1 year 8 months 3 weeks and 6 days...that is how long it took to adopt Sweetie! What an amazing journey! One that has truly changed who I am as a person. Almost 21 months ago we knew we wanted to be parents. We had no idea of what a test it would be to become parents.
But today we sit here the parents of a 12 year old special needs child. To say that we went into this wanting to adopt a child with such severe needs would be a lie. Honestly, I did not realize the extent of the wounds that so many of these kids have. But as I started to review bios of children and see the extent of damage to almost all of them we knew that parenting any of these children would be a challenge. Cris and I had many discussions on what we thought we could handle. And as our journey progressed and I educated myself more, our window of what we could handle grew. Most of you who have been following know of the heartbreak we faced during this journey when we lost Leah. There is still not a day that goes by that I don't see a baby and think of her. I worry for her, that she will end up lost in the system and end up a lost soul like so many of the children like Sweetie. I pray that our brief time with Leah made a small impact on her life. Even with all of that pain, I know in my heart that we were not meant to be her parents becasue we were meant to be Sweeties. I do not remember what life was like before her. All I can say is life was quiet before and now it is anything but quiet :)
So, let's get back to the adoption ceremony. (which I attached a link below to watch...the proceedings start around 3 minutes 20 seconds on the video...the rest is just us nervously chattering). It only last for about 5 minutes or so. At first Sweetie didn't seem phased by the fact that the adoption was final. But when she did, she broke down and cried. I can not imagine how much relief there must be for her. After years of disappointments and noone looking out for her, Sweetie has us. When everyone threw in the towel, we held on and pushed through. We are staying no matter what. No matter how bad it gets, she will have us to love her. This does not mean that her issues are magically solved. I wish it were that easy. Now we start the real job and the hardest part, helping a child mend a heart that has been pulverized by every adult she has ever know. How do even begin to try to fix that? I am not even sure it is possible. But I am going to give it all I have to help her have the best life she can.
Link to Our Adoption Video
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