A few years ago, if asked whether I thought I was too old to raise children, I would have stated with much vim and vigor a resounding "absolutely!" Yet, an old feeling flourishing in the heart of this middle-aged woman was allowed to blossom and grow to fruition. 

My husband, Alan, and I were sitting in a restaurant in New Jersey at the time, and somewhere between eating fries and slurping a soda, I looked at him and said, "I would love to have your children."

Try to picture a pre-menopausal 45-year-old woman, with no internal plumbing and who is no longer "pleasingly plump" but just "plump" saying, "I want to have your children!"

Fortunately, my husband, Alan, after five years of marriage, was accustomed to my popping out with the most surprising statements; however, he was not sure if I was serious or not. 

"You're not kidding, are you?" was his comment as he looked into my eyes. 

Thus began our year-long adventure into parenthood: from finding the right agency to work with, to getting finger printed, to having our backgrounds checked, to taking parenting classes, to the completion of our home study, and finally, to adopting children.

A little over a year ago now, Alan and I became the proud parents of two beautiful children. The oldest is eight- and the youngest is six-years-old. After going through the grace period and awaiting the legal "mumbo-jumbo hoop jumping," we officially became a family last June.

I believe we became a family the first moment we held hands and walked out the door of Marion County Children Services. No legal definition can make us a family. We do that because we love one another. 

Perhaps this is a good time to get to the point of this article. It is simply this: if you believe we are never too old to experience the joys of life, then know also that a child is never "too old" to become a son or daughter. 

The one thing I will say to people considering adopting older children or becoming parents, when they are just shy of being eligible for Medicare, is this: do what brings joy to your life. 

You're never too old to become a parent, and a child is never too old to be loved. 

It's funny how life turns out for some of us. My parents were nearly forty when they adopted me, and, as fate would have it, we became parents when we were in our forties. 

Other people's reactions to our desire to adopt older children were very interesting. In fact, a few people questioned our sanity when we shared what we knew about our children's social histories and past behaviors. They thought we were either saints or insane for being willing to take on "other people's problems." 

Fortunately, I did not share their perspective. In fact, I wanted to turn around and bluntly say, "Hey! Someone might look at your children and say that about you!" However, I just bit my tongue instead of sounding rude and insensitive.

Anyone considering adopting should do some homework. The Internet is a great resource for people hoping to become parents. There are more than 400,000 children in the United States over the age of two who need parents. 

Once you start looking, you may have the overwhelming desire to adopt all of the children you see. However, allow yourself flexibility when you search for your children. I cannot emphasize enough to allow your heart to do the searching as well as your good sense of judgment. And always remember, you're never too old to fall in love with life and all that it has to offer.

One night at dinner, shortly after we had brought our children home, I stretched out my left hand to my daughter, and my right to my son. They looked at me and then dropped their forks and quickly put their small hands in mine. Alan looked at us, and we looked at him. He took the hands of his children. We were a family, joined together as one.

Photo:  New adoptive parents Alan and Joni Levinson celebrated the finalization of their adoption on June 18, 2003. The Levinsons adopted their children through Marion County Children Services.