The couple has two biological children — Kenya, 6, and Judah, 23 months — but lost their conjoined twins Melody and Madison in November 2008. Since then, Vanessa wanted to adopt another special-needs child.

“Adoption is a beautiful gift,” she said by phone from Fort Worth, where her kids yelled and played in the background. “God adopted us through Jesus when we did nothing to deserve it. It’s a beautiful picture of the Gospel.”

But since Putin signed the adoption ban last week, the Delgados and other adoptive parents have begun to wonder what will happen to the disabled children left behind. According to The Promise, a London-based non-profit group that promotes early childhood education in Russian orphanages, more than 200,000 children in Russia are currently institutionalized.

On Facebook and Blogspot, where an entire mommy-blog community has grown around adoption ministry, parents gathered to share laments and prayers.