One month ago today!!

One month ago today I held my daughter Lidya for the first time. It was a very surreal moment. This child that I longed for and prayed for for a year and half was now finally in my arms. Matt and I felt that until we got home and were in our car as a new family of 4 is when it finally hit us. Our desires had come true after all that time. It was real. I truly felt from the time I took Lidya from the arms of her special mother that she was mine. I loved her so much already and felt that connection. Today as I gazed into her eyes thinking back on that moment a month ago I realized how much more my love for her has grown. I can tell that as the days continue to pass we are bonding more and more. She fits right into our family. She is such a joy. Her smile just takes your breath away. Her eyes sparkle with such joy and laughter. I still have many moments when I grieve for her birth mother. I pray for her daily. I pray that God comforts her and gives her peace. Looking into her eyes that day we met, as I held Lidya on my lap and cried I couldn't imagine anything else in my life being harder than that moment. I can't imagine being in her position. My heart truly broke for her. I asked God why she couldn't be the one to raise her daughter, why is there so much poverty that she can't raise her own child. Why couldn't he help her somehow. Then I realized that God did make the way through adoption. Just like he made the way for us to be in relationship with him again through Christ. Just as Jesus is the answer; adoption is the answer. God has chosen our family to care, love, and raise HIS child. The longer that we're home the easier it is to forget Ethiopia, to forget her birth mother, special mothers, even Hannah's Hope. But I never want to forget. I have put pictures in Lidya's room of her with one of the special mothers and a picture that we have of her mother holding her and Almaz. These are the women that first loved her and cared for her. I NEVER want to forget them. I NEVER want her to forget them or where she came from and WHOSE she is. So as the months fly by as this first one did I am making a promise to myself and Lidya to NOT FORGET. Here is the video of first meeting Lidya. Thank you Clark for capturing this moment for us. I'd like to add too, that may we never forget what Christ did for us. How he adopted us into his family and how one day we will go to be with our forever family. This earth is not our home.