Eight Years Ago Today in a Land Far Away....

Eight years ago today in a land far away, my daughter was born. No, I didn't yet know her, she wasn't born TO me, but I feel she was born FOR me. She was so very tiny, weighing in at just three and a half pounds, and very, very early. (yet born in God's perfect time).

We had longed for a child so long, and were sad to not have yet have one. We were in Arkansas around her birth, because we know where we were when we got word about our niece in Paraguay being born. (she's just 12 days younger than Cala).

Eight years ago today, a precious baby girl was born, and she struggled. She struggled for her very life. She would spend the next two months in the hospital before being placed in an orphanage, and she would spend the next year sick off and on from various ailments. She was so frail, I can imagine.

At age 2 years, 1 month, she would meet her parents. We would meet our daughter. It would be at age 2 years, 7 months, that she would forever come home to live with us. We would at long last be a family.

I look back today and am thankful. OH, I am not like many in the adoption world. Admittedly, I don't long to really meet the bio- mother (I have a hard time even saying that word really), but I do thank her. Cala has asked me if she will be in heaven. I said, I hope so. We can't know, we can only pray so. She lives in a place where we are very familiar with the spiritual condition. It's sad to think this woman may very well die in her sins. YET, I pray she's in heaven. You see, I do want to thank her if she is... I want to say thank you for having my daughter. Thank you for not taking the road many many do in Russia, the road of abortion.

Thank you for giving life to this precious girl. Her loss was truly our gain.

My daughter is my joy. I am grateful to God for what happened in a land far away, eight years ago today.

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!