We're not the Jolie-Pitts

...but Chris and I have always wanted a rainbow family.

When we were dating, I remember Chris asking me if I would want to adopt children if we couldn't have kids of our own. Definitely, I said. He asked, What would you think about adopting kids of different nationalities? I could see that, I said.

I have no idea why he was thinking in those terms in his early twenties, but I love that about him--he always has a unique and interesting angle on things and he's incredibly open-minded.

It turns out that we are living his dream. We didn't adopt, but have created our very own rainbow family inadvertently.

Our group is not made up of people with different skin color or ethnic background, but we've got all the personality and layers--and the essential quality--that Chris was envisioning.

Sure, most of our kids have big, brown eyes (from Chris, not me) and a few other similar features. We've got five kids who are genetically linked, but who each bring something unique to the table.

We've got boys and girls, all ages and stages, all shapes and sizes. We've got typically developing kids and kids with delays. We've got the entire range--some of our children have natural athletic ability and some are uncoordinated, some of our kids are intellectually gifted and others are cognitively impaired. We have traditional thinkers and kids with an unconventional approach to everything.

We've got a little bit of a lot of things :).

And that's what families are all about. Love yours for all the twists and folds--for all the texture and depth--that each person adds to the whole. Embrace the rainbow...