I had a #momfail this week with Laynie. My explanation of something important was either not understood or not communicated clearly.  After 2 hours had gone by, this misunderstanding was corrected, but it ended with a waterfall of tears. And it had to do with adopting…

So here’s what happened.

I saw something called the Compassion Experience on Facebook. It’s a free event that allows you to experience the poverty that children face in other countries without ever getting on a plane. I thought it would be a great opportunity to teach Laynie how fortunate she is and how we could do something to help someone else.

At the end of the interactive stories, there is an opportunity to sponsor a child. In October, our church is going on a mission trip to Honduras, and so Laynie said she wanted to sponsor a girl from Honduras. We found one and Laynie was so excited. So we talked about what it would mean for our family to sponsor this child and how Laynie would be able to write to her over the course of her life. After talking with Kevin, we decided to sponsor.

That was at 11:30 am.

Fast forward about 2 hours.

We were sitting at the park having a PB&J when Laynie says, “Mom, we need to call Mimi. She needs to know that she’s getting another granddaughter soon!!”

My smile gave way to confusion. My heart sank as we talked through the sponsorship process again. Laynie thought sponsoring this little girl meant that we were adopting her too. Laynie thought we would just pick her up in October when our church goes to Honduras. It’s a horrible feeling when your 7 year old thinks you are adopting, and then realizes that you’re not.

Y’all, the tears lingered long after that conversation. My child wept. She was genuinely sad and sobbed in her room for another hour. She carried around the photo of that little girl like it was her favorite blanket.

Our church is big on adoption. In fact, Laynie has a few friends that are adopted. Plus, she told us after Josiah was born that she wanted to adopt a sister. In her words, “Adoption is the only way I’m 100% sure I’ll get a sister.”

I love her heart. We encouraged her that our family is open to adopting, but not right now. Our plate is full and our two bedroom apartment would not comfortably accommodate one more person. 😉

Anyways, if you’re considering sponsoring a child, I know a great organization. But if you already have kids, make sure they know the difference between sponsorship and adoption. Because when your 7 year old thinks you are adopting and you’re not, there could be tears.