Why adoption.

Many want to know. What in our right minds would lead us to adopt two orphans. 

Well, if you met my husband and I in college you likely would not have labeled us future adoptive parents, per say. I can only speak for myself here, but I think I may not have struck you as someone thinking about their future family. Then we all grow up, and quickly realize that life on Earth is much shorter than we would like to think. 

Early in our marriage Evan and I realized that we may be living our Plan B rather than our Plan A because sometimes the plan you feel called to live just seems too risky, too costly or too difficult. If you look for an excuse you will always find one, don't let what you can't do keep you from doing what you can.(@markbatterson)

I was reminded today by my friend Ericka that we are to do for ONE what we wish we could do for ALL. 

Every year we get inspiration from our church during their A1:8 series. Calling us to go out and do what Jesus did, wherever we are. Reminding me that although the statistics are staggering:  5.2 million orphans, which has increased 29% from 2005-2009, the way you change a statistic is by changing a story, one at a time.

There are many American children who need homes but that's not where Evan and I have been led at this time. We are often asked, wouldn't that have been less costly, couldn't you have completed your adoption more quickly? Yes, but that is not what adoption is about, it's one of the hardest acts of love. It is doing for another what God did for us. We are all broken people and God loves us enough to adopt us into His family. For us it is simply living God's plan, the gospel costs nothing but demands everything.

I sometimes want to ask God, if He brought us here why wouldn't He help us financially? He is already answering that daily when He shows me each and every person our story is touching when they feel the calling to help. God can accomplish more in one day than we can accomplish in an entire lifetime. Stay faithful.( @markbatterson)


If you want to help you can donate here or join our Facebook group 150 Envelopes, and take an envelope.


God Bless

Party of 5

We were placed on the waitlist to adopt a baby from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in May 2012 and were waiting for an infant.

18 months had passed since we were placed on the waitlist and our agency hadn’t received an infant in their orphanage in more than 6 months. Although this delayed our adoption, we were happy with this development because it may indicate that families in the DRC are more capable of keeping and raising their children.

At this point Krystle began praying about what God wanted our adoption to look like, and whether we should change our plan and consider adopting an older child (more than 2 years old).

Our agency reached out to us in mid-November, they had just started working with another orphanage in Lubumbashi, in the southeastern part of the DRC and had several children that needed families. They asked if we would consider adopting one of the toddler aged children. Krystle learned about them and was immediately drawn to one of the children in particular.

Our agency sent us a referral for a 2 ½ year old girl, from the orphanage in Lubumbashi. We felt an immediate connection.

Another family had been sent this little girl’s information, prior to us, but their unresponsiveness led the agency to reach out to us. The same day we accepted the referral - we received news the first family was interested in the little girl but needed more time to think about adopting her.

After a long week of waiting and praying, we received news that the first family decided to adopt the little girl we felt so strongly was meant to be part of our forever family. Although heart broken and hurt, we trusted God’s plan for this little girl and that He had brought her to us for a reason we could not yet understand.

Just two days later, we received another referral for a 2 ½ year old boy from the same orphanage in Lubumbashi. Although Krystle did not have the immediate (Ahhh!) moment that she did with our first referral, she quickly found herself head over heels for the little boy.

Before officially accepting the referral for the little boy, Krystle felt a tug on her heart that he needed a companion. The odds of this happening were low, as we had a window of about 3-4 weeks for this to take place in order for the court processes to line up for the two children.  We began to pray.

Five days later we received a phone call that brought us to our knees...The family that had initially accepted the referral for the 2 ½ year old girl suddenly changed their minds. They were unable to provide a full explanation to our agency, but they decided they could no longer pursue the adoption. Our agency was amazed because they had never seen anything like this happen before.

Knowing God had a plan that was clearly greater than our own, we immediately accepted the referral for the little girl without hesitation. Yes, that means we are now adopting two children, that are 2 ½ years old from the DRC!

What started as the pursuit to adopt one infant from the DRC has turned into adopting two toddlers. Our children are currently in the same orphanage in Lubumbashi and soon they will learn they are going to be siblings.

We never could have imagined our adoption unfolding like this. The cost of adopting internationally is already high and our expenses have now doubled.  

We are currently living in a small 2-bedroom townhouse with our one-year-old son and our current vehicles do not provide enough space for 3 children. Unfortunately, our current lives are not equipped to handle the additional requirements but we continue to remain positive - double the blessing, double the cost!

We are working as though it depends on us, and praying as though it depends on God.

Next steps:

Now that we have accepted the two referrals, our children are awaiting court. Once the court process is completed (approximately 3-6 months), there will be more paperwork to follow. We have no idea how fast or slow this process will move. The DRC is currently not issuing exit visas allowing children to leave the country, which is the last step in the process. However, our agency is confident this ban will be lifted in the coming months.

How you can help:

1. We are organizing fundraisers to raise money for our additional referral fees and travel costs.

2. Krystle opened an Etsyshop where she will be accepting donated handcrafted items to sell. You can help by donating or purchasing an item.

3. We started a ‘150 Envelopes for the McLaughlin Adoption’ event on Facebook. We encourage people to consider taking an envelope and sharing the event with their friends and family. Please reach out if you would like more information or are unable find the event on Facebook.

--> Most importantly, we need your prayers. Prayers that our adoptions go smoothly and quickly, that the DRC begins issuing exit visas so our children are able to come home to us, and God’s provision financially.

Don’t let what you can’t do keep you from doing what you can.

An Update

After 15 months on the wait list, we have received our referral! This means we have been matched!
We are in the process of accepting the referral. We will then be waiting to go to court. Court will take approximately six months, and then we will have another three months of waiting on paperwork.
The DRC is not currently issuing exit letters, this is expected to last for about 10 more months. We know that God is at work in the DRC and our adoption. We are hopeful our wait will go quicker than expected.

We need prayers for a speedy process for our referral and for all of the "waiting" orphans in the DRC.

We can't wait to share more details about our match once it goes to court!

For the time being, we have begun raising our referral fee on Facebook. It's an event called
150 Envelopes. Or you can give through our homepage on this blog by clicking on the donate icon.

We appreciate each one of you for your prayers and support.