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2509B FM1960E, Houston, Texas 77073 www.AIMadoptions.org 281-821-6508

ADOPTION NEWSLETTER

JANUARY, 2004

FROM JAN'S DESK..

Dear Friends and Families,

We have finally had a chance to catch our breaths following the blessings and the demands of the holiday season. This newsletter is coming a little later than our usual "Happy New Year" letter because we have not slowed down since early October. We finished the year 2003 with a record-breaking 86 completed adoption placements. Then, we were amazed in January when the Lord blessed 12 sets of parents with the gift of a family through an AIM adoption.

Although we continue to try to keep pace with the ever-changing field of adoption, we are committed to maintaining the personal interaction with adoptive parents and birth parents that demonstrates who we are in the depths of our hearts. Regardless of how busy we get, we don't want to change that part of us. AIM has facilitated 1100 adoptions in our 19 ½ years as a licensed child placing agency and we still feel that each adoptive placement is special.each child is special.each birth parent is special.each adoptive family is special. We hope to never be de-sensitized to the emotions that each member of an adoption feels. Part of that commitment is because each of our staff has their own personal adoption experience and we want to be there for others experiencing this blessing. As we approach our 20th anniversary, we are beginning to interact on an adult basis with our children who received their families through this agency in the mid-eighties. We are proud that they feel comfortable coming to us. We are proud that their parents have left that avenue open to them.and in some cases encouraged traveling that road. We want all of our families and our birth parents to know that our concern for you, our commitment to you and your family did not change over the years.

Just a bit of human interest.2003 presented many challenges for our staff in their personal lives. We found ourselves with 17 of our children in the midst of their mid-teen crisis. It seemed like each day brought a new dimension of this thing called "parenting". We are pleased to say that the Lord is faithful and He has brought us through. He has given us new wisdom and a word of knowledge that we want to share with you. Humor. As we all know, you have to have a good sense of humor to parent successfully.and parenting teens requires an extra dose of laughter. So, I give you this word of advice."Find something to smile about every day." Oh, and.."If you find your teenager smiling.be suspicious. He's probably laughing at your hair style, clothing, parenting techniques, age, or weight."

We love you. Thank you for loving us.

Jan

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.

Our appreciation just goes on and on and on. We can never remember everyone who went just a little farther to make our holiday efforts a success but we want to try to remember a few in this newsletter.

Elizabeth and Dena did a tremendous job of organizing and running the silent auction. They have truly earned the right to be called "an AIM angel". Approximately 15% of the holiday financial donations came through the silent auction. Please prayerfully consider how you can be a part of this wonderful fund raiser for the 2004 holiday season. Start collecting items early. If you hold season tickets to any sports or fine arts association, put aside a pair of tickets that you know you will not be using in 2005. People love to bid on tickets. If you have a friend or family member who crafts something.scrapbook, dolls, etc., you have a whole year to convince them to donate one to the silent auction. A friend who owns a retail business or provides a service (haircut, facial, massage?) might be interested to know we are a 501 © 3 corporation.

In response to our pleas for holiday assistance, you donated near 75% of our annual contributions. Other financial donations came from grants and the rebate donation programs with local grocery stores. You have proved again that AIM has the very bestest families!

Susan polished her halo and saved us lots of time and effort for the client party. She planned the menu, purchased the food, organized the kitchen volunteers, and provided lots of goodies to munch on at the party, this is no light chore, folks. She fed approximately 200 people.

Thank you to all of the families who spent the year collecting items for our garage sale, the families who showed up to help set up the garage sale the day before the party, and to all of the families who came to the party to help. The "free" garage sale means so much to many of our clients. It is a wonderful source of winter clothing, household items, and even Christmas gifts for their children.and it is all free because of your efforts. Thank you.

Jan's special holiday angel, Sherri, made sure we still had energy left to enjoy the family party. She arranged for the renting of the facility, shopped for paper goods and decoration materials (for both parties, mind you), decorated, and helped set up the whole thing. Please pray about your involvement in preparing for next year's celebration. This is quite a job and requires a few more hands and we know you will want to be a part of the 2004 preparations.

A special blessing that we have forgotten to mention here, is the wonderful sweat suits donated by the Bammel Church of Christ Women's Thursday Club. Each year, they faithfully purchase new sweat suits and donate them for our clients winter wardrobes. You have probably seen several of these suits in use if you have ever volunteered to help host a client party. Thank you ladies! We see Jesus in you.

Santa Ruben.what can we say? We Love you. You were a hit, as always. Thank you.

We aren't forgetting anyone.we just don't have enough room here to mention all of you who have been so kind to us during the year. We appreciate you. Some of you come back year after year to help and sometimes we get a "new/old" face. Thank you Marilyn for helping with the garage sale and for sending Jeffery (17 y/o AIM "baby") to help during the summer. It's nice to see some of our mom's with teens getting involved again since they have time now that the kids can drive themselves to ball games and piano lessons. We have missed you.

STAFF NEWS.

The big news is.LANA and Ruben have been blessed with a precious little Christmas angel of their own. Four-year-old Mercedes won their hearts and the hearts of the whole agency. She is beautiful, verbal, bright, personable, and has a real heart for the Lord.

DEE is back to work in full swing after suffering a stroke and triple bypass surgery! She was blessed with quick intervention, good medical care, and lots of prayers. We missed her and are nagging her constantly to take care of herself. We don't want that kind of scare again anytime soon.

JAN and ALAN are beginning to understand the financial ramifications of parenting twin-teens. When Westin and Wade entered high school this year, they were very excited about homecoming because they had witnessed years of excitement in the family as their sisters got dressed up and had tons of pictures taken. It's a little different with boys.as Jan and Alan realized when they had to get two suits, two corsages, two sets of homecoming pictures, and four dinners. Oh, and the guys wanted to give their dates a small token when they arrived the night before to bring the guys homecoming garters.add two gifts to the bill. We have proof it was well worth it. Jan was all smiles for days surrounding the planning and re-telling of the event. You can see the results for yourself by going to our website (www.aimadoptions.org) and clicking on the photo album.

BETTE and Jeff are experiencing the empty nest syndrome.wait a minute.no, their kids are experiencing the "Mom and Dad just want to throw us out of the nest so they can buy a little one-story house on the lake" syndrome. With one child successfully on his own and supporting himself.and two girls in college and working, they thought it was time they look into trading their family home for a more manageable home that fit their preferences. We think the kids are balking at the word "little" in their parent's description of the home. It does imply that they will be on their own.supporting themselves.paying their own bills.washing their own clothes. Scary thought for the kids.fantasy for the parents.

VISIT OUR PRAYER BOARD.

Several times a week someone calls to share a special event or a concern with us. The call usually ends with a request for prayer. There is no better answer than prayer. Jan asked to have a prayer board added to our website.and bingo! Just go to our website at www.aimadoptions.org and click on the prayer board link on home page.

GOT A COUPLE OF HOURS TO SPARE?.

A couple of years ago, two of our adoptive moms came up with a wonderful way to display the pictures that you send to us. They designed and installed the "family quilts" that now grace our walls. Beautiful quilts with 8x10 and 5x7 photos of our children. Each one is quite a conversation piece. The problem is that these moms got real busy being moms and we want to add new quilts.

Building a quilt involves cutting strips of cloth, arranging photos, and stapling to the wall. Then an acrylic sheet is placed over the quilts to protect them from little fingers and everyday dirt and grime. If you have a staple gun and some extra time, please call the office to arrange a time to come in and do some quilting. We might be able to even arrange some Saturday time, for working parents.

Oh, and send us your photos. You really want to be sure your special blessings are a part of one of our quilts.

WHAT'S YOUR STORY?.

We want to hear it! We want to share it! But, first you have to send it to us. Think back about when you embarked on your adoption journey. You devoured any information you could find.but the best were the real stories about real people. Your story could be a blessing to someone who is just taking those first steps and doesn't know how to feel or what to think. Your story could encourage a mom and dad who have begun to doubt that "it will ever happen". Your story could reaffirm a birth mother's decision by assuring her that adoptive parents can and do love their children beyond reason.

But first.you gotta send it to us. Just get out that pencil and write it down. Don't worry about the grammar or the content. It's your story and you should tell it how you feel it. Email it to alandry@aimadoptions.org. Emailing it to us will imply your permission for us to share it on our website.

BUNDLES FROM HEAVEN.

The Lord has showered many of our waiting families with blessings of children this past year. Some of our babies have had special needs and He has remained faithful to those children by sending the perfect family. We are not here to find babies for our families.the Lord has charged us with the responsibility of finding families for our babies. Each time we witness the joining of these family members, our commitment is renewed. Join us in praising Him when.

Josiah was blessed with his parents, John and Kelly
Michael was blessed with his parents, Martin and Jennifer
Megan was blessed with her parents, Kevin and Teresa
Isaac was blessed with his parents, Jeff and Jeanna
Oron was blessed with his parents, Robert and Gayle
Thomas was blessed with his parents, Tom and Amy
Laura was blessed with her parents, Bryan and Michelle

BENTON WAS BLESSED WITH HIS PARENTS, EDDIE & ANNE

Gabrielle was blessed with her parents, Tonya and Darrell
Sophia was blessed with her parents, Hank and Alicia
Madelyn was blessed with her parents, J.D. and Heather
Eric was blessed with his parents, Jeff and Nuiok
Tessa was blessed with her parents, Corey and Angela
Ayrianna was blessed with her parents, Lynden and Jacinta
Drew was blessed with his parents, Marty and Stacie
Chelsie was blessed with her parents, Bruce and Vickie
Minabella was blessed with her parents, Jeff and Barbara
Samuel was blessed with his parents, Ben and Carrie
Garrett was blessed with his parents, Greg and Liz
Sara was bless with her parents, Kirk and Peggy
Joseph was blessed with his parents, Greg and Heather
Hannah was blessed with her parents, Rick and Gerry
Durham was blessed with his parents, Bill and Natalie
Mercedes was blessed with her parents, Ruben and Lana
Novie was blessed with his parents, Dan and Stephanie
Abigail was blessed with her parents, Eddy and Tina
Madalena was blessed with her parents, Jacob and Sherri
Sofia was blessed with her parents, Jim and Cyndi

CLIENT HOLIDAY PARTY REPORT.

Unbelievable. 'Nuff said? We had 101 clients attending. They brought 92 guests. We had a ball! How reassuring that 101 women who had completed an adoption plan for their child and young women who were working towards a permanent plan of adoption for their unborn child could get together to share their thoughts, feelings, and experiences while having a great time together. We feel it is an excellent way to keep AIM visible to these young women.letting them know we will always be here for them when they need to talk about their thoughts, feelings and experiences .even (can you believe it) 20 years later.

Because there were so many clients, we had to divide the "rob your neighbor" game up into 4 separate units so we had four games going at the same time. It was loud and wild. The food was wonderful. The décor was classy (thank you Susan and Sherri). The items in the garage sale were plentiful.

Look for pictures on the web (www.aimadoptions.org) real soon.

A SPECIAL ANGEL IN AUSTIN.

We are resourceful.if nothing else. And we have the best resources.our adoptive families. Jean receives the award for performing solicited acts of kindness above and beyond the call of duty.

Last Friday night (actually 2 a.m. Saturday morning), we received a call from a young woman requesting help with an adoption plan for her unborn child. Emily, the mother of two preschoolers, felt she was having the baby by morning. She had received no prenatal care because she was trying to keep her pregnancy a secret from her mother out of fear that her mother would pressure Emily to parent the baby. Twenty-four year old Emily said she could not provide enough of the basics for her children without assistance from welfare and that trying to parent another child could be cripple her ability to get off the welfare rolls. Emily did not want to give birth in her small town a mile south of Austin. She planned to tell her mother that she and the children were going to visit a friend in Austin for a while to give her mother a break. Emily had a friend that would take her and her children to Austin but would have no one to take care of the children or to be with her during labor/delivery.

Emily wanted someone from our agency to meet her at the hospital in Austin later that morning. Since we had no one that could be there that quickly, we suggested an agency in Austin, a Houston agency, and one in San Antonio. Emily had tried to call other agencies and did not get an answer. She did not want to keep calling someone after talking with us. Finally, we agreed to "try" to do our best to get someone to Austin as soon as possible. She was to call us when she arrived at Brackenridge Hospital and we would tell her the status of our efforts.

The best we could do was having a support person to arrive around 7 a.m. Emily called at 4:30 a.m. to say she was sitting in her friend's car outside of the emergency room and that her friend was leaving to return home. Anne immediately called Jan and asked her if there was a family in Austin that might be receptive to receiving a call at that time of the morning.and would be willing to at least go pick up the children so that they would be safe. Jan agreed to try.

When Jan got Jean on the phone, Jean immediately rallied and agreed to go help. Within 30 minutes she was at the hospital meeting Emily and her children. The dedication to the children is what this is what we are about. It is obviously what our families are about. Helping a mother in crisis find a safe place for her children.and then helping that mother find a stable loving home for her unborn child.

Emily was not in labor.at least not in active labor. We were able to bring her to Houston and settle her and her children safely in an apartment while we began counseling and prenatal care. Emily is at peace with her decision to choose AIM to work with because of the kind heart of one of our adoptive families. Pray for Emily and her children and her unborn child. And, give God a praise for sending Jean.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR THE 2004 FAMILY PICNIC.

May 1st.Mayday! That's when we gather for the annual family picnic. It's lots of fun and tons of farm experiences for the child in all of us. Horseback riding, hayloft, petting zoo. Old MacDonald's Farm near Humble, Texas on FM1960 has been our location of choice for several years now and it has proven to be an excellent choice. Everyone has a great time. And, think about all of that fellowship. You won't want to miss it. We will send more details in the coming newsletters but we wanted to tell you early enough for you to put a great big red circle around the date. Lunch will be provided but we ask that you bring your own soft drinks. Drinks and some snack foods are sold at the concession.

THE STAFF IS OFF TO THE BEACH FOR A RETREAT.

.thanks to Elizabeth and John who have graciously volunteered a weekend at their beach house for our relaxation and learning experience. As you know, we are all on call 24 hours a day.every day. Even our clerical staff is often called to prepare legal documents, Interstate Compact paperwork, or notary services in the middle of the night, holidays, and week-ends. After the holiday season and the busy month of January, we all need a little relaxation. Staff will also be participating in training experiences and discussion groups. Sunday, we will ask our families to meet us at one of the affordable seafood restaurants (we could potentially have 45 persons) for some more bonding. We are about families, after all.

"JASON'S PANTRY" UPDATE.

What a wonderful year we had! So many people stepping in and creating innovative ideas to help AIM provide for our birth parents and their children. We wrote in an earlier newsletter about 16 year-old Jason who decided to make AIM the beneficiary of his efforts to obtain an Eagle Scout Badge. He collected 2000 pounds of food for us to create a food pantry to help our clients.

We have used the pantry constantly since that time and have replenished food from donations from time to time.and we were getting pretty low during the holidays. That is until LeAnn Kemp (Jan's niece and a former foster parent for AIM) showed up with a truck load of plastic tubs filled with food.

This was the second year that the children at LeAnn's church collected food for AIM during the holidays.

BEFORE WE CLOSE.

We want to remind you that the quickest way to get our current newsletter (and little side messages from time to time), is to send us your email address. If you will just email Anne at alandry@aimadoptions.org and tell her you want the newsletter sent via email.she can simply click on your address and add it to the growing list of families that are finding this the best possible way to keep up to date. Oh, and it saves us a little less than a dollar for each person on our mailing list of 1500.

If you responded to our last newsletter by sending this information, we have emailed you this letter.and sent by mail. If you receive the letter by mail and not by email.please resend your intentions. We may have made a typo on your address.