At this point in their lives, these kids realize just how fortunate they are to have found a forever family. Siblings Adriana and Adan were eager to express their heartfelt thanks to their parents for giving them the gift of family.
A photo book is one of Adriana's most cherished possessions. It was made by her parents and given to her before she'd even met them.
"My social worker gave it to me, and he said they wanted us to know their house," Adriana explained.
And though it's been three years since Adriana and her brother Adan were matched with their forever family, these siblings, ages 10 and 11, haven't forgotten the book's purpose.
"It reminds me of home and that I don't have to be at foster care anymore," Adriana noted.
Adan said that being in foster care was miserable.
"It wasn't very playful there because everybody would fight and cry and it's really like bells in my ears, saying you're never going to get out of this home," said Adriana.
Fortunately, Adriana and Adan did find a way out and the tough times they endured have made them that much more grateful for their parents' love.
"They tuck me in, they say nice things, they help me with my homework, they give us food," Adan detailed. "It's changed my life because I don't have to worry anymore that I'm going to be in another foster home until I'm 18. And then they say, ‘oh, ok, you're done with foster care,'" and then I have no money."
Their future now, when they're 18, includes college.
Brandon and Laurie say listening to their children's gratitude touches their heart.
"It warms it. They're strong. They're both very strong kids," explained Brandon.
"They've been in six foster homes in five years so you just never really know exactly what they went through. They can tell you, but you just don't know what that feels like," said Laurie.
Brandon and Laurie say they decided to adopt back in 2007, after watching an Adopt 8 story.
"It just struck me because this little boy was building and taking things apart and that's just what my husband does, and I said, ‘you know, there are kids out there that need homes,'" noted Laurie.
And though it wasn't something Brandon and Laurie thought they'd do at first, they meet up with the children's birth family a few times a year.
"They are always so thankful that the kids got to stay together and that they see the kids now," said Laurie.
The kids are also thankful for that bond and for everything else their parents have done.
"I appreciate them for adopting us, or else by now, we'd be in foster care for three more years. We would have been in there for eight years now if they never would have adopted us."
If you are interested in adopting from foster care or becoming a foster family, call 1-877-I-ADOPT-U to learn more about getting started.
