On March 8, 2005 I saw a beautiful little girl on Childrens House International (CHI) Waiting Child list. Since I had been looking into adoption and I knew that there was a long wait list for singles, many people suggested I take a look at the waiting children. I went through several different waiting children lists, trying to see if I could find "the" child that was meant for me. Many factors were involved in my decision...was a waiting child the right route for me...could I handle, as a single person, a child with some kind of special need...did I want an older child or a younger child? Anyhow...these were some of my thoughts...
Then I saw her...her name is Leila (since the adoption agencies cannot give out the child's real name, this is the name that they gave her on their website). Actually, I also saw another child that was absolutely stunning...her name was Ivy. Ivy had a heart condition called VSD. I wasn't sure I could handle a child with a heart condition, but when I requested her file, I found out that she had already been snatched up. But there was Leila...I was also looking at her and thinking to myself...she definitely has a need I can handle. Leila has a birthmark on her eye. So I decided to request her medical file from CHI.
I received her paperwork, and immediately called my doctor to ask him to review her records for me. While I waited for him to get back to me, I compiled my list of questions for him, and did indepth research on birthmarks and birthmarks on the eye. I came to find out that there is a condition known as Sturge Webber Syndrome (SWS) that sometimes reveals itself via a birthmark on the face, specifically in the eye or eyelid area. I won't go into the long details of what Sturge Webber is...but suffice it to say, it can be bad, and it can be not so bad. There are doctors, lawyers, and politicians with SWS...and there are severely mentally challenged individuals with SWS.
Anyway...after talking with my doctor, he didn't believe that Leila had SWS and that it was simply a birthmark. But he did say there was still a risk. I also contacted Dr. Ann Comi at Johns Hopkins; she is a specialist in SWS, and she stated that Leila will have a 10-20% chance of having SWS.
After approximately 48 hours of in-depth thought...I decided to make the formal request to adopt Leila.
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