So, I wrote our last blog a few days before we left on our vacation and didn't update because my fingers would get tired of typing on my phone! We had a wonderful month in Italy: sightseeing, eating, relaxing, and anticipating coming home to get our little one!
As I'd mentioned before, we had access to the list of 600+ kids who need families and also have special needs. It was a little overwhelming and we didn't have that moment where a face pops out and we know instantly "THIS IS OUR CHILD." So we waited, and prayed, and I kept scrolling through the list.
There were some elements of practicality: some needs just can't be taken care of very well in India. There was one little girl in particular who turns one in November who melted my heart with her picture and then even more with her story. But doing several major facial reconstruction surgeries in India is not in her best interest--they just don't have the skills/tools/experience/desire to minimize scarring like surgeons in the US would. There is another little one who is around 6 months old now and is perfectly healthy with on track developmental milestones and just has one eye that is quite small and has no vision. She's adorable and also needs a family. So please pray these little ones home and please message me if you have any questions or want to know more!
Our little girl caught my eye, but I wasn't sure she was ours immediately, and we still wanted to see if God has siblings in store for us. So we waited, and we prayed. By the time we were in Bologna, I had total peace about saying "yes" and clicking "reserve" on her file. We waited another week or so, praying that if we were supposed to continue waiting for siblings, that He would match her with another family in that time. He didn't, which is good, because my heart was fully hers by that point!
Almost immediately upon arriving to Rome (where we finally had good wifi), we sat down and clicked "reserve." We then emailed the orphanage and waited to hear what the next steps were. After a few days of no contact, Liban called and within 2 days, we had a date to go and meet our daughter!
It was a really weird feeling of wanting something for 3 years but never knowing when it would happen, to all of a sudden having a date, and that date being in only 2 weeks!
We got home from Italy on Monday afternoon, shopped and gathered paperwork all day Tuesday, did a little more prep work on Wednesday, packed our suitcases, and left Wednesday afternoon for Delhi. Thursday morning, we woke up and started driving at 4 a.m. to go meet our girl.
We got to her orphanage a little after 10 a.m., and Diya was not a happy camper at all! We were so happy, but it's also a little awkward to meet your daughter, anticipate holding her, yet sit there and watch the director hold her for the next 45 minutes! Turns out, she was sleepy, so once she fell asleep, we got to hold her and fall in love even more. An hour or so later, we were on the road, and thereafter her adjustment was way better than we'd ever expected. She definitely had her moments of confusion and fear, but we also began to see smiles and giggles after only a few hours.
By the next day, there was no question that Liban is forevermore her favorite person, and even more of her little personality came out. Diya is a little smarty pants, and is very observant and curious about what's going on around her. Her favorite activity is probably riding in the car because she can look out the window at EVERYTHING around her. She also has a sense of humor and is learning how to tease us as well as make cheesy faces and silly sounds that grab our attention. She's not a picky eater at all and especially wants everything that's on Liban's plate.
She's not yet walking, but is scooting everywhere on her butt, kicking every toy in sight, and talking up a storm. However, neither of us speak Punjabi, so we just don't know if she's actually saying anything! She does say "da-da" and "daddy" so we're helping her understand who that is. She's understanding Hindi a bit and is beginning to get English. I've slowly begun introducing simple Tamil commands, but she'll get the majority of that language from our maid! We also feel pretty lucky because she's halfway potty-trained, so that makes first time parenting much much easier through the toddler years!
We are so excited to have her home, and we can't wait to post pics online once the adoption is finalized! (Right now we are officially only fostering.) If you want to Skype us so you can "meet" her and see more of her little personality, let us know and we'd love to make it happen!
For those of you who have asked about how to send a gift, you can do so via our Amazon gift registry here. That's much easier for us than trying to pack everything in suitcases when we visit Missouri!
Thank you for your encouragement, excitement, and prayers over this journey! We're a family!!!!
As I'd mentioned before, we had access to the list of 600+ kids who need families and also have special needs. It was a little overwhelming and we didn't have that moment where a face pops out and we know instantly "THIS IS OUR CHILD." So we waited, and prayed, and I kept scrolling through the list.
There were some elements of practicality: some needs just can't be taken care of very well in India. There was one little girl in particular who turns one in November who melted my heart with her picture and then even more with her story. But doing several major facial reconstruction surgeries in India is not in her best interest--they just don't have the skills/tools/experience/desire to minimize scarring like surgeons in the US would. There is another little one who is around 6 months old now and is perfectly healthy with on track developmental milestones and just has one eye that is quite small and has no vision. She's adorable and also needs a family. So please pray these little ones home and please message me if you have any questions or want to know more!
Our little girl caught my eye, but I wasn't sure she was ours immediately, and we still wanted to see if God has siblings in store for us. So we waited, and we prayed. By the time we were in Bologna, I had total peace about saying "yes" and clicking "reserve" on her file. We waited another week or so, praying that if we were supposed to continue waiting for siblings, that He would match her with another family in that time. He didn't, which is good, because my heart was fully hers by that point!
Almost immediately upon arriving to Rome (where we finally had good wifi), we sat down and clicked "reserve." We then emailed the orphanage and waited to hear what the next steps were. After a few days of no contact, Liban called and within 2 days, we had a date to go and meet our daughter!
It was a really weird feeling of wanting something for 3 years but never knowing when it would happen, to all of a sudden having a date, and that date being in only 2 weeks!
We got home from Italy on Monday afternoon, shopped and gathered paperwork all day Tuesday, did a little more prep work on Wednesday, packed our suitcases, and left Wednesday afternoon for Delhi. Thursday morning, we woke up and started driving at 4 a.m. to go meet our girl.
We got to her orphanage a little after 10 a.m., and Diya was not a happy camper at all! We were so happy, but it's also a little awkward to meet your daughter, anticipate holding her, yet sit there and watch the director hold her for the next 45 minutes! Turns out, she was sleepy, so once she fell asleep, we got to hold her and fall in love even more. An hour or so later, we were on the road, and thereafter her adjustment was way better than we'd ever expected. She definitely had her moments of confusion and fear, but we also began to see smiles and giggles after only a few hours.
By the next day, there was no question that Liban is forevermore her favorite person, and even more of her little personality came out. Diya is a little smarty pants, and is very observant and curious about what's going on around her. Her favorite activity is probably riding in the car because she can look out the window at EVERYTHING around her. She also has a sense of humor and is learning how to tease us as well as make cheesy faces and silly sounds that grab our attention. She's not a picky eater at all and especially wants everything that's on Liban's plate.
She's not yet walking, but is scooting everywhere on her butt, kicking every toy in sight, and talking up a storm. However, neither of us speak Punjabi, so we just don't know if she's actually saying anything! She does say "da-da" and "daddy" so we're helping her understand who that is. She's understanding Hindi a bit and is beginning to get English. I've slowly begun introducing simple Tamil commands, but she'll get the majority of that language from our maid! We also feel pretty lucky because she's halfway potty-trained, so that makes first time parenting much much easier through the toddler years!
We are so excited to have her home, and we can't wait to post pics online once the adoption is finalized! (Right now we are officially only fostering.) If you want to Skype us so you can "meet" her and see more of her little personality, let us know and we'd love to make it happen!
For those of you who have asked about how to send a gift, you can do so via our Amazon gift registry here. That's much easier for us than trying to pack everything in suitcases when we visit Missouri!
Thank you for your encouragement, excitement, and prayers over this journey! We're a family!!!!
