One Year, Six Years, Seven Years

Life has been so....life...that the month of March has almost passed us by without me thinking much about the fact that March is a big month in our family's history!!!

March 9, 2001: Eric and I met our first child for the first time. She was a 12 pound 5 month 3 week old baby girl with tons of spunk! We knew from the start that we would have our hands full with Taevy. How many kids in less than ideal care are crawling by that age?! She certainly gave Eric and I a crash course in parenting. First middle of the night feedings....first throw up on daddy's head...first time feeling that "I love you so much it hurts" feeling. Seven years later Taevy is a smart and beautiful first grader. She challenges me with her deepness. This is our child that began mourning for her birth mother (with words!) at 18 months old. This is our child that writes letters to her birth mother (kept in a drawer since we don't know who she is). This is our child that, if still in Cambodia, may very well have been sold into prostitution by now. Thank you Lord for bringing us to her.

March 27th, 2002: Just one year after bringing Taevy home from Cambodia we were in Vietnam picking up Samren. Six years ago we were half way around the world picking up our 13.5 pound 4.5 month old bouncing baby boy. His smile was pure joy (still is). It's his gift you know. Samren has always brought JOY to people. I'll never forget how his tiny baby self managed to penetrate the very harsh consulate officer in Vietnam to the point that she finally busted out laughing. We told her that was okay--he does that to everybody! Our first few years with Samren were fully of joy despite the fact that he was so sick. We're so thankful that the Lord, in His wisdom, decided to bless Samren with absolute healing so that we can still benefit from that joy today. Friday after school I could do nothing but smile as I watched my 6 year old son go from friend to friend hugging them each with pure love to say goodbye.

March 12, 2007: One year ago I was in Bright getting to know him for the first time. I met him for the first time on the 12th of March. The Lord didn't work it out for Eric and I to be together when we met Bright, so this anniverary is something special that Bright and I share. I spent 3 weeks with him in Ghana, playing single mother. It was one of the hardest and most rewarding times of my life. Bright was 18 months old. And he hated me at first! My baby mourned. My baby didn't know me and didn't trust me--how could he trust someone with that horrible pasty color of skin?! After 2 weeks or so the Lord graced me with Bright's sprouting love and the boy has never gone back since. Bright's adoption was easily our most difficult (emotionally, financially, and physically) but the Lord had purpose in it. Bright lived--that is easily the biggest thing. The Lord also blessed me with a new calling through Bright's adoption (my current work with Ghana adoptions).

So you can see why for me, March is a very special month. The forsythia (that bush with bright yellow flowers in early spring) always reminds me to take a few moments to think back to those special times when I first met my children. What a blessed Mommy I am!

Anita

P.S. The pictures in this post show our referral photos of the kids, an update photo we got during the process, and one of the first photos taken after we met them.