When i was only three years old i was taken away from my biological parents due to drug and drinking abuse. As I was only three years old I do remember some things but others i don't. At that time I had one older step brother and an older step sister. I also had a older half sister who lived with us and a younger brother. Out of all of us my brother, half sister, and I were adopted. My older step brother and sister were just my dads kids So it was just my older half sister Raya, my younger Brother johnny, and I were the only ones adopted. . It all started when we were taken to my grandma manuels house. At that point my birth mom and biological father were far into drugs and they were failing court drug test. After failing so many drug tests the court had decided it was not safe nor were they in the right mind to care of three children. At that point a social worker came to my grandma manuel house and took us to the hospital for further examination. After that we found out my grandmother manuel was wanting all rights to me and my siblings. We were able to spend time with her at her home. not long after our attorney found out that she was allowing Tanya and Johnny my birth parents see us when they were not supposed to have any contact with any of us kids. When the court found this out they took all right's of my grandmother away and we were in foster care but not for long. Not long after my mother Donna and my father Preston took me and my younger brother in. They were not able to take Raya my older sister because they were not prepared for two kids let alone three kids. When my grandma and grandpa puck found this out they agreed to take raya in and they adopted her six months later. Not long after getting me and my younger brother we found out that Tanya was pregnant with my now younger sister Briaunna. After finding this out my parents thought it would be a good idea to keep us together as we all three had the same mom and dad. Raya also had the same mom but different dad. After giving it a lot of thought my dad called the social worker and asked if there was a possible way of them taking her up for adoption. At that point they did not know if that could happen. After a while of waiting and waiting we finally got the news that my biological dad had agreed it would be best for her to go with us and not my grandmother manuel. When Briaunna was born she was in another foster home for about three weeks and then came and lived with us. Even though i was only four years old i can remember meeting her for the first time. my mom had said" We are going on a special trip to bring home a surprise for the both of you." After hearing that i got really excited because i had no clue what it could be. being only four i thought we were going to get ice cream which was my favorite thing to have. After a little drive we arrived at the hospital and brought Briaunna home.
Six months after being with my now mom and dad, it was time to finally be adopted into the carroll family. We went to the courthouse and my grandfather and grandmother were also there to see me and my younger brother johnny be adopted. It took less than an hour and a half to adopt both of us. At the end of it all we got our picture taken with the judge and he gave my brother a blue teddy bear and gave me a pink one that i have always slept with. After being adopted we went back home and did the everyday life. In the foster care program you have to care for the child for at least six months before you can go through with the adoption and become their legal care taker. Due to this law Briaunna was not able to be adopted at the same time as us but was there with us. Waiting to adopt Briaunna was hard. She was a perfect little girl and I loved her more then anything. The one thing I remember the most is when she was old enough to sit up on her own we use to play this game where she would have hold of my finger and she would try biting my finger and I would pull back before she could. The best part of that was that she found it so funny she would not be able to breath because she would be laughing to hard. If you could hear my little sisters laugh you would know it is the best thing ever. Watching her be happy and enjoy what she is doing is amazing. She would end up getting the hiccups because she laughed to hard. After six months my parents finally adopted her and now we were all part of the carroll family and we all loved it. I had always wondered why my parents wanted to adopted and I had found out that they were not able to have there own kids. Well that is what they thought because seven years ago my amazing, beautiful, and sometimes annoying little sister addison came along. Our family was finally complete.
Being adopted has tought me alot. I now understand people who may be going through a hard time, and understand the way they may be feeling. Being adopted had given me the grace of having a family who loves and protects me. Now that Ii am older and I am attending high school I am interested in the whole process of adoption. Being adopted has made me want to adopt my own kids someday. Knowing that there are kids out there who need the love,care, and attention I got out of it, I would like to be someone who can provide that for them. Being adopted has changed my life and my familys life. i have always love being around troubled kids and would also like to adopted a child who has special needs. Being around special needs children make me feel good and reminds me of the good things i have in my life. Being adopted has shown me that not everyone is perfect and even though some people may hurt you there will always be someone in the world who will protect and love you no matter what.
