Christmas Joy Abounding

As you might imagine, our Christmas was extra special this year. So much joy to share with family and friends. Maryn knew exactly what to do on Christmas morning like she has been celebrating the holiday her whole life. After opening presents at home, we traveled to my sister's house so we could spend the day with Grandma and Grandpa, Auntie and Uncle and the cousins. I know there were many times during the day when we would catch ourselves smiling thinking about how seamlessly our family fits together with Maryn in it. What a blessing she is for all of us.

The cookies in the bottom picture were done by my nephew for his girlfriend. It was a labor of love, and they were so beautiful when they were packaged for presentation. It wasn't easy to pick a favorite, but the little bear with the green tie in the upper right caught my eye. Good thing they were too pretty to eat.

A Good Night

There is a group of adoptive families in the area, and we have been attending the group events without a child since 2006. They always welcomed us and felt the pain of our long wait. Tonight we went to the group Christmas party as a family, and it was a delight to introduce ourselves as such. Our friends Cindy and her daughter, Iris, and our unofficially adopted daughter, Louise, came along and shared the fun. What a well planned and orchestrated evening it was. Craft tables were available and manned with volunteers to help the kids, the gym was set up with an obstacle course and pinata, and the church's huge climbing/sliding play area was open. Maryn was using her imagination pretending parts of the play area were her house. She showed me where the kitchen was and mommy and daddy's bedroom and which was her bedroom. We took advantage of the opportunity to discuss her sleeping in her own bed. When we arrived home, she had been asleep in the car so we carried her into the house and helped her get settled into her own bed for the first time. She didn't object and slept the whole night on her own. The next night she was asleep in the car on the way home again so we carried her in and tucked her into her own bed. No problem, and it was another great night of sleep for all of us. We had been wondering how we would ever get her into her own bed, and the planets were aligned just right to give it a try. We got lucky. She wants the nightlight on, but she knows where to find us if she needs us, and we have been tucking her into her own bed since. Neither of us parents are getting kicked in the night or clinging to the edge of the bed anymore, and we don't have to tiptoe around any longer. There's nothing sweeter than tucking a child into bed with a story and a kiss unless, of course, you're tucking her into her own bed. Good night, sleep tight!

FINALLY! 03/29/06 - 12/02/09

After more than 44 months, those with whom we shared our original Log In Date of March 29, 2006, have received The Call, and today they are seeing their children's faces for the first time. It has been a long wait and today their dreams have come true.

There were many months and years when it seemed that this day would never arrive. For us, it arrived on May 4 when we received The Call, and it changed our lives and Maryn's life forever. We were told there was a healthy 7 year old girl who was going to be placed on the Multiple Agency Waiting Child List, and they wanted to know if we were interested in locking her file because she was going to go fast. They were right, she did go fast, right into our hearts.

For our fellow March 29, 2006 LIDers, we could not be happier. Congratulations to all of you and your family and friends who are thrilled along with you!

Goofy'n Around

We had a great time over Thanksgiving getting together with some real characters. The smiles tell the story. So much to talk about at the end of the day.