Last Christmas, First Christmas

Two Christmases ago, we had just received T's referral. Family and friends were seeing her face for the first time.

Last Christmas, everyone was asking when she would be home. In our minds, she was already several months late. We were getting very impatient with India. We would tell people, "maybe next month," and they would say that's what we always said, which was true. Because we never knew.

This Christmas, she's home! Two years after we passed her referral photo around, now she's passing hugs around at family gatherings. She's so affectionate with our extended family, who shower her with generosity and love. She actually feels loved by them, unconditionally, and that's huge for a little girl who has only been home for nine months, who still wonders aloud when we, her new parents, will want to trade her in for another child who is less noisy, more obedient, etc...oh, my dear one.

On Christmas Eve, we celebrated with two other local families who adopted children from India this year. These two families have been with us every step of the way. God brought us all together to raise funds for our adoptions, and though we don't see each other often enough, we are always on call for one another, to talk through the nitty gritty of adoption and compare experiences. It was breathtaking to see all our children under one roof, these children for whom we have all prayed for the past two years. Together with these families, we attended T's first Christmas Eve candlelight service. She knew all the songs, thanks to the months she and her classmates spent preparing for their school Christmas program.


It was lovely to have T all to ourselves on Christmas Day. Just the three of us with our dogs. T was thrilled when I let her uncover her eyes to see her brand new, pink bicycle from her grandparents.
She loved opening presents and was very excited to watch us open the presents she picked out for us at her school Christmas store.

A few days before Christmas, we were able to leave T with her Nanna and her cousins for two nights. We needed that time of quiet and solitude, out in a yurt in the woods with our dogs and a grill. T needed that time to play with her cousins and be spoiled by her grandmother.

We're so thankful for so many blessings this Christmas.
We wish you the peace and joy of Christ, today and always.