Our sweet girl is 2!

   Today is our Thai princess's birthday. She is turning 2 today. I can't believe she is turning 2. I have dreaded this day on and off for a few months now. I know that sounds bad but I am just being honest here. I don't want to be reminded of all the things we are missing out on. I know that she will go through plenty of milestones with us but we have also missed so much. The last report we got said that she is potty training and working on drinking out of a sippy cup instead of a bottle. They do bottles in Thailand a lot longer than we do. I know most people would think,"hey you missed the hard stuff" but that's not really how I look at it. All the "hard stuff" is what helps you bond with your child. Not to mention that it's not just the hard stuff we missed it's the fun stuff too. We missed her first steps, her first food, her first words... so many firsts. BUT instead of being sad today we got to celebrate the day our little girl was born. I spent the morning running around getting papers ready for when we travel. It was so nice to be able to be doing something to help us get closer to out little girl. It somehow makes the wait seem easier when I have something to do. Plus I know now that there is an end to the wait. We are not going to spend another birthday apart. That is a great feeling. With Darryl leaving soon for a much needed trip to see his family we decided to have a family night out. We always try to make Monday family night but it's usually at home playing games or going for a walk. So tonight we had a fun family night out. We went to an indoor water park here, thanks to a great deal I found on Groupon.The kids had a blast! Gavin got to go on all the big slides. Makayla tried but her legs weren't quite long enough for the worker to feel comfortable allowing her on the inner tube. We had a great time just playing in the water and being together. After that we went to Dairy Queen and had some ice cream to celebrate. I thought it would be weird (and confusing for the kids) to have a birthday cake for a birthday girl that isn't here so I figured ice cream was a good way to celebrate. 
   On another note, I will always feel a little sadness on her birthday thinking about her birth mom. I am sure she will too someday. How can we not think about the person that gave this little girl life. But as I am learning that's just a part of adoption. There is always going to be a little bit of sadness because who can forget the incredible loss that leads to adoption. There is no doubt in my mind that God LOVES adoption. He wants us to care for the orphans. I just wish there were less orphans. We live in a fallen world though and until Jesus himself repairs it we live with pain and brokenness.
  I will need to reread this post in a few months when I am exhausted from staying up at night with her. To remember what it was like to want nothing more than to hold her and hug her.