A heartwarming video made viral after being shared by Love What Matters shows how special needs adoption changed one family forever.
The YouTube video was created by the Stewart family to show their journey to adopting their special needs daughter from the Philippines who was born without limbs.
“Special needs adoption has changed our family forever. When we found our daughter, we did not think that we were qualified or prepared enough to parent a child like her, a child born without arms and legs, but we knew that we could love her and that loving her was what mattered most,” the Stewart family said. “She has given us far more than we will ever give her. She is so full of joy and light, and is an inspiration to all who meet her.”
The girl was born without arms or legs in a small village in the Philippines. When she was 6 months-old, the girl was placed in Chosen Children Village, an orphanage for mentally and/or physically challenged children, located in Silang in the Filipino province of Cavite.
In October 2014, the Stewart family saw the little girl on a list of children waiting to be adopted and they “fell in love.”
“It took a lot of courage and a lot of faith,” the family writes in the video. “But we decided we were going to adopt her.”
The Stewart family received approval in May 2015 to adopt the little girl. They traveled to the Philippines that October to meet their new daughter and bring her home.
“It was a long drive to her orphanage and we were so nervous and excited,” the family writes in the video.
The video shows the special moment the Stewart family met the little girl for the first time. They spent three days with the girl at the orphanage, holding her and playing with her. The little girl soon became more comfortable with her new family.
“She was so beautiful and so brave! We even got some smiles and laughs from her,” the family writes in the video. “By the end of the first day, we were completely in love with her!”
Finally, the Stewart family got the girl’s exit paperwork and headed home with their new daughter. The little girl received a warm welcome from her new siblings, who held and played with her.
The little girl, who sees an occupational therapist, is now learning how to swim, draw, go down the stairs and eat independently. She is also learning how to operate an electric wheelchair.
“We put limits on her abilities and then we see her doing exactly what we thought she was not capable of,” the Stewart family said. “We are so blessed to have her in our family. She has made each of us better. She has taught us to find joy in small things, to not be sad or disappointed by what we don’t have, and to not take for granted the things we do have. The most important thing she has taught us is that we are all so much more capable than we think we are.”
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