I found this book too glib for such a serious subject. The Christian adoption trend is built on so many starry-eyed fantasies and does not prepare anyone for the truly harsh realities awaiting so many adoptive families. This would have been a stronger book had the author been encouraged to dig deeper and write a fuller account of what the experience is like, both for the parents and for children.

Just okay. I think it's a fantastic story I might share with others, but not sure I'd recommend dedicating the time to reading the book.

Adoption is SO important!
I loved reading Natalie's story and appreciated that she shared the wonderful as well as the hard of adoption. This was a great read!

My husband and I have three biological children and three adopted children. This book spoke directly to my heart. I enjoyed the honesty and encouragement. I also appreciated the Christian world view in this book. It was not overly preachy but very relatable. The writing style is very friendly, and straight forward. I would highly recommend this book to all adoptive families.

A very encouraging book for any family but especially for a family that is not the average family. What do I mean well adoption is still not a considered a norm and some people still look down on it. It is not an easy life but what a blessing for any family. I highly recommend this book.

Natalie Gwyn is very transparent in this heartwarming account of her family;s journey of adoption. Adding a child or two doesn't seem too hard, but adding 4 non-English speaking children ages 4-11 to a family of 4 was more than Natalie anticipated. Many tears and prayers and hours of counseling brought this family together to make them what they are today.

I appreciated this look inside the hard and difficult experience of adoption. She shares what worked and what definitely did not. She reveals things they did not see coming, like the oldest daughter turning the younger children against her new parents. Natalie uses humor to lighten an otherwise serious story of how children from two families came together to form one.

We are all broken, but we are trying the best that we can and God will pick up the pieces. This seems to be the central thread running throughout Gwyn's touching and vulnerable memoir of adoption, faith, and family. Raising kids is difficult. Raising kids who come from a completely different background than you, who are hurt and distrustful, can be even more difficult. But, through her faith, Gwyn manages to pull the pieces together and show her broken and frightened children what it means to be a family, while learning how to be a mother all over again.

Christian readers and those looking for adoption stories will find something to love here in this tale of brokenness and redemption.

With the signature of a judge in Ethiopia, the Gwyns went from parents of two to parents of six. Their lives were changed forever.

I really like this very personal and honest account of the adoption and the life after. Natalie had her life well planned out. But God had other plans. She faced the choice of following her own plan or God's. I appreciate the lessons she has learned through the adoption experience. For example, we do not have to be perfect, just willing. Waiting is not passive but active. God will provide when the step of trust is taken.

Natalie is honest about the struggles she and her husband faced as they ventured into the unknown. I like how she includes the feelings of the adopted children in her narrative. “Parenting my children is a privilege I have been granted only because of the magnitude of the tragedy they have experienced.” (Loc 1152/2320) Natalie shares the pain the children experienced because of adoption, including the situation from which they came.

I highly recommend this book to any couple considering adoption. You'll experience the waiting, the intervention of God in making it happen, the stress and struggles and spiritual warfare, the effects on marriage, friends and extended family. Reading this book will really help you count the cost of adoption.

I highly recommend this book to readers in general. This book will help you understand what couples experience when they adopt, especially children from another country. Natalie's writing style is delightful. She has a great way with words. She tells great stories and includes humor too.

I highly recommend this book to those who see the mountain of need in the world and wonder what good their teaspoon is in reducing that need (Natalie's analogy). It may seem overwhelming. Natalie's story is a good example of how one teaspoon can change the lives of many. She has included a list of ministries that welcome teaspoons of help.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

"Wudahalo" (Wudahalo is Amharic for "I love you").

For the best way to double your family, reach out to Natalie Gwyn. How she keeps her sanity is anyone's guess! After having two children of her own, she decides to adopt four more from Ethiopia. Okayest Mom follows Gwyn on her journey from making the decision to adopt to faithfully living out this "new" life...both the hardships and the good times.

"It would have been easier. But it would not have been better."

This was a fast and easy read, which was really nice after my three 500+ page books in a row. I really did enjoy this. Along the way, Natalie found resistance and resentment. But sometimes the reasoning behind it all was fear instead of hate. Fear of losing their new mother and family. Fear of being left once again, which was a little sad and heart-warming at the same time. 

"Until we admit our own weaknesses, we can't become stronger."

Times can be tough and sometimes we wish that we didn't have to go through them, but in the end, these tough experiences only make us stronger and mold us into the person we are today.  Natalie learned that sometimes pretending everything is alright is worse than confronting things head-on. Things were not always cookie-cutter and there were definitely difficult times, but with the love Natalie and her family portrayed, love always won.

One thing I would change is the mentioning of "white privilege". It was pretty much whispered, but I don't think needed to be mentioned at all. Honestly, it kind of irked me because my mom is an immigrant from another country who came here LEGALLY. But like many people from other countries we associate with having nothing. She, too, had the same: no electricity or running water. So, to say certain colors have privilege as a generalization doesn't sit well with me. Because that color changes depending on the country you go to. Sorry, for the rant. That is the only thing I would change in this novel, otherwise it would have received five stars.

This novel would be a great read for someone looking to adopt, but not looking to read about the "boring" parts of adoption, like paperwork and going through the process. It was a light, easy, read filled with humor and real-life experiences.

I really enjoyed reading this book. Natalie Gwyn did a great job at telling her story in a humorous way that showed the ups and downs of adoption. I loved how real she got at time with the struggles of following the path that God has laid out for her and her family. Such a beautiful story.

I think I would have rated this more highly if it hadn't been billed as "laugh-out-loud." While there were a few light-hearted observations, this was a fairly heavy account of what it's really like to adopt older, traumatized children cross-culturally. There was also quite a bit of preaching, which I'm okay with, but again wasn't humorous. I would recommend this to those considering adoption (or those who have already adopted), but not necessarily to someone looking for a Jen Hatmaker or Melanie Shankle read-alike.

*Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an e-galley in exchange for an honest review.