Meetcha Day Video

Finally I am able to upload our Meetcha Day Video. This was one of the best days of our lives!

AWAA Friends!

Today Daniel and I got to have lunch with some friends also adopting through America World! We were all in different stages, 4 of us had already brought our kids home, 1 was waiting for a referral, 1 was still paperchasing and 1 just accepted their referral. It was so fun to get together and talk. There were 2 other girls there from Ethiopia, so precious and beautiful. The best part was meeting the people who prayed and fasted with us to get Daniel home. One mom Abigail had taken pictures of Daniel in the transition home for us when she picked up her girl Winnie! It was so nice for her to see him again and how well he is doing. Of course Daniel had to be the center of attention! I can't wait for more meetings with more Ethiopian cuties and friends for Daniel. Here is our picture we took after lunch!

1 Month Home

We have officially been home for one month now with Daniel! A year ago I couldn't imagine holding him in my arms let alone being home a whole month with him. I love hearing him say mama or when he runs up behind me and grabs my legs and buries his head while laughing. He definitely has his own personality and is very outgoing. He loves to explore this and I love the face he makes when he discovers something new. He has had many many firsts in the last month. He has adjusted so unusally well. I know that our case is definitely the exception with little adjustment issues. He has definitely attached to his Daddy. Mark is back to work and the minute he walks into the door after work Daniel is glued to his side! I love watching him with his daddy.




We have had our ups and downs. Nap time is usually a time where Daniel will cry and scream but not every time. It is random, some days he just wants to be laid down in the crib to fall asleep other days he screams unless I hold him until he falls asleep. The days he screams he is overly tired and I am not sure if he is afraid I will not be there when he wakes up. We are working through that. I love watching him sleep. The best part of my day is in the morning when he wakes up and we go in to get him and get the biggest smile ever. Makes waking up in the morning all the better!



Daniel loves to be outside doing anything, especially if he can get dirty.




Not all adjustment and post adoption periods are as easy as ours. Talking to a friend today she said that maybe because we had such a hard time getting to Daniel that God gave us an easy period of adjustment. We will never know, easy or not I would not change our journey for anything. The long long waiting periods, paperwork frustrations and numerous failed court dates were what brought us to this precious beautiful baby boy. God knew what he was doing from the start. He was preparing our hearts, minds and home for a very active 15 month old while we waited. After going through this last month with the joy, tears, hugs and kisses all the frustration, heartache, disappointment and tears seem a million years ago. I still thank God for all that we went through to get to Daniel. I feel because of all that we appreciate what we have and treasure every moment with him even more. God prepared us to be the parents that Daniel needed and prepared Daniel to be the child that we needed. God's plan is always perfect even when we don't think it is. I can not be the mom that Daniel wants or needs me to be without God and I wouldn't want to.

I love being Daniels mommy. Daniel hugs and kisses are now one of my favorite parts of my day!

Happy Referralversary!!!!

It was one year ago today that we received the phone call that would forever change our lives. "This is your referral call", the best 5 words I had heard all year from Terra. They had a baby who was 3 months and 7 pounds. She said he was absolutely beautiful. Mark and I were both at work when we got the call. Of course as soon as the email came through with the pictures I was out of there and drove to Columbiana so Mark and I could look at his pictures together. It seems so surreal looking back. I can't believe it has been a year. There were so many ups and downs on our journey but through it all God never left our side. We grew stronger and close together as a couple through every delay and disappointment. We saw so many lives changed through people following our journey. Many people who didn't even give adoption a second thought before now. The biggest change though was in our faith. We grew stonger and closer to God as the entire process was completely and totally out of our hands. It was definitely a God thing! With each delay not only came frustration but also an opportunity to show what it truly means to have faith and totally trust in our Lord. In that totally and completely trusting the Lord came a beautiful baby boy who is sleeping as I write this in his crib upstairs. It was all so worth it the first day we got to hold this tiny little gift that God has placed in our care. He has truly blessed our lives and the lives of those around us through this baby boy. Below is a comparison as to where Daniel was a year ago compared to now. What a difference a year and a whole lot of love makes. God is so good to our family and I am so looking forward to see what he has in store for us this year! Daniel has an amazing God story to tell and I am sure God has great things in store for him, I can't wait to see his journey! Enjoy the pictures:

Referral picture:



1 Year later:




We love you little man can't imagine life without you! You are such a joy and we are truly blessed to call you our son. God has done amazing things in your life so far and only has much more in store for you. Your smile lights up a room and your kisses make us melt. We waited so long and prayed so hard to hold you in our arms and here we are one year later, you are home and we are truly blessed to have you call us mommy and daddy! We love you!

Thank you God for this amazing journey you have put us on. Thank you for the most precious gift of a son, of Daniel. This all happened with and through you, and we are forever grateful. Thank you for never leaving us along and guiding us through the entire journey. Your hands held us everytime we cried and everytime we danced with joy. I can't wait to see what you have in store for us this year. You are truly an amazing God and I am so blessed to be called your daughter! We love you, Amen.