our latest firefly family member
With much anticipation and excitement we are happy to introduce you to our adorable addition, Miss Marlo. This small bundle of love arrived in our lives this spring and stole our hearts.
After 15 years of marriage our parents were beginning to wonder if fireflies and four-legged furry friends were going to be their only grandchildren from us. We surprised them with the news of our adoption plans last Thanksgiving and six short months later this lovely lady arrived!
Every adoption story is special including ours and that’s why I want to share it with you. Steve & I love our life and we were both fully aware that adding a baby to the mix was going to completely change it (just ask any parent… they tell this to all couples without kids repeatedly) So we really were fine with it being just the two of us.
In the meantime to mix things up we took a small jump of faith and started hosting high school exchange students. We ended up really enjoying mentoring and helping these girls navigate through their year in the US. Believe it or not, choosing to open our homes to TEENS grew our hearts and planted the seed for something more permanent. Just a bit of proof that God does work in mysterious ways.
Neither of us wanted to entertain going down the road that science has paved knowing we could be the yes to someone saying no to abortion. However, the decision to adopt was a journey for us as we heard many wonderful, scary, amazing, hard, beautiful and heartbreaking stories from families who have gone down that road.
Over the years, I feel we got used to taking small, more calculated jumps but this was a whole new game of hopscotch we were being invited to. Ultimately we both knew we were ready for the next adventure so we just had to close our eyes and take that far larger leap into the pool of faith.
We chose an open domestic adoption plan which means Lolo will see her birth mom a few times year and we also share photos and updates via text and phone. Choosing adoption is one of the hardest choices a birth mother has to make and selecting us to raise her child is a privilege that cannot be measured. Inviting her into our extended family only makes sense, plus it also allows even more people to love Lolo and the last time I checked… that is a good thing.
We are only at the very beginning of this new chapter and we know it’s going to be a beautiful, messy, wild and unforgettable story… but aren’t those the best kind? So far the swimming has been fine. It’s the learning to float on God’s faithfulness in times of uncertainty that continues to fine tune how we handle what life presents us.
I’m sharing our story because I believe in small steps. It’s how we grew our business and now our family too. Looking back at the last half of our lives ~ it’s all the little intentional risks we took that have painted the pretty picture of our current whimsical world. While we’re humbled by our success and are proud of that story, the colors of this next layer are already jumping off the page. We are looking forward to living out (and blogging about) the many striking and subtle strokes in the years to come.
Wonderful news, congratulations to your beautiful family!!
Thanks Kara! Let the adventures begin :-)
April,
Thank you for sharing your story. This is wonderful! Carmel and I are beginning the same journey and we are encouraged by others who have walked this road.
Marlo is beautiful. Praising God with you!
Beau
Thanks Beau. I’m excited for your next chapter of this adoption adventure! Genesis Church paints a beautiful picture of this kind of love in action. I know you have many families you can talk to about adoption but since every story is unique, we’d be happy to share our more in-depth experience with you anytime.
April…it’s been way too long since I’ve seen you and Steve at church (OG days). Saw you on fb and had to come read your blog!!! What a cutie! Your sweet girl is adorable!!! Congratulations!!! Can’t wait to read more of your blog. Glad to see you are all doing well!
Kara (Neville) Pritchett
So nice to hear from you Kara :-) Thanks for your kind words. Hope all is well with your cute crew!
What a wonderful story! I am so happy for the 3 of you and your extended family. The divine Miss M is beyond adorable and will add such joy to your lives! Congrats to all.
Thanks Lynn… were pretty smitten ;-)
So excited for you! She is beautiful and already loved by her new family and of course her catching fireflies family! Hugs!
Beautiful family! Congratulations.
Crying so hard this morning! Joy of course :). Thanks for inviting us along in your journey – xoxo, Liv
You have been such a blessing in our adoption journey Liv! Looking forward to more playdates with little Laila too :-)
Wow all 3 of you are absolutely adorable! Thanks so much for sharing your story. I hope the best for all involved. Many joys to you. If you’re looking for a good parenting read The Conscious Parent by Shefali Tsabary is incredible.
Thanks Vicki!
I am so happy for you. Marlo is a precious bundle of joy and love!
My daughter Aly has kept me informed about Marlo. What a wonderful thing for you to do!
Thanks Sandy :-) We really are the lucky ones in this story!
Congratulations, April! It’s sure to be an amazing journey! Enjoy every little baby step of the way! :)
Congratulations, April & Steve! Marlo is beautiful & so lucky to have you as parents. Enjoy the journey!
April and Steve, How exciting for you and what a blessing. I am just as excited for the new grandparents, being granny and papa to our wonderful grandchildren has been the joy of our lives. Hugs to all!! Wendy
I happened to be visiting your store for the first time on the same day that Marlo was visiting for the first time! The love and joy surrounding that little girl was evident even to this complete stranger. I don’t know exactly what my future holds, but sometimes I think adoption may be a part of it, so I thank you for sharing your story!
Thanks for sharing Andrea! Stories are powerful and we all are living out our own every day. I wish for your upcoming chapters to be filled with love and adventure.
Wahoo!!! We’ve met a few times at the store but I still remember chatting you up at a local art fair before you took the retail plunge. I am SO happy for you and Steve!! For this step and all the growth you’ve had with the store(s). I think anyone with an acute sense of observance could see what excitement you were getting from those exchange students…it was just a matter of time. Having a little one, completely and utterly reliant on you for everything – food, life, morality, all teachings – it is such a tremendous blessing and a giant opportunity to leave your legacy behind. You guys will make incredible parents and btw, huge kudos for not being afraid or timid about sharing your faith too. Such a rarity these days that (I can’t believe I need to say this), it’s refreshing when when shared. Best wishes for a long, happy, and incredible adventure. Last, I’m VERY jealous that Marlo will have all the wonderful items from the store at her beck and call. :0) ENJOY!!!
She is so very cute! Just looking at her made me happy…congratulations to you all.
Wow!! What awesome blessings!!! April, you & Steve have been such blessings & brought such joy to so many – 1st as fabulous individuals, then as a couple, followed by incredible store owners (I’m a MAJOR Catching Fireflies & Yellow Door fan), & now as loving proud parents of that precious angel, Marlo. What an awesome inspiration you are for us all!! I’ve always said Catching Fireflies was my “happy store”. You guys just keep spreading that “happy” everywhere! So proud of you, so thankful for you! Looking forward to even more fun on your blog watching little Lolo grow up! The love, laughter, hugs, kisses, breath-taking joy you have ahead of you is monumental!! God bless & keep you always!! Warmest & best wishes! xoxo
Thanks for all your kind words and your support throughout the years. We truly have the BEST firefly fans. We are excited to ride the roller coaster of parenthood and hope to continue spreading happiness for many years to come :-)
CONGRATULATIONS!! I’m so very happy for you & had no idea you were preparing in your heads & hearts for this beautiful bundle of joy. You are the most awesome couple & as another said you will make incredible parents. You really did start preparing by being so generous & opening your home to exchange students … in those often trying teen years!
Marlo aka “Lolo” (I love it!) is so blessed to have the opportunity to learn & grow with you both there for her. Just this last weekend I met a couple who also have an adopted daughter whose birth mother has also stayed connected which has worked well for all. Their daughter, now 25, is in law school & doing fabulously.
I hope to see you soon & meet the gorgeous little Marlo. In the meantime enjoy every minute since I know from my perspective with 2 grown & away that I even miss some of the not so good ones now!
So nice to hear from you Deb! Thanks for all your kind words. We do miss seeing you on Sundays ~ you’ll have to stop by soon and get you dose of cute ;-)
I am speechless ! Another inspiring story from a couple I admire. Thank you for all you do. If only…
She is absolutely adorable and you all look so happy! What a wonderful gift for all of you. Congratulations and please bring her in to visit us the next time you are around. I’d love to see that smile in person!
So awesome! And thankful for mothers choosing Life! :) What a blessing!
What a beautiful start to your biggest adventure. Being parents is the best thing in the world! Congratulations on your little sweetie Lolo and all the fun that the future holds for the three of you.
Thanks Rebecca. It’s been fun tracking with you via instagram since our littles are so close in age :-)
April, I just saw the picture of Marlo in the Yellow Door year at a glance. Congratulations on your bundle of joy–she is beautiful. We were blessed with our son, Luca, through the miracle of adoption. Not a day goes by that I don’t think of his first mom and her selflessness. By far, the best thing Mark and I ever did. Blessings to you and your family!
Thanks for sharing Lori and for your kind words <3
Thank you for sharing your journey and such an amazing story. God Bless Your Family.