger friends, Julie, just posted this on post-adoption depression. While I don't think Brian and I are fully "here", Julie honestly and boldly expresses a lot of what we've experienced these past 3 weeks since becoming Judah and Addise's parents.

If you want to understand adoption and love us well into this next stage of parenting, PLEASE READ THIS POST. It's quite an emotional conundrum to love two little beings implicitly while also struggle with new realities. [Perhaps I'll post more on this in the future?]

On another note, both our kiddos are teething, fighting low-grade fevers, beginning immunizations on Thursday, and starting treatment for parasites. Prayers and support are appreciated...

6 Comments

April L. Diaz

April has been a visionary activist her entire life. She has made it her mission to lead high performing teams and develop leaders in the margins of society while caring for our bodies, mind, and spirit. Secretly, she’s a mix of a total girly girl and a tomboy, and is still crazy about her high school sweetheart, Brian. Together, they co-parent 3 fabulous kiddos and live in Orange County, CA.

What I Most Want to Say...

We've been home with Judah and Addise for exactly 1 week and what a week it's been!! I've been well informed by our faithful blog community that blog posts are eagerly awaited. I know you most want to hear how the trip to Ethiopia went, what our first days as a family in Addis were like, what the trip home was like [one word: HARD! I will blog more on this], what Judah and Addise are like, see pictures and videos [we have LOTS!], and maybe you're even wondering how Brian and I are holding up. I hope post ad nauseum - mainly for Judah and Addise's sake one day - but today I want to start with the one thing I can't get off my tired momma brain.

My greatest hope and prayer is that our adoption
will cause many of YOU to adopt.


A long time ago I sensed that our adoption wasn't just about the 2 kids that would become Diaz's. I wasn't thrilled about the idea because it was so personal and because I had a sense that some things were taking longer so that God could pull more of your hearts into our story. A while back I accepted the reality that our story was larger than our little family. While I'm honored, moved, and humbled that so many of you [some I don't even know, others I've known forever but haven't walked with in years] have followed our journey, I desperately hope our story and Judah and Addise's homecoming irrefutably compels many, many of you to bring orphans into your family.

I haven't been shy about calling people toward caring for orphans. I firmly believe that ALL Christ followers are called to care for orphans in some way, shape, or form. [I believe that Christians could solve the orphan problem if we would just respond.] But I deeply hope beyond all hope that more Christians will respond to welcome the orphan into their family and call them "my child". I pray you'll go all the way. I believe that some of you are called to adopt, and I hope you will. I hope you will trust God with your fears, the finances, the barriers. I hope you will say "yes" to one of the most amazing journeys you could experience in life. I would wish adoption on anyone. Clearly it has utterly changed us. MUCH LOVE, my faithful blog friends!!! The best is yet to come...

Welcome home, Judah and Addise!

3 Comments

April L. Diaz

April has been a visionary activist her entire life. She has made it her mission to lead high performing teams and develop leaders in the margins of society while caring for our bodies, mind, and spirit. Secretly, she’s a mix of a total girly girl and a tomboy, and is still crazy about her high school sweetheart, Brian. Together, they co-parent 3 fabulous kiddos and live in Orange County, CA.