25 months

...and I'm still waiting. No words! Well, maybe just a few. I am restless, I am weary, I am disheartened, and I am burdened. I am burdened by the gentle inquiries of my six year old, who is embodied by a strong eagerness to become a big sister. I am burdened by the longing for a child I do not yet know. I am burdened by each day that passes, another day that our baby is without his/her forever family. It takes every ounce of my strength to continue to persevere and wait. I lay these burdens at the foot of the cross. I rest on Jesus, knowing that He has a plan and does not make mistakes. His timing is perfect and for now, we must all endure the wait...

24 months

Today, I endure my 24th month of (paper) pregnancy. I've been anticipating this day...trying to shake the feeling of restlessness and focus on hope to soon having a new daughter or son! Hoping that each day that passes bring me closer to my next child. Hoping that I will soon, be free from the wait, the labor pains, the contractions, and the day to day push. Despite popular belief, adoptive mothers labor too. We feel and endure contractions parallel to that of a birth mother. You may be shaking your head no but ask any adoptive parent. The labor pains and toils are very real...they might not be felt physically in the same way but they are felt in the heart. Oftentimes, the labor of an adoptive mother can last for months! My first paper pregnancy lasted 17 months and the labor began in August.My baby was not placed in my arms until February the next year. Almost six months passed, until I held that precious baby in my arms. She was gorgeous. The most beautiful creature I have ever seen. The wait, the anxiousness, the exhaustion, all fell away as we culminated to this day. It was amazing...a day that I will always remember for the rest of my life. That fated day, God brought us to, was the result of a long journey. Yet, there we were, my husband and I, holding our new baby girl. We knew then that God's perfect plan has come to fruition. She was the affirmation that God has not forgotten us, that He heard our prayers. That in due time, His promise to redeem us will come true. And redeem us, He did! In a big big way, with the blessing of our little girl. Our sweet little baby girl! But today, I was very much tempted to throw a pity party. This paper pregnancy feel endless. As of today, I've surpassed the gestation of an elephant. Did you know, they have the longest gestation period of a mammal? Their gestation culminates at 22 months. This is even longer than the Blue Whale, whose gestation lasts around 12 months. In fairness, there are a few fish and amphibians that have gestation periods much longer than an elephant. For example, the Alpine Salamander give birth to a live young after a 3 year pregnancy. In addition, Spiny Dog Fish are pregnant for 24 months, and there are claims Frilled Shark have been recorded to have gestation periods up to 3.5 years. But, I am human! And today, I feel selfishly entitled to throw my pity party, since I can officially claim that I have had a longer gestation than an elephant! I have been pregnant longer than an ELEPHANT!!!! That has to count for something!!! I was wanted to declare my own holiday to sit on the couch and eat potato chips to my heart's content! But I prayed incessantly and by Jesus' grace and mercy, I rolled out of bed this morning and planted my feet firmly on the ground. I went to church surrounded by God's amazing grace and He alone, enabled me to raise my hands up in worship despite my heavy heart. Despite this long enduring wait, feelings of hopelessness faded away. I know God's plan and timing is perfect. In due time, this labor and toil will pass. By His will, our family will be united with the child He alone has chosen for us to have the privilege in raising. I have no reason to believe that He will not make good on His promise. So, today, I may have been pregnant longer than an elephant but I cling to the hope that my savior will soon redeem me! For now, I endure the race and continue to wait...

Number 2

Trying to gather everything to get the ball rolling on Rich baby #2 but Lord, I don't know if I have it in me to go at this process one more time! Considering the last one aged me about 10 years!!! It's been so nice leading a somewhat normal life: motherhood, work, dirty diapers, ballet classes, Disney vacations, vomit, diarrhea, sweet kisses, lullabies and the like! Am I really giving all that up to become consumed by: Livescans, fingerprints, physicals, labs, notaries, psych analysis, home studies, hashing out five years of taxes, re-prioritizing financial resources, I-800's, I-800a's, Biometrics, ICAB, blah blah blah! Really??? Yes we are! Off to the Philippines we go, AGAIN! Jesus help us!!! Thank you friends for standing by me the first time, God knows, your unwavering support has gotten us through the toughest days!!! Blessings, momma friends!

Over a year later...

I am still completely elated to be a momma! My baby girl turned 3 last month and I am in complete awe of her. She is bright, witty, and loud. She is precocious, inquisitive, and so loving! It has been a year full of evoked emotions. I never knew a love so strong, complex, and completely innate until I met my daughter. We are so happy that our family has come together so wonderfully. It's as if, baby K has always been here. I fell in love with the blurry black and white scanned picture of her that I begged my social worker to email to me because I couldn't wait for the referral packet in the mail!!! I chomped at the bit waiting to travel to finally go and meet her. After five months, a lot of perseverance, and a ton of paperwork, I got to do just that! The day we met, I knew I was meant to be her mommy and she was meant to be my girl. It was the most natural thing. I was warned that it may not be love at first sight, on our part and hers. But the moment truly felt that we were always meant for each other. The many months of waiting, the endless paperwork, livescans, fingerprints, and all of the other hurdles completely melted away and became a distant memory, as I held my precious baby girl in my arms! It has been an amazing journey indeed! A journey that we are contemplating embarking on again. We are praying about a decision soon. For now, I marvel at my daughter, who is finally home...

Hello blog world!!!

It's been a while since I've written a post!!! Since my last post, I've returned to working full time, Baby K started pre-school, and the hubby is also back to work everyday at the office!!! Suffice to say, the only constant we've had here at home is CHANGE!!! Our precious girl has been home for nine months now and it has been the happiest, scariest, most humbling, most amazing, and AWESOME"est" time ever!!! I've never been more tired or worried or stressed in my entire life...but SHE is so worth it! I wouldn't trade it for the world!!! Since we've been home we've celebrated many first. Baby K had her first birthday in March, gave up her bottle for her first sippy cup in April, she was dedicated to Christ on my first Mother's Day in May, first trip to the zoo in June to celebrate Edward's Father's Day, first trip to Disneyland for Edward's birthday in July, and finally first day of pre-school in August. These are the milestones but it's all of the moments in between that I totally live for. The snuggly lazy Saturday mornings, the random smile on my face when I'm washing her sippy cups, the goodnight kisses, the sweet voice that calls me mommy, the baby scent that I can distinguish from any other, the chair on the table that now has a pink booster seat, the flailing arms that rejuvenates me as they wrap tightly around my neck when I get home exhausted from work, the giggles, and watching baby K raise her arms up in praise when worshiping at church on Sunday mornings! There are so many moments that I've experienced in this short amount of time that I've been entrenched in motherhood. Daily, I'm amazed at how blessed I am to be this precious girl's mommy...

Neglected

is the new title of my blog! That is exactly what has happened, while I bask in the joy of being baby K's mommy! I'm so in love with her. The blog will have to take a backseat...but what a Journey it has been indeed!

Today's amazing gifts!!!

All the way from Connecticut!!! Thank you Auntie Wendy and Ate Lily!!!!!!!!!! A year ago, who would've thought that not only would I have an absolutely beautiful little girl, but that we would be receiving a boxful of beautiful clothes handed down to us all the way from across the continental US!!??? It was one of those..."Wow!!! Did that really just happen?" moments!!!! Yup, that's what happened to me and my beautiful baby K, TODAY!!! Wendy Cushing, fellow blogger and momma to Lily and Becky, sent us approximately 40 pounds of clothes and we received it from the awesome "UPS man", today!!! The blogging community has been an amazing support system to us during our adoption journey. I have made many friendships as a result. So touching are the stories and walks of life of the many women that I have met in the blogging world. I treasure each and everyone of you. Honestly, the blog has been such an avenue for me to truly put into words the emotions during this journey. Those of you who've followed us and stood by us know, that those emotions ranged from: sheer joy, blissful happiness, absolute chaos, frenzied frustration, and just over the moon giddiness!!! But out of all that, many meaningful bonds were formed! The UPS box delivered on our door today was a tangible expression of those relationships. Not to be forgotten also, was a lovely package that came from Renee Squires from Canada (now mommy to Rafael) of a beautiful shirt, that she specially picked out for baby K a couple of months ago!!!
How lovely these gestures of thoughtfulness and generosity!!! Whether you've sent us gifts or not, please know that I treasure friendships, blogging momma friends!!! Thank you so much...I am truly blessed by YOU!!!

P.S. Another amazing gift today happened while I was in the kitchen cooking dinner. Baby K, came up and hug my leg and said, clear as day, "I love you Momma"!!! This was followed by an endearing (yet loud) scream of "I love you daddy", from the bottom of the stairwell towards Daddy's office upstairs. Usually, baby K would say I love you back to us when we say it first. Today, was the first day she initiated it on her own! We are so touched by this moment. She surprises us with new things everyday. She is such a sweet sweet girl. What a blessing she has been and a ray of light in our lives!!!