Happy Gotcha Day! Your daddy and I have been looking forward to this day for awhile now. We hope that the activities of today are just the beginning of many years of celebration. You are too little to remember what life was like before June 9, 2007. You were two very little but greatly loved little boys. Your Grammy and Papa were loving and taking care of you until we could come together as a family. We all spent many hours in prayer and waiting. There were so many people involved in making decisions for us. But the part of the story that I want you to never, ever forget is that your Heavenly Father had this family planned a long time ago. Even before you were born, He knew that we would be brought together as a family. He knew all the details. He knew when you would come into the world and when you would come to us. He knew what your daddy and I would go through so that we could be ready to be your parents. He's had this planned for a long time.
I'll never forget the first night we went to Grammy and Papa's house to tell them that we wanted to be your parents. You were both so little and you came to us right away. Zachary wanted to read stories with daddy.
Daniel wasn't even walking yet. He was this little 11 month old crawling everywhere!
After that evening, we knew that you were our sons. We didn't know how it would work out, when you would come or what to do, but you were ours. They next 10 months were long, painful, scary, and exhilarating all at the same time. The day we got the phone call that you were ours was awesome. We're were thrilled! Our deepest heart desire to become parents and to be a family had come true. We were already so in love with both of you.On June 9, 2007 we began our journey as a family. It was a day of celebration. We had friends and family to help bring you to us. We had balloons, cake, ice cream, cameras and lots of smiles. It took a little time but we eventually found a place for everything and began our life together as a family.
There are MANY more details and stories I will tell you on another day. We've had an amazing two years together and your daddy and I wouldn't change one minute of it. I look at you and I am reminded over and over again of the miracle that you both are. Every time I look outside and see you playing and laughing I am reminded of God's love for us. When I see the joy on your face when your daddy or I come home from work, I am reminded of the miracle of our family. So, today as we celebrate our Gotcha Day, your daddy and I want you to remember two things. First, we want you to know that we love you so much. You both bring us so much joy. We love seeing your personalities come out. We consider it an amazing priviledge to be your parents. God has some amazing plans for both of you and we will do everything we can to make sure you know those plans. Secondly, we want you to know that as much as we love you, your Heavenly Father loves you even more. He loved you so much that He brought us together as a family. But even more than that, He gave His only Son to die on the cross for both of you. Our prayer is that one day very soon, you will understand that sacrifice and ask Him to be your personal Savior.
With all the love in our hearts, here's to our Gotcha Day! We love you both!!!
Mommy and Daddy
2 comments:
Oh, the tears we cried waiting for the boys to move to Sean and Lendy's and then become their forever children!
The happy parts were wondrous: hearing that rights had been terminated, getting to daycare to pick up the boys and finding that Sean and/or Lendy had gotten them and gone off in the church to play, carrying the boys out on their matresses on moving day to help them understand they were totally moving to live with Mommy and Daddy's; watching our children and other grandchildren help the boys learn about family; hearing the boys start saying Mommy and Daddy instead of Sean and Lendy.
The low parts were grinding and stunningly awful: fear the boys might be returned to their bio-family, others families that wanted to adopt, not being able to see the boys for a while until they totally understood that Mommy and Daddy were family and they could come to visit us but never live with us again (I know Lendy remembers the tought time at their house after their first family visit to our house); passing each other in the hall at night as one was going back to bed after being up with a baby and the other was going to get the one that had just gotten up.
Tons of mostly amusing times: when the boys discovered that they didn't have to go to sleep immediately when they went to bed, they could talk and play and throw toys from one bed to the other; watching Zachary learn to care of Daniel even though he was still a baby himself.
Through it all, God was faithful in protecting Zachary and Steven and offering them a life no one could have dreamed for them. His goodness is overwhelming, and even 2 years after the first day of the Nicholson family, I am amazed at His goodness to all of us and thankful for his making this family.
Grammy
Holy cow! I forgot how little they were. You guys are a beautiful family. God has truly blessed you all.
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