Lydia's Family

May 19, 2021

We are Jonathan and Kim and we just adopted our first child, Lydia. Our journey toward starting a family was long and hard, but Lydia is worth every minute! When we started to consider adoption, we quickly felt drawn toward adopting a child with Down syndrome. Kim has worked with people with Down syndrome throughout her life and has found so much joy in these relationships. Once we began discussing the idea of adopting a child with Down syndrome, we felt a deep peace and suddenly could not picture growing our family any other way!
After a few twists and turns in our adoption journey, we found the National Down Syndrome Adoption Network. We are so thankful for this wonderful resource that led us to our daughter! We first got the call in February that we were matched with a baby girl due in March. We began preparing our home, getting ready to travel and starting to build a relationship with her birth family. Lydia was born in March and began a month-long stay in the NICU. When she was 2 days old, she had surgery for an intestinal blockage. After recovering from her surgery and working on feeding issues, we were overjoyed to be able to bring her home. She is such a delight and we are so blessed to have her as part of our family! We are so grateful to GLADS for the financial support that helps make this adoption possible!

April 30, 2022

Thank you so much for the birthday card for Lydia, that was so kind of you all and we really appreciate your support! She had a very special birthday and some friends even surprised us with a drive by parade for her.

March 2024

Lydia just turned 3. She is doing great! She's growing so much, learning a lot of new words and we're so proud of her. She started school this fall at a small Christian montessori school and it's been a wonderful place for her. She's learned a lot and it's been a great community for her