"She was always meant to be ours!"

When Kelly and Larry Peterson, who both have spina bifida, first applied to adopt a child, they were turned down. But they never gave up hope—and were eventually approved to adopt a baby who turned out to be their perfect match in every way!

- Bill Holton

Junk, junk,” Kelly Peterson said aloud as she sorted the mail. But when she came to the envelope at the bottom of the stack, her heart sank—it was from an adoption agency, and the news was bad.

We are sorry, but we cannot help you with an adoption, the letter read. We have a list of disabilities we don't work with, and yours is one of them.

Tears filled Kelly’s eyes. She and her husband, Larry, both had spina bifida—a condition in which a baby’s spine doesn’t form and close properly before birth. They rely on wheelchairs and heavy leg braces to get around.

The couple first met at a Chicago-area spina bifida camp when they were just 10 years old and discovered they shared the same birth date and year. They quickly became camp buddies, and despite living miles apart, they always kept in touch—even dating throughout high school.

But when they went off to different colleges, they fell out of touch. Kelly studied special education and Larry built a career in customer service.

But one night in 2016, Larry’s name popped up as a friend suggestion on Kelly’s Facebook page.

How have you been? she messaged him. A few months later, the former high school sweethearts wed.