Our Adoption Story
May 24, 2010
*Note from Mindy: So many readers have asked me questions about our own adoption experience that I decided to publish here the entries from my personal blog as they happened. I share this because the Heart to Heart agency we used has 18 babies being born in June and July of 2010… and they do not have enough homestudy-ready adoptive families for them.
What I share here is quite personal, I know, and this is really putting myself out there for scrutiny… because these are my thoughts and emotions (un-edited) as they happened. I hope that this information will allow you to experience ‘second-hand’ what adoption was like for us, and perhaps if you are going through it yourself, you can relate and possibly see how we coped with all the ups and downs. Through these posts, you literally will walk with us as we begin the process from Day 1 all the way through finalization with our son, and beyond…
I know that some of these posts are religious in nature, as I am a very religious person, and I truly believe that my son came to our family by divine design. I apologize in advance if the emotions I talk about are not familiar to you or do not fit your religious beliefs. I will try to my best to insert explanations where I feel appropriate, but hopefully you will be patient with me and my views on God, religion, and family.
Again, I know that by doing this I and my family open ourselves up to judgements and ask that you read these entries in the spirit in which they were intended. Please understand that, until now, these experiences have only been shared with close family and friends and were originally intended to be personal journal entries. As such, they are very personal, sacred, and heart-felt moments of mine and I hope you will treat them with the same respect even if you don’t agree.
Lastly, in an effort to make my 37 single-spaced pages of journal entries into something more reader friendly, I have broken my writings into nine separate posts, linked one to another, instead of one massive post. This way you can read a little one day and come back to it another, etc. Thanks for understanding!
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THE BEGINNING
Jan 4, 2008
You know, everyone has times in their lives that are simply more difficult than others. I suppose it is the normal cycle of life. For the first eight years of our marriage, I would say that my husband and I had it pretty easy. Not that everything was always perfect, but for the most part we were able to “make lemonade” with anything that did go wrong in an otherwise extremely blessed life. For the last two years, however, I would say life has become much harder. Not to say that life was at its worst, or that there aren’t bigger problems we could face, but these two years have been long and difficult in many respects for our family.
To begin with, our move back to Utah from Missouri was definitely an adjustment. We really miss everything about Missouri. It simply felt like home. It felt so good to experience life outside of the Utah ‘bubble’, to experience the charm of the Midwest, and get to know and love so many new people. Utah, for us, really has a very unique atmosphere (good in most ways), but it can take some getting used to.
For purposes of background, my husband and I have been trying to have another baby for nearly two years without success. The short version is this: I had an IUD (Mirena) put in after our #4 daughter was born and had it removed shortly after moving here. After nearly six months of no baby and a very irregular menstrual cycle, I called my OB for an appointment. All the doctors swore up and down that the IUD has extremely minimal side effects or long term problems when it became more mainstream in use (and when I had it put in). Since then, however, the statistics became more concrete and I happened to fall into the 0.02% who experiences complications with it. This ‘no-baby’ period may seem short to many of you, but for us that is a really long time. We seemed to get pregnant at will with our previous four girls. After going through a variety of tests (progesterone therapy, hysterysalpingograms, ovulation tests, etc), the doctor seemed to find nothing abnormal and simply wanted to put me on Clomid. (This would seem like a very risky move given that our first two girls were identical twins, and our #4 daughter started out as a twin.) Out of concern that we could end up with quadruplets, I declined and called my uncle.
You see, my uncle is one of the most prestigious fertility specialists west of the Mississippi. And, yes, this new uncle/niece interaction was a little strange at first! At least in my head, but in reality I was OK with it. My uncle is uber professional and very kind to be helping us try to sort this out. If anyone needs a good fertility doctor, I would most definitely recommend him.
My uncle had me come in to complete more specific tests (often at varying times of my cycle, so this process took months). During one of the ultrasounds on my ovaries, he found scarring on my uterus which was causing my body to retain blood (thus the weird cycles) and very likely the cause of infertility. YES!! Finally a real problem that seemed would require a quick fix, but… that was too easy. We have now had two invasive procedures to correct the problem, neither of which has worked, and talked to several doctors who are all wondering where to go next. Because it isn’t a common problem, there isn’t a common fix either. In escalation, my uncle had many more amazing services he could provide to more reasonably guarantee us a baby and a gender of our choice. Those procedures, however, would be quite expensive even after he waived is own time. As it was, this discovery was already becoming costly.
We have obviously run the whole spectrum of emotions. I have been angry, bitter, hurt, sad, emotional, happy, and excited… sometimes all at once. Watching the calendar every day, like a hawk, desperately holding on to any hope… just to come crashing down when the cycle started all over. Living in a neighborhood where there are 16 wonderful women that have had babies in the last six months doesn’t help either. I don’t begrudge them their babies at all, they are wonderful women, but I want one too. I’ve tried to be strong by being kind, smile, and be happy for all of them, as I should. That, however does not stop the pain.
Many of you may be asking, “She has four beautiful daughters, why does she need more?” The answer is simply, because we don’t feel done. When you know, you know. It does not matter if you have zero children or 12. With our #4 daughter starting as twins, I think we simply got used to the idea of five children so when we lost that other twin… there is an empty hole in our family. Somehow, it doesn’t feel finished. Call it a gut feeling, mother’s intuition, or the whisperings of the Spirit … we just aren’t done. I wish I knew better how to say it.
Plus I grew up in a family of five kids. I know how much fun having lots of siblings can be. I want that for my children. (Yeah, that’s me when I was little. I’m in the front row on the right–the chubby one! LOL)
I finally am now at a point where I have some peace with it all. I still want a baby. My arms and heart ‘ache’ for a baby. But I am also ok with it, I guess. I have made my peace with Heavenly Father and put it in His hands and on His timeline.
I know in my head that the tide will eventually change again, and things will look better. For now I’m just trying to keep my head above water and do the best I can. I’m not saying life hasn’t had good moments or been fun along the way, but that overall these past two years have been harder than normal.
Sometimes you just have to play the hand that life deals you, ya know???
Friday April 18th, 2008
Today I am finally going to blog about adoption. Although my hubby and I have now been working on the adoption stuff for three months, it will be the first time that I am writing about it publically. My husband and I had mutually decided to keep it under wraps for a few months just to see how it would go and gauge how we would feel about it all. Let me start from the beginning…..
When I was about 12 years old, I watched a 20/20 documentary on Romanian orphanages. I was so touched by this segment and the poor babies that lived in those orphanages. I remember that there were two 8-year old boys who were best friends. One year, a family came and adopted boy #1, but the other family that had come to bring home boy #2 couldn’t get their paperwork completed and had to leave him there for another year. The two boys were just sobbing at the airport as boy #1 left for America, separated for the first time ever. Then the documentary showed the family returning the next year and bringing home boy #2. What was amazing was the difference between the two boys after only one year in America. It was so striking. Boy #1 was so healthy and vibrant looking in his cute American clothes as he greeted his best friend at the airport. But boy #2 was still gaunt and hollow looking. His hair was dull and thin. It was simply crazy what real food, a good home, and the other blessings of living in a good home could do for that boy in one year! Not to mention what having the gospel would have done for any child.
When I was a teenager, my parents and I spent some time one summer helping in an orphanage in Nicaragua. Again, I was so touched by these poor babies and how sad they were in their condition. They were starving for any affection. I grew so attached to one little girl in particular, I knew I had it in my heart to love a child not biologically mine. After that I always think my heart was open to adoption and the blessings that it can provide to everyone involved.
Before my hubby and I were married, we had a discussion one fall evening under a tree on BYU campus. We mutually discussed our complete openness to adoption. It surprised me somewhat that we were both on the same page. It was something neither of us had ever spoken of, yet neither of us were were afraid of it either. But, a few months after we were married we became pregnant with the twins and got busy with them and life in general. We did not discuss adoption much for several years.
After daughter #3 was born, I again felt like we should investigate adoption. But I wasn’t really ready to commit to the idea since we could have our own. We heard about a program in Missouri called Baby Boarding through Agency A and decided it was the perfect option for us at the time. We would temporarily house a baby after the birthmom delivered it, but before the adoptive parents could take over custody. In Missouri, by law there has to be at least a three-day time limit where the baby must be cared for by a 3rd party. This gives the birthmom the opportunity to think about her decision and carefully weigh her thoughts before signing over her legal rights. Sometimes if there were paperwork problems, like refusal of the birth father signing, the baby could be in our house for much, much longer.
We complete all the paperwork, medical forms, home study, etc… necessary to be certified through the state and Agency A. It was the same procedure as preparing for an adoption; however, we would not be keeping any babies long term. We received calls several times about potential babies, but only received one baby in the year we had left there. Little baby Ashton (nicknamed ‘Marvin J’ by us) came from Agency C and stayed with us for two weeks. We sure loved on him, as well as all our friends there, and enjoyed having a boy around the house for awhile. Basically it was a way for us to give a good home to a baby in transition without actually dealing with the stress of adopting. It was like “dipping our toes in the water, without actually taking the plunge” is what I often say. Through this experience we also saw how working with an agency can be, and how we felt about loving a child that wasn’t biologically ours.
Needless to say, we were sad when we moved to UT and figured out that the state does not need Baby Boarding families. I could have bean a baby boarder forever and been happy just because I love babies in the newborn stage! For awhile it didn’t seem as though we would ever adopt since we could so easily have our own, but it quickly became apparent that this was not the case.
Of course, we have done anything and everything in our power to correct the secondary infertility. I had my husband give me a blessing at one point that specifically stated there was another baby for our family. And we both feel that to be accurate… but we weren’t getting a baby here. About four months ago, I started thinking about the whole adoption process again. At first, it was just passing thoughts here and there, but after a while it started to weigh on my mind more and more. I began to talk to my husband about it again.
We decided that if we were going to ask Heavenly Father to bless us with another baby we needed to also allow that the baby may need to come via another means. We both decided that we would open up all the channels possible and see how and if Heavenly Father would do the rest. So a few months ago we started the loads of paperwork once again to get certified as adoptive parents.
Currently, we have completed all the initial paperwork, which entails medical forms, financials, four reference letters, an ecclesiastical leader endorsement, fingerprinting, FBI background checks, etc. We have had our initial interview with Agency A, and filled out its paperwork online. (This entails another 2 weeks worth of questionnaires to match babies with our family and pretty much life histories for each member of our extended families and immediate family.)
My husband and I still have individual interviews with the agency, a home study review (where they look for things like fire extinguishers, baby locks etc…), and to complete our online profile (what the birthmoms see) before we will be completely done. We are about three weeks out.
We have already had some neat experiences in getting thus far. Before the adoption stuff started, I was having a lot of anxiety over my whole infertility issue. I was stressing every month, feeling bummed, etc, however since the day we handed in our initial packet for adoption, I have felt nothing but calm and peaceful. I hadn’t mentioned that to my husband, but one day he simply turned to me and said he had been feeling unbelievably calm. I totally agreed and we both recognized that we had been feeling the same way without knowing it. That was the turning point.
I recognize now that this could be a long waiting process. We have no idea at what point we will be chosen. We also understand the reality that even if we are chosen… we could potentially not bring the baby home. There are a lot of unknowns throughout this process. Even knowing all of that, and going into the process optimistically guarded, I really feel as though the right baby will find our family through biological means or via adoption. Maybe this whole thing is a “Zion’s Camp” type of experience for me, one where you have to show you have the faith to go through the process. That it is more about the journey than the destination. I have to build the kind of faith where I am completely and totally dependant on the Lord and work within His timeline. I must understand that I literally have no control over any of this baby stuff anymore. I have done everything in my power to provide opportunities for the Lord to bless our family in that way, whether biological or adoptive, and now have to simply hand it over to Him and hope for the best. We just need to work both options… and hope that one comes through for us.
Agency A has mentioned several times that often the best resource to getting a baby is by telling your family and friends. Then if they know of anyone, who knows anyone who is a young birth mother, they can help you get in contact. So we are now letting our family and friends know that we are looking for another sweet, tender baby to add to our family.
To read more, click Our Adoption Story: Part 2
I read the whole story in one sitting while my little ones were taking a nap! Absolutly beautiful story! So inspiring. Thank YOu for sharing your heart and being so “raw” with all your emotions and openness!
I’m so glad my husband wasn’t home when I was reading your story because I kept crying! Thank you so much for sharing some of your real life with us. I love the hairstyles, but getting to know the person behind the hair makes it even more fun. Give all of your kids a hug from me.
Dear Mindy,
I’ve been following your blog for a little while but never posted a comment. Thank you for sharing your experience.
I am 23 years old and not married, but I’ve always known since I was 14 that I wanted to adopt a child one day. There are so many children out there who needs/wants a place to call home and I would love to give a child that opportunity.
Although not planning to get married for years to come, my boyfriend knows and supports my desire for adoption (in my country, having your own children is more supported than adopting. People only adopt when they can’t have children of their own). I hope and pray that when the time comes, I will have the strength that you and your family has.
Thank you once again for sharing your story. God Bless…
Hey Mindy! I read your whole adoption experience start to finish! Wow, what a journey. It totally made me teary! What a special experience. You guys are such great examples. I sometimes forget the importance of trusting in our Heavenly Father. He has a plan for each of us, and if we listen to the promptings of the spirit (as you did) we will be blessed immensely. I loved the sealing pictures! That must have been such an amazing day. Thanks so much for sharing your story! You are an amazing woman!!!! I look up to you so much!
I too had the “Not done” feeling after our twins (#3 & 4 in our family). People looked at me like I was crazy when I said we were having #5. We did not have any problems getting pregnant again after the IUD. But if we had, I think I would have done just about anything to get that baby here. I agree, when you know, you just know. I’m so thankful for the whisperings of the spirit that helped confirm to my husband what I already knew.
Thank you for sharing your story!!!
Baby #5 is a month old now and I can’t imagine our family being complete with out her!
U must be happy with 5 adorable kids.:)
I happened to come across this while searching for hair styles for my 8 year old since the new school year is just a few weeks away. So I was drawn to your site instantly and now I know why. . . My daughter is from my previous marriage. My current husband and I have been married for 5 years and trying to concieve since then, only to find out that my husband doesn’t produce sperm. We have thought of adoption but never really put to much emotion into it. . . Mainly because I was scared of the process. Well I just wanted to thank you for such an ispiring story! You have given me and my family HOPE!
I just have to mention, and maybe you have already come to this conclusion, but it seems to me that the Lord planted the little seed of adoption in you when you were young… a prompting. It is interesting how many times throughout your brief explanation how many times you seem to “randomly” think about adoption. The Lord has prepared you for this moment, and it seems to me that He needed you to take in a child from another mother, but since you were happy with the children you were capable of having, He made His will possible.
That is how it seems to me from the outside. YOu have a touching story, and I have felt the Spirit many times throughout reading. I too have struggled with getting pregnant, and my faith in Heavenly Father was tested completely, but I came out faithful and closer to Him
PS. I knew you were LDS. Sometimes you can just tell. Now I have proof.
Keep up the good work, you are a great inspiration for all.
Thank you for sharing you Story to all of us!
What an amazing story!
My daughter begged me to look up new hair styles to do on her hair, as she is getting really bored with the ones I have mastered. Thanks to google your blog was the first one that popped up so we clicked on it.
As a Mommy of both a biological child and adopted child, I decided to read your adoption story. I stepped away for a second and out of no where my husband and I begin to hear our five year old little girl sing…”Rise, all loyal Cougars…” Nothing out of the ordinary for our household so I didn’t thing too much of it. I come back to the comptuer and my five year old says — “Mommy, they’re Cougars, and they’ve adopted! They’re just like us!”.
Thanks for sharing your adoption story! I can relate on so many levels. Also, thanks for being Cougars and for the cute hair ideas! It made my little girls night.
Your adoption story is beautiful. When I read it I was deeply touched and inspired. I too have been deeling with secondary infertility after having the Mirena removed 6 months ago. Our other 3 children were conceived within a month of trying. They were all c-section babies. If I had Known that this could happen from the Mirena I would not have had it. Did the doctors ever determine what was the cause of your infertility exactly? Any information you may have regarding this would be a tremendous help. We would like to add to our family but I am worried that I may never be able to conceive again. Thank you for your wonderful website. It has helped me connect with my daughter even more as I share these fun hairstyles with her.
Hi dear!
I really appreciate your attitude and I wish I can pass my obstacles with faith asap
It is very difficault to explain my feeling,but I just like to tell you I love your story and your feeling and your husband’ssupport as well.I do belive in our heavenly Father since a miracle happend to me!!I really don’t know how I find your website and read your story !But what I know is I am in a very difficault situation and your story gives me another hope
Thank you very much
u have 4 daughters
The babies of this world need more loving families like yours.
I was also adopted (through LDS Family Services). My Mom had similar isseus with the precursor to the modern IUD. She and my Dad got pregnant shortly after their marriage and graduation from BYU. After my brother was born, that was the birth control method they used. Massive scar tissue formed and after many surgeries and fertility treatments, she was found to be unable to get pregnant again herself.
I was pre-destined to be a member of this family. I am thiers in every way. Our personalities are the same. Our talents, humor, strengths, and values are the same.
Words cannot express the gratitude in my heart for the woman who carried me and nourished me during my gestational period. She sacrificed so much to give me the life I was meant to have.
I’m sure that your beautiful family will feel the same when they are older too.
As a mother of 4 I have new appreciation af the sacrifices that were made so that I could have my true Eternal Family.
Thank you so much for sharing your story and your talents/ideas with all of us.
Im from Mexico and I was reading your story….so beautiful…apart let me tell you that you have a lovely family….Blessings!
Me encnata tu canal y he puesto en practica muchos estilos de peinado en mi niña… y ahora que leo tu historia y es una historia hermosa!!!
Los admiro mucho mas Dios los bendice!!!
I just knew you were from Utah when I was watching your YouTube videos! I have never seen girls with such intricately combed hair (on a daily basis) in my life! When I had my set of twin girls, I used to doll them all up, but be so jealous that every other mom knew how to do hair. It’s beautiful families like yours that inspire the rest of the world.
The cool thing about Utah? Everyone’s nice, and willing to share hair secrets. Thanks for all the beautiful hair ideas.
can’t help but say – you are a gorgeous family! WOW!!!!!
What religion are you?
Mormon
I also have 5 other siblings including me 6 its going to be a great excperience raising your children in a big happy family!!!!!
Thanks for your videos
I love your blog and all your stories! I am a girl of 4 kids and my older sister and younger brother are both adopted from the phillippeans! I wasn’t born when we adopted my sister but when we got my brother I was 8 and it was an unforgettable moment because he was 7 and I learned so much from him! I love all your videos and your children are absolutely STUNNING! im wearing one of your styles to school tomorrow and im so excited for all the conpliments I will receive! thank you!(:
So did you mean that daughter 4 was having a twin but lost it?
OMG! the haistyles are incredible but u more
hey! do you have a e-mail
Hi, my name is Claire and I am fourteen years old. I really like your videos reguarding hair and i came across many that I could and could’nt do! But your channel has helped me out tremendously and some of these hair styles are my favorites!!! I also read part of your story about your adoption and losing a baby and that must of been tough for you and your family! I am a christian/catholic and I know you are a mormon but part of your story has really touched me and I know you have gone through a lot. I really would not know how bad it is to lose a baby at this age. I also like how you said you wern’t done with raising kids and that really made me think how powerful you are! please respond to me because even though you haven’t met me you are a great rolemodel to me! God bless you
i have watched all ur videos in youtube without knowing that u have a website. Today when i visited ur website the first thing i saw was the adoptation n i couldnt believe my eyes. I have never heard of a story like urs. Im a teenage girl (sri lankan) n the only thing i can say is I’m a big fan of urs..u r a great example of a great mother (hats off). Honestly in my country, parents cannot take care of their own children n they send them to temples where the children get free education bt believe me its worse than being in a orphanage. If those children had gotten a mother like u they would have had a great life. We are not allowed keep orphans illegally or legally
because it is sri lanka n some of the people sell their children to foreigners just to get money n enjoy their lives. I know, I am still a teenager so i cannot adopt bt i will try to help them in any way bi can…thanx for sharing ur experience with us n i love u all so much.
blessings..!!
Oopss i made a mistake (adoption*)
Your adoption story was an answer to prayer. Thank you so much. I was so overwhelmed, I didn’t know if it was the spirit or Satan discouraging me. I can’t even begin to tell you what a blessing it was to read your story. Everything you described I’m going through. It helped to see your beautiful girls and see how blessed you have been with adoption. We have two amazing boys and I feel so selfish sometimes wanting anymore children. We are working with “Agency A” right now on our home study we started the process two years ago and it feels like it will never be completed. (We had a few sudden moves that helped delay things.) I just can’t thank you enough. Thank you for your testimony and your willingness to share your joy and pain.
you should own your on shop.when people call you for hair at their house you can go straight to their house and you can do the hair do for them.
I give you so much credit for everything you have went through. You were so brave and never gave up and that is just amazing how you did so. Thank you for sharing your story. And by the way you have a beautiful family. (:
Oh my gosh I am so sorry. Please don’t mind for me to ask but what happend to ur 4th daughters twin???
I know how hard it is in Romania. I’m half Romanian and this summer when I went to visit for the first time, I was shocked. My parents always told me to be grateful for what I had and I was, but I never imagined it would be like that with beggars and so many orphans.
Hi
I love all your videos for hairstyle I’m 24 yrs old and I use some of the videos you doo u make them seem so simple thanks for taking the time to do them.
Your adoption storie is soo inspiring. I was adopted from Thailand when I was 2 yrs old and it took my parents 5 yrs to adopt. I’m blessed every day that I got a second chance at a better life and I thank my parents for that. I know when I’m ready to have kids I’ll adopt because I want to give that child the kind of life my parents gave me. Thanks for sharing your story with us.
L.
I read your adoption story start so finish and i cried the whole time. i am 13 years old and love your videos i try the styles on myself and on my little cousins all the time. My favoriteis the waterfall french braid. your story is truly inspiring and your family is amazing and beautiful. mindy you are such a role model to me god bless you.
lost twin? why where it comes the picture of you and your daughters it says lost twin?
WHY?
WHY?
I WANT TO KNOW PLEASE ANSWER
Oh and you look adorable when you were little
hiya, i read ure story. it was so detailed and heartfelt. i am only 13 and a half years old but have felt that your story has definately persuaded me to adopt when im older. ive always known that i wanted a big family but it never crossed me that i should adopt. oh and i love all ure videos ive nearly watched all off them and mastered some on my younger sister.xxxxxxxx;)your biggest FAN!
hello. i read your story. it is beautiful and i love of you are strong and have faith in Heavenly Father. I also love your hair styles that i do on myself and my sisters. they are just soooo aborable.keep on posting videos and showing the world that you are a ROCKING HAIRSTYLIST!! <3
That was so beautiful Iam going to adopt a little girl so soon
This was so cute . I’m 13 and i love yuu , yuur girls , and the hairstyles , although i can’t do them on my hair cause i have short layers in it but my little sister loves them . Keep postingg !
I can’t believe you adopted so many kids! It must be tiring, but very fun. I’m 9 and saw alot of your videos they are so inspiring especially your story!
I love all your hairstyles and i try them on my daughter all the time.
Thank you so much for sharing your adoption story. I was adopted as a baby and my parents 6 yrs later adopted a 9mo old w/ fetal alcohol syndrome. I think its amazing to give others a second chance at life! I enjoy your videos! Thank you for everything that you do! Have a great Day!!
Thats awesome i love ur hair styles and my family is lds to i dont know if u r but i know byu i want to go there im 13 i have to brother im the middle child i love ur hairstylea.
I think you’re so lucky
, I’m not married and don’t have a biological child , and have never tried for that but I have always thought about adopting a child , but in my country only parents who can not have children after 5 years can adopt and that has so many tough procedures that people forget about that or prefer to go abroad and adopt a child.I work in a charity organization myself and I see so many children out there waiting for a family , I hope it happens to me sometime too 
xoxoxo from Iran.
Dear Mindy,
I am 18 years old, and I love watching your hair videos! It’s funny, when I started watching your videos, I could just tell you were a Christian. You have such a beautiful story and I think God will bless you for being so open with your readers. It’s obvious that you love Him and are seeking His will.
God Bless
Elizabeth
Hey Mindy. My name is Emma. And I am 11 years old.. First things first. I would like your email because your story seriously made me cry.. I have a sister from China and We adopted her in 2004. We had 20 dollars in the bank after paying for the trip. It is a lot of waiting.. And congratulations for the beautiful family you and your husband created. Your Kids are lovely! I have tried almost all your videos. But fail at 99.9% of them! I am now trying to master the knotted bridge braid thing.. I think that is what it is called. But I keep having to tell my mom how to do it cause i am not the best at doing things by my self on my head. I also keep telling her “I really wish Mindy was our neighbor! You are so beautiful and every time i come to school with a hairstyle you taught me i would always get compliments and say “Thanks Mindy!” in my head! But seriously you have changed the way people think of me.. (sadly its my hair and not my heart that changes the way people think about me, but you know!! Thanks!!) And with this story above you really changed my heart! and i want to thank you for that!
-Emma
Okay i seriously ment I was 12! I keep telling everyone i am 11 cause i just recently turned 12! Sorry for that!
You Guys are Mormon too! SO am I! I Wasn’t expecting that. Anyways this is really inspirational, Love you guys ♥
you guys are truly wonderful people and so beautiful on the outside too!
I have been following your videos for some time now. I use some of them on my own hair even though I’m 31 years old. What I liked about them was that I have very straight hair, just like your first 4 daughters. When I was little my mother could do nothing with my hair because it is very thin and straight and any updo fell down.
But I remember one particular time I watched your video and thought about people with different kind of hair. I wondered if those would work on Afro-textured hair.
At first I thought it was a very random thought. That was before learning anything about your family.
Thanks for sharing your adoption story. Please also write about your youngest daughter’s adoption too. But what I’m really looking forward is to see a video of doing the youngest one’s hair. And maybe a cool boy hairstyle too.
Mindy.. i changed my favorite tv show. So i could finish reading your story and i couldn’t stop crying.. i think i felt all the emotions you put when you were writing this blog. U see i am 24 years old and married for 6 years. We have try so many things to get a baby and had no luck.. i have pray like crazy, my faith is been in its ups and downs… infertility is something i do not wish to anybody.. is the most devastating and emotional feeling that i do not wish not even to my worst enemy… i have never give up and never will, i still hopping god will bless us one day.. and your story just touch me soooo much, i been feeling so bad lately.. i guess is one of those times when u think of a baby so much that it makes u a little frustrated and depressed.. i want to thank you for your kind words.. after reading this i fell that i don’t want to give up, i want to keep believing that something grateful will happened in our lives… thank you again and may God bless your beautiful family!!!!
Mindy,
Do you know how bad it hurts to not be able to have children? I have always wanted a little girl from China. But the cost is much more then I can afford. I have prayed for years for God to give me a baby and he still refuses to allow me to have one.
Thank you so much for sharing your life story with us , especially since it’s so personal. You and youre family are a real inspiration and you are really blessed with the family you have.
I may be young, not married and no children but your story really emotioned me a lot. Things are still difficult I could say here in Romania ( yes i`m from Romania as i see you mentioned it in youre story) I see a lot on tv how pepole strugle to adopt these days because of all the paperwork , not many have the luck.
I wish you all the best to you and your family.
xoxoxo
Mindy, tu historia me parece maravillosa, tambien en nuestra familia vivimos un proceso parecido, cuando estabamos en el proceso de adopcion Dios permitio que quedara embarazada, llego a nuestra vida un maravilloso bebe que ha esta fecha tiene 8 años, pero aun esta en mi corazón el anhelo de adoptar un niño mas, creo que mi corazón aún tiene capacidad para amar a un niño que necesite amor……
gracias por compartir tu historia familiar bendiciones.
Hi mindy! You are such I great person and I understand what you are going Through.My grandparents lived in Missouri and Utah also.does van shaar seem familiar,probably not! Are you LDS?
-krishel
Ps. I look up to you and your family!
Pss. Thanks for helping me with my hair in the morning!!!!
I know the feeling of feeling like others are thinking things like “you already have a child, so you have nothing to be upset about.” We have only been able to have one child, and after a many procedures and medications and even surgery in the last 3 years, we have accept this, but it is still hard. I too realize I am very very blessed to have my one son, but that doesn’t mean I still don’t have a righteous desire to raise more children in our home. We have lots of love to give, not to mention a 5 year old brother who is very lonely. For now, we have decided we are content. Costs of more procedures or adoption are too much for our little budget right now. Sorry this is getting long winded. I don’t know what the future hold for us. I do know that we are all blessed with a loving Heavenly Father who will guide us in our choices. Thank you for sharing your story.
WOW! I had an IUD too right after my 1st child. It caused me a lot of pain. I finally had it removed when I realized it could cause infertility (which my doctor never told me about -.- I have always wondered what life would have been like if I had never agreed to that IUD. I had no problem getting pregnant before the IUD with the child I miscarried and my oldest child but after the IUD when we tried to conceive again, it was a nightmare. The doctor’s told me it was because I had PCOS but I have always wondered about that IUD. I had all but given up on the idea of having more children for 7 long years. It was with the help of my doctor, mother, and grandmother giving me medicine and by God’s grace that I was able to conceive my middle child and we had my baby right afterwards to ensure that we would have more than 2 children.
Dear Mindy, I almost read your whole thing! For what I heard I think you are a great mom! I am 9 years old. Your adorably kids are really beautiful! GOD BLESS YOU!!:)
Dear Mindy, I almost read your whole thing! For what I heard I think you are a great mom! I am 9 years old. Your adorably kids are really beautiful! GOD BLESS YOU!!:)
Hi Ms. Mindy!
I’m only 13 years old but I just wanted to say how awesome it was to read this because I found out we have a couple things in common besides hairstyles. First, my family also loves Christ and I felt very comforted to know that you also believe that too. My parents also adopted a girl from China about 7 years ago. Having an adopted sister has been such an amazing experience for me and has made me want to also adopt in the future. And are you guys Christians or Catholics?? My family is Christian…. I was just wondering.
Rachel
I am Christian as well. Are you Catholic or Christian? My guess is, by the way you speak, I think you are a Christian. Am I right?
Hi Bryanna! Yes, we are Christian! xoxo
Iloveyourstory
Your story was so touching! I have always wanted to adopt! I hope as an adult God will help me find the perfect child/children if it is the rith thing!
Did one of ur daughters die???
i think i are a very nice mom god bless you
What a beautiful story, Mindy. I’m glad to hear you are religious as I am as well. Your story is so inspiring!
God bless you and your family
You have a nice wonderful family! The Twins are so cute love there YouTube channel BrooklynAndBailey so cool! Love the story! Love the hairstyles We hope that you guys have a nice beautiful day!
God Bless You Guys * ~ * ♥♥♥♥♥
My mother has a friend who had two children and then got her tubes tied but the Lord had destined her to have another child so she became pregnant again. That goes to show that if the lord wants you to have another child, whether through adoption or biologically, he will make sure that you get one somehow.
I’m so happy that everything worked out and so happy that you guys have God through all of that! I’m so glad to have you guys and your channel! I don’t even know you but in a way I feel like I do! Im around Brooklyn and bailey’s age so I love them and their new channel! Love you guys and please keep posting!!
hi mindy PLEASE DONT take this the wrong way what do u mean by lost twin? does it mean the twin passed away please dont mind and im only 11 and a big fan thank u soo much for sharing this touching story
Hi Alisa! Thanks for your comment… yes, we lost CGH#4′s twin sister about 4 months into the pregnancy.
Hi Mindy,
and my family is also very religious I love God we go to church every Sunday and that’s when I wear your fancy hair styles 
thank you Miny for making cutegirlshairstyles 
I wish I can meet u one day I hope I can go to Imats when I’m 18 and meet u 
thank you so much
I’m 14 years old and I’m a big fan of cutegirlshairstyles I do your hair styles all the time for school your girls are so pretty and your boy is very handsome your story inspired me to adopted a baby when I grow up
Love,
Remi
Dear Mindy
Thank you for sharing your experience it was very touching and I am happy the you now have what you have been searching so long for and I’m sure that everyone not just me is happy that your happy
Please follow me on viber or kik my name is badgirl56789
My viber name is rose sekac and my kik name is badgirl56789 and my actual name is brooklyn
It’s sad but at least they are beautiful children xoxoxo <3 ❤
Omg that’s very hard to be able to the world very strong mindy
Mindy, thank you for sharing this story. I needed to read your words! Long story short, my husband and I have been trying for a baby for a year. We suffered a miscarriage last year and the hurt was unreal. But I am pregnant again (4 months along). I keep stressing and worrying that this baby won’t make it either, but then reading these thoughts of yours hit home exactly and gave me the strength and courage I need. You said, “Maybe this whole thing is a “Zion’s Camp” type of experience for me, one where you have to show you have the faith to go through the process. That it is more about the journey than the destination. I have to build the kind of faith where I am completely and totally dependant on the Lord and work within His timeline. I must understand that I literally have no control over any of this baby stuff anymore. I have done everything in my power to provide opportunities for the Lord to bless our family in that way…” In this TTC journey, no words have been more powerful for me than yours. Thank you, thank you, thank you. The Divine sent me to your blog and I am so grateful. I have done everything I can, this baby and this pregnancy is in God’s hands. I just need to accept and relax. These are such comforting thoughts. I have really been agonizing. Thanks again! God bless you and your family.
I’m probably the only person who read all this but isn’t a mom, and this was toufpching and could relate a bit to the part about the orphans because in my home country, there are many orphanages there and it’s so sad seeing them
OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG your new baby boy is soooooooooooooooooooooooo cute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! so why do you want to do hair Ideas for us?!?
Thank you, Mindy, for sharing your story. I know you probably don’t read each and every comment. But I’d like you to know that I am fully in support of adoption. I think it is such a wonderful way to show God’s love towards the rest of His creation. Also, I think it’s wonderful that you are not afraid to show your religion. I think (not to pass judgment) that it is cowardly of those who hide their faith. Jesus tells us that if we hide our faith, He will deny us when we get to Heaven. Thank you for everything! I actually suspected this before I read your story and I am thankful you said it.
Blessings in the Lord,
Alyssa
I live in Missouri!! Your duaghters are absolutley BEAUTIFUL!!!
Omg I love watching your hair tutorials and getting to know that person behind the camera seems more interesting that was a good thing you did ! Enjoy
This story was very inspirational! You inspire me and motivate me every day. Thanks for being awesome!
Very touching story, u guys have a lovely strong family! Wish u guys good lucks!
I am a Hindu but I believe in only one religion, the religion of love that binds us together. God bless u all. U r absolutely fabulous.
This is such a beautiful story! Thank you so much for sharing it with us it was truly inspiring! My heart goes out to you Mindy!
JAN.4 is my b-day tee hee
Mindy you are such a beautiful person! Thank you so much for sharing such a profound, wonderful story with the world and with me <3
I see your videos every day the story perry good but you look soooo cute when you were small
Can you make a other hair style like something you can go to school with and can you tell bailey to do it plz love camila
hi mindy
3 weeks ago,i tried to cut my bangs but i made it tirrabily baaad
so what can i do
plz help me …
xoxo
Dear Mindy,
Your story is so inspirational. I am a Christian too. I have adopted cousins and I really love them. Your family is gorgeous! God bless!
I was so touched by your story Mindy! I am only 11, but because of you i have realized how many kids are in orphanages and that i want to adopt one day. My mom is pregnant now, 8 months actually, and your hairstyles help a lot. She doesn’t have a lot of time in the morning, and with 3 kids, 1 on the way, she gets tired a lot. It helps her that i can do my own hair in the morning. I know you are Mormon and i am Catholic, but i do believe that the Holy Spirit led you through this process, and God wanted you to have your adopted kids. You and your family are so inspiring. Thank You Mindy and family!
I like youre story ,but i don’t understand ho are you duagthers, ho are the onces that are adoptedd