Anndee Hochman, For The Inquirer

“I had that culture in my home of welcoming people who could be family but were not related biologically. It was part of our heartbeat for many years,” she says.

Two of Matt’s sisters had adopted children from Ethiopia; the couple hoped to do the same. But once Kristy became pregnant, they put the adoption plan on hold.

Kristen was so certain she wanted children that she’d been collecting children’s books even before she and Becky were a couple: an online meeting that led to a first date at Tria Taproom that segued to seeing one another almost every weekend.

Adoption felt right to both of them — and after checking out a couple of agencies, they decided to work with Open Arms Adoption Network.

Lexi and Moussa believe in those moments when faith and fate join hands. So, looking back, it was really no surprise to learn—on the day Moussa showed up as a business consultant at the health care company where Lexi worked—that they’d nearly crossed paths several years earlier.

Parent Trip: Emily delighted in watching her older cousins become parents. She babysat as much for the love of children as for the pocket money.

"I thought, ‘I’m never going to relax, ever again,’” Sherilyn says. “I’m constantly thinking of her. I’m never by myself. It is a constant, the mental work of being a parent.”

A parenthood "aha": Seeing other adults in a different light, Ken says. “I look at people who are parents and think: I know what you went through.”

Parent Trip: Anne and Coleman Glenn of Huntingdon Valley overcome the odds

“The hardest thing for Jerry and myself is giving each child the attention they need at the time. You can’t parent the same way for each child.”