One Year...Gotcha Day!

One year ago today I held my daughter for the first time. The little girl we had seen pictures of and stared at those pictures for months and prayed for was finally in my arms. What a difference a year makes...The first few days in China were lifeless stares most of the day and crying mostly at night. The past year has been filled with books, playing with blocks, learning English, playing at the park, getting to know personality, getting to know family and what that means, bonding, attaching, understanding mommy and daddy always come back, brothers sometimes are rough, first birthday in America, first Thanksgiving with family, first Christmas with forever family, first New Year in America, meeting friends and relatives, and recently starting mother's day out 2 days a week...and many many other things in between that I'm sure I've left out or not remembering at the moment.

You see, Gotcha Day for an adopted child is as important as a birthday for a biological child.  The day my boys were born the doctor handed them to me and I saw their precious faces for the first time after 9 long months of waiting.  January 30, 2012 an orphanage director handed me my daughter and I saw her precious face for the first time in person after almost 18 months of waiting.



Today has been an emotional one for me as I think back and look at video from gotcha day (see above). I see a picture of God's faithfulness. She has come so far and it's amazing to me because I know that it's nothing I've done. I've just done what comes naturally to me as a mother...I've nurtured, loved, kissed boo boos, tickled tummies and dressed her in things that are pink. God is the only one that can take an orphan, place her in a home in another country and weave her into a family tapestry as if she had been in it since the day she was born instead of abandoned at an orphanage gate shortly after. The reason why is because God has been a father to many orphans. He knows how to do that perfectly and it's incredible!

Our two boys have been so awesome about this as well.  I'm so proud of how acccepting they have been of their sister that gets all of the attnetion now and how they have loved and protected her since she's been here. I love all 3 of the children with which God has blessed Ernie and me. They're amazing, fun, talented, gifted and even when they drive me up a wall I'm grateful for the time I have with them. God is good all the time...if you don't believe me then look at what He has done:

 January 30, 2012

 October 2012

December 2012