Mike and Sharon, a stay-at-home mom, adopted seven of their children internationally, and two through foster care in Connecticut. They adopted two sisters from Ethiopia, only to learn a year later that the girls had a third sister. So the Dennehys went back to Africa to bring the older girl into their family.

"People always say, 'I couldn't do what you do,'" Mike said. "To us, it just feels like we didn't do that much. We filled out a bunch of paperwork, we flew to a bunch of countries and brought back a bunch of kids. And now we just make more food."

Shopping and scheduling are the two biggest issues, Mike said. The family calendar always has a dental appointment on the horizon. And feeding the family requires twice-weekly trips to Costco.

"It's like running a small army in terms of logistics," he said. "But the flip side is all the miracle stories we see happen. There have been crazy good things happening lately."

Amy Flowers Umble: 540/735-1973
Email: aumble@freelancestar.com