what if her mother had been aborted?

Placing a child for adoption creates a multi-generational legacy.

The precious girl in the picture above is Brielle, the daughter of Anna, our oldest child. We give thanks to God that Anna's birthmother preserved Anna's life and allowed us to raise her. We can't even begin to comprehend a world without Brielle... or Anna!

Happy Birthday, Anna!

Before I post any photos, I want to share the thought that runs through my mind over and over this time of year. I thank God for our Anna's birthmother. When she found herself pregnant, she was a young, vulnerable woman. She lived in a culture screaming at her to abort the "inconvenience." Instead of doing that, she had the courage and selflessness to choose to give up much in order to give the child she was carrying life. Thank you, dear woman, for giving us the chance to parent your beautiful and precious baby. There are no words that could ever express our gratitude. You are a hero to us! We love you!

***********

Twenty-four years ago today a daughter was born to a single girl several states away from us. In an act of great love, that young, hurting mother placed her child in our arms and made the baby girl our baby girl. That child has brought us unspeakable joy.

Anna has now been married for 3-1/2 years and lives several states away from us. I visit her and her family as often as possible ~ not just to see our grandchildren ~ but also to see Anna. She is one of my dearest friends!

Not long before I visited Anna this summer, I had done a maternity photo shoot of her sister, Alison. The two of us had a blast! As Alison and I were laughing together during her shoot, I knew that I wanted to share similar fun with Anna by doing a shoot with her on my next visit.

As I contemplated the idea I came upon the perfect inspiration, a stunning post by Sarah Bradshaw of Sarah Bradshaw Photography. After seeing the artwork of this Washington D.C. photographer, I was on a hunt for the right tools, so to speak, to attempt to capture something somewhat similar. I stumbled upon a lace dress at a vintage store in Lawrence, Kansas and felt like I'd found treasure. I called Anna from the shop to see if she was willing to don "play clothes" again like she did as a little girl, and she said she was game.

On Anna's birthday, I want to share these photos with the world and proclaim how good our God is. He took a severely infertile couple and made us parents through her adoption. Happy birthday, my beloved daughter!

Here is the story of our shoot:

While Anna's sister, Christina, babysat Anna's little girls, we left the house just after sunrise. We started our photography adventure at the grocery store. There we purchased a bouquet of flowers. I knew I just had to incorporate flowers. Anyone who knows Anna well knows that she adores them. We then went to a local park for our first attempt at a mother-daughter photo shoot.

After we'd played around a bit with our first "prop", the flowers, we moved on to a second one ~ a deep purple silk scarf that I had picked up at the same vintage shop where I found Anna's black dress for this shoot.

Anna immediately wrapped the beautiful fabric around herself. As she did, I couldn't help noticing how the early morning light played up her rich brown eyes.

I then asked Anna to play with the scarf in the light breeze.

As the light, luscious fabric wafted in the wind, Anna was inspired to pull it in front of her face like a veil.

We were both tickled with the result.

We then moved to another part of the park which has a stone arch. 

Next I moved my daughter to a short stone wall. We pulled one flower out of the bouquet for the last few photos. The gerber daisy is Anna's favorite type of flower.

Our mother-daughter photo shoot was a great success in my mind. Anna and I laughed together and enjoyed every minute of our special morning.

I'll finish this post with a close-up of Anna Mackenzie that makes this mother's heart sing.

Happy 24th, my beloved Anna! You are a gift from God!

PLEASE Watch and Be Blessed!

Mr. & Mrs. Beaver:

If you've followed our blog for any length of time, you've read how God has created a family from two continents, bringing together under one roof two nations which were bitter enemies during the Cold War. Our family represents so many birthparents we've lost track of the count. Even our nine (soon-to-be thirteen) children from Russia represent a diversity of regions and ethnicities. And yet, in Him, we ARE a family.

When we launched into orphan care in 2001, we felt so alone. Little did we suspect that God was at work all over the globe. He was stirring hearts in amazing ways. He is so great. He is so mighty. He is so good! Please spend 33 minutes watching the film below at some point this weekend. Please watch and be blessed! We promise you will be encouraged. Consider this 33 minutes an early Christmas gift from our family to yours!

This Sunday, November 4th, is Orphan Sunday in America. May our understanding of God's majesty and our love of the least of these grow this weekend.

Jim and Denise

"Zambia's Gift to the World" by the Christian Alliance for Orphans


To God be the glory!

If Her Mother Had Been Aborted...

 

...she wouldn't be here.

 

...nor would her children
 

...or her grandchildren

...or her great-grandchildren

...or...

 

Think about it.

 

The choice has already been made.

 

It's a life...

...and a legacy.

 

Not a choice.


(Photo of Brielle, our granddaughter, taken by our daughter, Anna, today)

She's Here!

Mrs. Beaver:

Praising God for the safe arrival of our first grandchild:

Brielle Madelyn Nix

Born 3:50 p.m. EST

6 lbs 7 oz

19-1/4 inches

Born to Aaron and Anna Nix (see happy, brand new daddy below)

Mother and baby are well! 

I dedicate this post to Anna's birthmother. I have thought of you, H, so many times in the past 24 hours. You have been on my heart as I've relived the day Anna Mackenzie was born. Your selflessness in giving life to Anna rather than aborting her made today possible. Your willingness to sacrifice comfort and convenience that Anna might live has now resulted in the remarkable blessing of Brielle. What a beautiful legacy! Thank you--times without number!

Denise



A Moving Story in 2-1/2 Minutes

Our oldest daughter, Anna, (featured in the wedding pictures above) became ours as a newborn through an independent adoption. We were privileged to develop a precious relationship with Anna's birthmother, "H," during her pregnancy, and our friendship continues two decades later. The wonder of "H" placing Anna in our arms and allowing us to parent her has never faded.

The story below struck many cords in my heart as I watched and yet again reveled in God's goodness to the two of us, an extraordinarily barren couple. Anna's birthmother truly sacrificed her own interests and put her life on hold. But her sacrifical love for the baby she would not parent meant a little girl we named Anna might have life. Over the course of her 21 years, Anna's kind-hearted exuberance has blessed many. Anna pours out affection on all she meets. She loves...and she loves...and she loves. So many lives would have been sadly different if Anna had been aborted.

(If you watch, don't forget to mute our music first.)


an adoption story // kelly, kelly, candace + chapel from stillmotion on Vimeo.

A Happy Dad

Mrs. Beaver:

Few things can compare to becoming a parent after nearly seven years of utterly hopeless infertility.

For Mr. Beaver and me, it was Anna's birthmother who made our impossible dream come true. An ear-to-ear grin stretched across Mr. Beaver's face the night a beautiful newborn girl was placed in our arms by a very brave 20-year-old. That soul-deep smile of my dear husband is etched forever on my heart.

Mr. Beaver's gratitude to the Lord for his oldest child began that night he became her daddy. Last week I got to watch as Mr. Beaver exuded joy all over again. His eyes twinkled. He cranked his fatherly teasing up a notch. The reason? He was able to spend a week with his now married and pregnant Cinderella, while Anna and her new husband, Aaron, vacationed with us.

Here's the pair as our large family hiked in Temperance River State Park:

Happy 21st Birthday!

Mr. and Mrs. Beaver:

Twenty-one years ago God answered our prayers with an amazing gift… Anna Mackenzie!!

We had been childless and wanting for more than 6 years. We were hurting deeply and losing hope. Then, from the most unexpected quarter, God blessed us with the one I (Mr. Beaver) called “the little peepster” (in reference to the wonderful little peeps she made in the back seat of our car when we drove home with her for the very first time).

Anna is one of the many proofs in our lives that God hears our cries and answers with mercy beyond anything we could ever deserve.

“Who is like the Lord our God,

Who is enthroned on high…

He raises the poor from the dust

And lifts the needy from the ash heap…

He makes the barren woman abide in the house

As a joyful mother of children.”

Ps 113:5, 7, 9

And this year our blessing was multiplied as our beloved Anna married the husband of her dreams, a godly young man who will lead her, protect her, and shepherd her heart. We give thanks to God for Aaron as well as Anna.

God does indeed make beautiful things from dust!

We love you, Anna Mackenzie! Happy birthday, beloved daughter!

Dad and Mom

Wedding Dress...Parachute-Style

Mrs. Beaver:

I'm inserting this photo of the bride, Anna, in the midst of the bride-and-groom series because the picture was taken during the duo's session.

On the day of the wedding, I wasn't nearby to watch the propping of Anna's gown in preparation for the photo. However, judging from her grin the effort to get the dress to sit just right must have been gotten all involved laughing.

As Anna's mom, I treasure this photograph as one of those rare ones that truly captures a personality.

From the time Anna could smile as a baby--she did. And not only did she smile, but she laughed--a lot. From her toddlerhood through her teen years, she blessed our family with an ability to see the humor in situations where others would have missed it. In addition, she blessed us because she was humble enough to frequently see herself as a reason for the giggles. Her very happy personality is one of the countless reasons we give thanks to God for her birthmother, who sacrificed what would have been easier and more convenient to herself and gave life to Anna instead. To think how easily she could have been aborted...

I miss Anna's happy-hearted, joyful personality now that she's living several states away. I'm grateful to God that she has a man who appreciates her smile and laugh and sees them as gifts from the Lord. I'm also grateful to God that I have this very special photo that captures an aspect of the true Anna so beautifully.

To Tessa's Birthmother

Mrs. Beaver:

Tessa at four months

To the Woman who Gave Life to My Baby,

Life has come full circle.

Twenty years ago you placed your beautiful newborn in our arms, giving us the responsibility for her life and welfare. For you, this transfer meant a separation from your daughter that resulted in a heart-rending grief the depths of which few could plumb. You watched as we placed your precious newborn in a car seat and drove off.

Now twenty years later, it's our turn. Tomorrow we will place our beautiful daughter in the arms of a young man, giving him the responsibilty for her life and welfare. For us, the transfer which will take place at the altar will mean separation as she moves to Ohio. While our grief could never compare to the grief you've experienced, our joy is mingled with sadness as she prepares to leave our home. We will watch as Tessa climbs into Aaron's car and drives off.

As many parallels as there are, calling attention to those isn't my purpose in writing. I just want you to know that as I've pondered these parallels, I have thought of you often. As the wedding has gotten closer and closer, I have had you on my heart.

I have thought of you with profound gratitude. When you found out that you were pregnant, our culture was loudly telling you not to inconvienience yourself by going through with the pregnancy. Yet you demonstrated love for the little one growing inside you and refused to abort your baby. You sacrificed your life to give life. You were courageous. You were selfless. You were a hero to me, and you always will be.

When we first had contact with you, our hearts had ached for so long as we watched friend after friend become parents. Our hearts ached as one medical procedure after another failed. We were told we were without hope, and yet we wanted the role of parents so badly it hurt. When you placed your trust in us to parent Tessa, you took a very barren couple and turned us into a family. The gift you gave the two of us in allowing us to parent Tessa was a gift of inestimable value.

I'm so glad you are able to come to the wedding. I hope as the evening progresses that you will get a sense for the impact that Tessa has already had in so many lives. She is truly an unusual person. She brings life with her wherever she goes. She gives love freely and generously. She encourages others readily. And she laughs a lot and pulls others into her happiness. Your gift of life to Tessa has multiplied in blessing too many others to count. You have made the world a better place by refusing to abort an unplanned pregnancy.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. You are a blessing. You have blessed us. Now your daughter, who is at the same time our daughter, will now go on to bless her new husband and those she encounters in Cincinnati. Your choice to give life has been like a stone thrown in a pond; the ripples just continue to spread.

Thank you! I love you. We love you.