Baseball and Open Adoption

People are curious about open adoptions and how they work, so from time to time, I share my own experiences. Here's one from yesterday:

Our son played in an all-star baseball tournament in the city in which his birth mother lives (not to mention my extended family, my husband's parents, and our other son's birth family!). We invited everyone to attend the tournament, and sure enough, they all showed up!

While our older son was playing his first game, our younger son tossed a football around with his birth father. Meanwhile, younger son's birth grandparents, my dad, and my husband's parents chatted together. During the second game, our older son's birth mother, her husband and their two daughters showed up, along with my brother and his wife and kids.

I'm so thankful that God, in his grace, plunked us all down in the same vicinity. The funny thing is, back when we adopted our boys, my husband and I didn't live anywhere near the boys' birth parents. My parents and my husband's parents lived in a different state. But they all ended up living within 20 minutes of one another, while my husband and I live a couple of hours away from everyone.

So, how do we all get along? Pretty well, I'd say. They're all wonderful people who I'd enjoy knowing under any circumstances. It took some time and mental adjustment for all of us to become comfortable with one another, just as it does in any relationship. And it's a work in progress. But to see the boys interacting simultaneously with their birth and adoptive families -- it's all worth it.