Referral Week Mega-Post - With Pictures!

The Day we got the Call:

That Tuesday (3-3-09) I had taken Faith to school and done a few errands. I came back home to clean up for a while before meeting David for lunch. I was talking to my sister on the phone when suddenly our caller ID alerted me that someone was calling from Virginia. Our adoption agency is located in Virginia. I yelled at Jamie, "Virginia is calling! I've got to go!" (She thought I was talking about a person named Virginia and that I must get no phone calls to get that excited.) All I could think was "This is it! This is it!" Then I switched over and the voice I heard was of someone other than our family coordinator. So I started thinking "Oh, this is not it." And then she said, "I've got your husband on the line. . ." And I thought "This is it! This is it!" And then she said, "This is it! This is your referral call. . ."

She told us a little about him - his name, a little of the information in his file, his age, etc. And that he was "adorable." I could not stop shaking. I walked all around the house shaking and crying the whole time we were on the phone. And there may have been some squeaking. David sounded excited but calm enough to have presence of mind.

She said she would email us pictures and his information as soon as we got off the phone, so we made sure she had both of our email addresses and hung up. David called me right away, and we waited on the phone together for the email to arrive. His computer at work is quicker than mine, so he saw our baby first. I heard him laughing, and then my computer finally caught up and I saw my baby's sweet face.

He took my breath away. Beautiful and, to put it simply, ours. All our hopes and prayers for this child met in an instant.

We got off the phone and both of us had the opportunity to make "THE CALL" to our family - I spoke with my mom and sisters. My mom called me back again when my dad got done with a meeting and I told him as well. Everyone was so thrilled. And appropriately emotional.

David and I kept our lunch date. We couldn't stop looking at our boy and each other in amazement that we had a son. David moved an appointment back so that he could go with me to pick up Faith from school and we could tell her together. I told David that if she was in a bad mood, we would wait and tell her later. I didn't want any typical-three-year-old grump fest to spoil the special-ness of her seeing her brother's picture for the first time. But she was all smiles when she saw us both there to greet her after school, and so we showed her right there in the hall of the school. She grinned and grinned. She could not stop smiling.

Later I took Faith out so that we could buy ingredients to make the "Referral Day" cake I'd been promising her for some time. The list of my misadventures in food now has another entry since this was the result:

Hey, it's not that pretty but at least it tasted. . . well, it was delicious to us and our close friends and family who came to celebrate this most momentous occasion with us. And Faith helped make it:Here's her "sister" piece:

The Day We Said Yes

There were papers to sign, including what is called a Referral Acceptance Statement - the official yes-we-would-like-very-very-much-to-proceed-with-this-adoption-please-make-it-legal paper. We sent these back to the agency as soon as we could. Here are some pictures of us at the post office express-mailing these important documents.

Further Thoughts

"I have often walked

down this street before

but the pavement always

stayed beneath my feet before"

I used to sing this song a lot to Faith when she was a baby. (This and the theme from the love boat - it is strange what surfaces when you are trying to come up with lullabies and haven't had much sleep yourself.) It is from a song in My Fair Lady, and it is the song that comes to mind when I think of what the last week has been like. The whole world the same and yet different.

Like when you fall in love and hope and possibility come into clear view.

We've learned so much about love, hope, and faith through this experience already. Now we are trusting in Him to complete His good work and sustain us and Davis through the court proceedings and travel that will legally and physically join us as a family, if that is His will that is to be done. Thanks to all of you who have prayed with us this far - please continue during the next few months as we wait again. For homecoming.