If you have been watching the news, you have probably seen the story about a woman who sent her 7-year old Russian adopted son back to Russia alone. As a parent of a 5 and 6 year old, I can not imagine sending them on a plane alone, let alone an international flight, to be met by a complete stranger. The incident is horrendous.

But, I want my blog readers to know that adoption does work and I am the proud and blessed mother of three beautiful kids from Russia. Our children have struggled with delays and behavior that come from institutional life. But they are strong and they continue to blossom and grow beyond those limitations.

As a mom, this is my forum to tell you about each of my amazing kids.

When we first met Benjamin, we had waited 2 years for that moment. The adoption process hadbeen trying and difficult, but the minute we saw his cute little face, we knew he was our son. We spent a week with him at the orphanage, playing and hugging on him. We then had to return home for a few months to wait for a court date. We returned to Russia and on June 23, 2006, Benjamin became an official member of our family.

He is the coolest kid ever. He is creative, imaginative, full of energy and loves life. He is a hugger, a charmer and he can be a challenge. I cannot imagine my life without him.

We met Abby after holding her referral for over 6 months. We wondered what she would be like. When they brought her to us, she cried and cried. She was very attached to her caregivers and did not like strangers. As we held her and tried to comfort her, she stuck her fingers in her mouth-the same fingers I preferred as a child. At that moment, I knew she was mine.

Abby is our talker. She is still a little leary of strangers, but once she warms up to you, she will entertain you with stories and words. She is smart, silly, a bit whiny at times and very loud. Life is never dull with Abby to talk to you.

When we first learned about Libby, I wasn't sure we were ready for a child with such an obvious special need. We knew she would have to have a prosthetic to ever walk. Brian took one look at her picture and said, "it's just a prosthetic". We knew we could do this. When we met Libby, she was all smiles, soaking up and loving our attention.

She is still our attention seeker. Libby is smart, social and she can be strong-willed. She loves people, loves to learn, and is a big helper. She is a great big sister to Gideon, helping to feed and hold him. Now that she has her prosthetic leg, nothing slows her down. It is wonderful to see her walk, run, climb, ride a bike, etc. Activities she could not do before.